Verbs - Past Tense

If you want to talk about something that already happened, you need to use the past tense of a verb. These verbs, combined with other phrases like "Three years ago," help the reader know that you're writing about things that are already done. Just like with present tense verbs, past tense verbs also need to correctly agree with the subject, whether it's singular or plural. Take a look at some examples below.

The palm tree fell over yesterday.
Last night, my husband cooked dinner.
We danced all night at the wedding.

Try these 15 questions to see how well you can work with past tense verbs. To use this fun Quia game, click here. When the page loads, click the "Play this game!" button. Then come back and state how you did! Is this an activity that you'd share with other people, maybe even your friends or relatives, if they wanted to practice using past tense verbs? Let me know!

Verbs - Present Tense

Part of good writing depends on your verbs. You always want to make sure that you're using the correct tense of the verbs you use so that your message makes sense. If you're talking about something happening now, you would use the present tense. Below are some examples of verbs in present tense.

I shop at the mall.
Sharon wraps the birthday presents.
Taylor and Robert walk their dog.
They prepare the spaghetti dinner.

Try your skills at picking out the correct present tense verb by playing this Quia game that's similar to "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?". Remember that your verbs will have be in the correct tense and also have the correct subject-verb agreement. Are you ready to give it a try? If so, click here. Come back & report your results by writing a few complete sentences.

Writing - Do you paint an "exact" picture?

If you've been outside in the last few hours, you know that it's "cold." But that word is not as descriptive as you'd like. If you said "cold" to different people, you'd get some different interpretations of what that means. Let's take a look!

Someone from Miami may say that "cold" to them means anything under 70 degrees.

Someone from New York may say that "cold" means anything under 40 degrees.

Lastly, someone from Alaska may say that "cold" means anything under 0 degrees!

This doesn't mean that you shouldn't use the word "cold" in your writing. However, with words like that where meanings can be different, be sure to add in those additional details to help paint that "exact" picture.

To practice this, tell me about how the cold weather feels to you. Is it really cold or are you thinking it's pretty nice? Give me those details to help me understand what you mean! In fact, I'll give you a short example.

Today I went outside and it was cold! The thermometer said 57 degrees, but I was sure it was colder than that. The air was crisp and the wind was strong. I decided to put on my sweater and get a jacket too. If it got any colder, I'd need my fleece gloves.

Now you try!

Writing: Subject Pronouns

An important part of writing is varying the words you use. To help accomplish this, you can use subject pronouns such as "he," "she," and "they." But, be sure you use them correctly! Think about whose name you're replacing with the pronoun and then make sure the pronoun matches in both gender and number.

Try this Quia game about subject pronouns. Then, come back here & post how you did! Remember to write your results in complete, correctly-written sentences.

http://www.quia.com/pop/51661.html

Enjoy!

Commonly Misused Words: Witch and Which

With Halloween right around the corner, this next blog post about the words "witch" and "which" is quite appropriate. These words, like many of the others that we've discussed during the "Commonly Misused Words" topics, are homonyms or homophones. They're pronounced almost identically, but have very different meanings. Let's look at each one a bit closer!

The word "witch" is meant to be used when describing the Halloween character who has the pointy hat, pointy shoes, and rides a broom. It can also be used to describe a nasty, mean-spirited person.

The word "which" can be used as a pronoun, as in the example below.
"Which of these should we buy?"

It can also be used as an adjective, shown in the example below.
"I spent the day at the mall, during which time my car was being fixed."

Probably the easiest way to remember this is to ask yourself if you're talking about a person or character, similar to what you see in the picture below. If that's not what you mean, then go with the word "which."


Can you write two sentences that show how to use the words "witch" and "which" correctly? Give it a try now!

Prepositions

Did you know that you use prepositions all the time in your writing & speaking? According to Wikipedia, a preposition indicates a relation between things mentioned in a sentence. In English, the most used prepositions are "of", "to", "in", "for", and "on." (Wikipedia link)

Think about it! Without prepositions, you wouldn't be able to give you reader that exact picture that you want to paint for them.

Test your preposition skills by playing this short 8-question game by going here: http://www.quia.com/pop/46312.html. Once you're on that site, click the "Play this game" box to start the activity. Once you're done, return to the blog & post your results by using complete, correctly-written sentences!

Usage - "A" versus "An"

In grammar, the terms "a" and "an" are referred to as indefinite articles. They're used before singular nouns. But what's the difference and how do you know which one to use? In most instances, the article "a" can be used. The exception, however, comes when the noun that follows starts with a vowel (the letters 'a,' 'e,' 'i,' 'o,' and 'u'). Let's look at some examples!

1.) I borrowed a book from the library.
2.) A thunderstorm is predicted for tomorrow.
3.) Did you see a movie this weekend?

4.) An elephant was part of the circus.
5.) My sister packed an umbrella in her car.
6.) Did you taken an English class this year?

How good do you think you are at using "a" and "an" correctly? Test your skills by playing the "Rags to Riches" game found here: http://www.quia.com/rr/53245.html. Then, come back & report how you did. Don't forget to include your thoughts on the activity. Was it fun? Did you challenge yourself? Would you recommend this activity to others who'd like to practice their "a" versus "an" skills?

Writing - Choosing the Right Word

How many times have words like "there," "their," and "they're" been confusing to you in your writing? Those words are called "homonyms" or "homophones" which means they sound the same when you say them, but they have different meanings and spellings.

In fact, we've had some past blog topics that dealt with these commonly confused words! (For a quick review, visit these links: May 31st, July 22nd, and August 12th.)

So let's continue on with our study of these words and have a little fun at the FunBrain.com site with a "Word Confusion" game. Click the link below to visit the site, play the game, and then report your results! If you get a part wrong, that's ok! Just write down the two words, make some flash cards to learn the different meanings, and review them daily.

Word Confusion Game

Writing - Parallel Structure

Have you heard of the term "parallel structure" when it comes to writing? It's certainly not something you hear of every day, but is an important part of good (and correct) writing!

If you're a fan of the Olympics and gymnastics, you've heard of and seen the parallel bars. Think about those for a minute and look at the image below of parallel bars.


What do you notice about those bars? Well, you could say that they are very similar to each other. They have the same form, style, and layout as each other. Believe it or not, this is true of good writing! Let's take a closer look at how.

Sometimes you may have a sentence that has multiple verbs in it. Just like those parallel bars, you want those verbs to be in the same format as each other and to follow the same layout. So if one verb is in the past tense, they all should be! If one verb is using the present participle form, they all should be! Below are some examples.

My sister was running, jumping, and playing all over the soccer field.
Bill ate dinner, slept for a bit, and then jogged.
The cat eats and sleeps throughout the day.

Did you see how each sentence had multiple verbs, but they were all similar in format and tense? That's something to pay attention to the next time you write!

Now you try it! Write a single sentence that uses two or three verbs and has correct parallel structure. I know you can do it!

Commas - The Best Trick!

The English language has so many rules and even more exceptions to those rules. This is especially true of rules relating to comma usage in writing. Rather than go over all of those rules, I'm going to share with you my favorite "trick" for writing. You're going to love it!

Writing and speaking are very closely related. If you have a sentence and don't know if a comma is needed, read your sentence out loud. Pay close attention to where you naturally tend to pause. That's where a comma is probably needed!!! Let's try it now.

Read the sentence (shown below) out loud and see where you pause.

While flipping channels I came across a new television show.

I bet you paused after the phrase "while flipping channels." That gives you an indication to put a comma at that point in the sentence. Doing so, you'd end up with this: "While flipping channels, I came across a new television show."

The next time you're unsure if a comma is needed, try this trick! In fact, reply to this post and tell me if you think it will help you.

Vocabulary - Use It Or Lose It (Part 17)

Today's the day to learn a new word (or two)! Look at the list of words below. Pick one that you're not familiar with, visit the online dictionary, get the definition, and then come back here to post your findings!

Accolade
Bolster
Cryptic
Ephemeral
Hedonist
Lamentation
Obliterate
Plummet
Resolution
Tentative

You can use this link (http://www.merriam-webster.com) to get to the online dictionary.

It's helpful to see the part of speech of the word, so include that too & see if you can then use the word correctly in a sentence!

Writing - Know Your Word Parts

Yesterday's blog post sent you to the FunBrain.com site to play the "Grammar Gorilla" game. That one had you working on subjects and verbs. This next "Grammar Gorilla" game is a tougher version that will challenge you to correctly identify more parts of speech. Are you up for it?

Click here to play the game and then report back to share how you did & what you thought of it! If you played the previous game for subjects & verbs, how did this one compare?

Remember to write your sentences correctly and to have proper capitalization and punctuation!
:-)

Writing - Subjects & Verbs

A key part of avoiding sentence fragments (like we discussed in the October 18th blog entry) is knowing what's your subject and what's your verb for every sentence you write.

Here's a fun site that has a game called "Grammar Gorillas" and will have you test your knowledge of subject & verb identification. I think you'll enjoy it!

Click here to play the game and then report back to tell us how you did, if you liked it, and if you learned anything new!

Writing - Avoiding Sentence Fragments

Have you ever read something that wasn't a complete thought and you're wondering about the other information that was needed? In cases like that, the sentence was probably a fragment. This is something you definitely want to stay away from in your writing. Let's look at some examples of fragments and ways they could be fixed.

Example 1: Went to the mall.
Problem: This sentence is missing a subject. Who went to the mall?
Solution: Add the subject into the sentence.
Possible sentence: Sharon went to the mall.

Example 2: The basketball player at the gym.
Problem: This sentence is missing a verb. What did the basketball player do?
Solution: Add the verb into the sentence.
Possible sentence: The basketball player at the gym drank some water.

Example 3: Such as books and magazines.
Problem: This is a subordinate clause and actually needs a subject & a verb.
Solution: Add the subject and verb into the sentence.
Possible sentence: The library is filled with great things, such as books and magazines.

For more information about sentence fragments, how to avoid them, and how to fix them, please visit Lauren Scerbo's Elluminate session from 10/15/08. Navigate through the slides and then post here to state what part you found to be most helpful!

(If you're wanting more information about sentence fragments, visit Purdue's Online Writing Lab (OWL) at http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/grammar/g_frag.html.)

Writing - Using the "Quia" Website

One of my new favorite websites is Quia (pronounced like the car company Kia). There, you can find tons of great educational activities for almost any subject out there! As I explore it more, I've found games that I love, especially vocabulary games.

Take a look at a few of them & see how you do!

Vocabulary Matching Game #1

Vocabulary Matching Game #2

Vocabulary Matching Game #3

Once you've tried them, report back & tell us in complete sentences how you enjoyed those games. Feel free to explore more of the site & to use it for other members in your family who may be looking for some fantastic educational web resources!

http://www.quia.com/shared/

Writing - Let's Celebrate Dictionary Day!

Today, October 16th, is "Dictionary Day!" Did you know such a thing existed? If you've participated in other blog topics, you've probably had a chance to use an online dictionary.

Fun Fact: Noah Webster, considered the Father of the American Dictionary, was born on October 16, 1758. Webster began to write his dictionary at the age of 43 and completed the dictionary 27 years later.

Take a look at this online dictionary, http://www.merriam-webster.com. On there, they have a "Word of the Day" category and even an archive where you can see past words of the day!

So, to celebrate "Dictionary Day" I'd like you to visit the Merriam-Webster online dictionary's word of the day. To get there, click this link: http://www.merriam-webster.com/cgi-bin/wodcalendar.pl. Pick any word or date you want & click on that word. You'll see the word, a definition, and an example sentence. Come back here & post those results!

I'll start!

kvell
\KVEL\
verb
to be extraordinarily proud, rejoice

Example Sentence: Critics kvelled over the violinist's triumphant return to the stage where she had made her debut many years ago.

Commonly Misused Words: Been and Being

The words "been" and "being" have very different meanings & usages. Getting them confused and using the wrong one can really jump out at a reader. So let's spend some time focusing on each one and learning more about them.

Been: This word is pronounced like "bin." It is used as a helping (or auxilary) verb and is the past participle of the verb "be." Here are some examples of the word "been" in a correct sentence.
1.) I have been waiting for 5 hours.
2.) Terrance has been on the varsity football team for a while.
3.) My grandparents have been in the hospital.
4.) You have been a great student.
5.) She has been shopping already.
6.) The test has been completed as of yesterday.

Being: This word is pronounced like "bee-ing." It can be used in various formats including a noun and a present participle. Let's look at some examples of each.
1.) We are all human beings. (noun)
2.) The alien beings are shown in movies. (noun)
3.) I am being a cat for Halloween. (present participle)
4.) You are being a good student by studying. (present participle)
5.) They are being taken to the airport right now. (present participle)
6.) She is being given an award. (present participle)

Here are some helpful hints to use!
** The word "been" will always have either "has" or "have" in front of it. It' s used when talking about something that already happened.
** The word "being" might use "am," "is," "are," "was," or "were" in front of it. It will never have the words "has" or "have" used with it.

Can you correctly use the words "being" and "been" in a sentence? Give it a shot!!!

Vocabulary - Words with Multiple Meanings (Math)

The English language can be tricky because so many words have more than one meaning. This blog post is going to focus on some math terms that you know (and love) that have multiple meanings. Let's examine a few.

Fraction:
In math, a fraction would be represented by values like 1/2, 1/4, or 5/8.
In general terms, a fraction means just a portion of something.
Example sentence: Sally completed just a fraction of her work for the day.

Area:
In math, area is the amount of flat space that a figure covers. Depending on the figure, there are different formulas to use to calculate that specific value.
In general terms, area means a certain section of land or space.
Example sentence: This particular area of North Carolina is beautiful.

Volume:
In math, volume is the amount of 3-dimensional space that something takes up, such as a box or a basketball.
In general terms, it could mean the amount of sound.
Example sentence: The volume of his radio is too loud for me.

Can you think of more math words that have dual meanings? Take a look at the list found at http://www.mathwords.com/a_to_z.htm. Be sure to scroll down since there are a ton of words to see! Find a word that has a particular meaning in math, but then a different meaning when it's used outside of a math context. Post your word, the math definition, and then try to give your best definition of what the word means outside of math. Lastly, use that word's non-math version in a sentence (similar to what I showed you above).

Writing - Political Cartoons

Have you ever heard the term "political cartoon" or seen one of these? With all that's going on in politics right now, I bet you have!

Wikipedia.com defines a political cartoon (sometimes called an editorial cartoon) as an illustration or comic strip containing a political or social message, that usually relates to current events or personalities.

Let's look at an example.

What does that image say to you? Look at the title shown on the image. It says "World Markets." So you know it's dealing with economics. Next, look down the left side. You see negative percentages. The shape that's used (a spiral) is also significant. To me, this political cartoon is expressing that the world markets seem to be in a downward spiral. Isn't that what you've been seeing & reading on the news lately?

Visit this site: http://www.cagle.com/politicalcartoons/. Once you're there, be sure to scroll down to see all of the cartoons. Find one that you can relate to or maybe one that you've read about recently. Then, come back here and tell us about what the cartoon showed and what current event it was related to.

(In case you're wondering, political cartoons are included on the social studies part of the GED test!)

Relationship: Good Writing and Good Reading (Part 6)

If you've been an active blogger on here, you've probably seen some of the previous "Relationship: Good Writing and Good Reading" posts. (If you haven't or would like to review them again, go here: July 8th, July 26th, August 15th, September 11th, and September 30th. In fact, there's tons of great links provided in each of those posts!)

Do you want to be a good writer and a good reader? If so, an important part of that is staying "up" on all the latest events that are happening. This doesn't mean that you need to be an expert in world affairs, politics, the economy, or the environment, but does mean that you should be "well rounded" in what you know. If you're reading every day (for 30 minutes or more), there's no reason why you can't visit some sites to help you know what's new!

Here are a few of my favorite places to get news & current events from around the nation.

Boston Globe

New York Times

Washington Post

Los Angeles Times

Chicago Tribune

You may find that if you visit a few of these sites, the top stories are the same or very similar. For example, the economy is a big issue these days and seems to be the leading headline on almost every newspaper. Don't be afraid to read multiple stories on the same topic. Different journalists will focus on different aspects and the more you read, the more information you have to help "round you out."

Visit one or more of those sites shown above and then post where you visited and what you read about. If the economy or politics don't interest you, feel free to leave the "front page" and venture into other sections about technology, food, or entertainment! Remember that no reading is bad reading!!!

Writing - Be Descriptive!

Did you know that yesterday (October 10th) was "National Cake Decorating Day?" Doesn't that sound fun?

Imagine that you were going to create and decorate a cake to represent you and your personality. What would it look like? What colors would you use? Why did you pick those colors? What kind of decorations (edible or not) would be included on the top? Be as descriptive as possible! Good writing should paint a picture in the reader's mind and that's your task for this blog topic. Are you up to the challenge?

The inside of my cake would be yellow since that's a bright, happy, cheery color. I would make a creamy light blue icing because that's my favorite color and is soothing to the eyes. Lastly, I'd include multi-color sprinkles on top. Sprinkles are fun and always make me smile. Like my cake, I think every day should include those things: happiness, fun, and smiles!

Now describe your cake to me! How delicious and wonderful can you make those words and images?

Vocabulary - Use It Or Lose It (Part 16)

It's vocabulary time! Review the word list (shown below) and pick one word that you're not already familiar with in your day-to-day vocabulary. You can use an online dictionary (such as this one: http://www.merriam-webster.com) to define it. Post the word, its part of speech (noun, verb, adjective, etc.), and the definition. Be sure to look through what others have posted! It'll help all of us improve our vocabularies! If you really want to stretch your brain & try something fun, use the word you select correctly in a sentence!

Abstemious
Blithe
Crepuscular
Enunciation
Headstrong
Lackluster
Objective
Pliable
Rescind
Temper

Writing Tips for Emails (Part 4)

Have you used the subject line in an email? This is a great way to let the reader know the overall topic of your email before he or she even opens it. Imagine that you can give a short title to your email. That's what you can use for the subject!

Good subject lines are specific, but concise. Here are some examples.

1.) Assignment 5.01 - Question #1
2.) Final Exam Follow-Up
3.) Online Workshop RSVP
4.) GED Test Location
5.) Vacation, 12/10/08

I'd like you to practice this and some of the other email tips you've seen in previous posts. Send an email to me at GetYourGED@aol.com and see how many of the tips you can incorporate! Once you send me an email, post a response here to let me know that you've completed the task!

Writing Tips for Emails (Part 3)

How you end your email is as essential as how you begin it! Could you imagine getting an email from someone and not knowing who sent it? What if it was from your friend who was using a new email address? If it was a general email address without a name (such as "sunshine_girl_2008@yahoo.com"), you might be a bit confused. So, to help your email recipients from experiencing confusion, be sure to always use this next tip!

Tip #3 for emails: Always "sign" your emails by typing your full name at the end.

Reason: It identifies the sender of the email.

Suggestion: Many email systems allow you to set up a "signature" that automatically gets applied to the end of every email. If you set this up with your name, you can let the technology do some of the work for you!

Do you sign your emails with your name? Have you set up a "signature" or thought about doing that? What are your thoughts on this third email tip?

Writing Tips for Emails (Part 2)

The way you start your email sets the tone for everything that follows. Do you want your reader to know that your message is meant for him or her? That's always very helpful and much appreciated by the reader. Knowing this, here's our second writing tip for emails.

Tip #2 for emails: Always begin an email with an appropriate salutation.

Reason: It identifies the recipient and shows that you put thought into the greeting.

Examples: The following salutations could begin an email.
1.) Dear Ms. Thomas.
2.) Hello Jane.
3.) Good morning, Mr. Castano.
4.) Greetings Robert.

Suggestion: If you don't know how to address the person, it's safest to go with the most respectful option which would be to use "Mr." or "Ms." before the last name.

Do you begin emails with a salutation? If not, do you think this is something you could start doing?

Writing Tips for Emails (Part 1)

We've had a few different series in the eLearning blog. Sometimes we've focused on vocabulary; other times we've focused on problem phrases or using hyphens correctly. The next series we'll have will be dedicated to writing skills for emails. However, the good news is that many of the things we'll discuss also pertain to "regular" writing you may do, including hand-written letters!

Tip #1 for emails: Stay away from using all caps (capital letters).

Reason: It comes across as screaming or shouting.

Example 1: DON'T WRITE YOUR EMAILS LIKE THIS.

Example 2: Instead, write "normally." Capitalize only the parts that need to be capitalized.

Did you know that all caps in emails (or even blog postings) means shouting or screaming? Have you ever read anything that was posted that way? What are your thoughts on it?

Writing - Word of the Day

I found a neat website called DailyWritingTips.com and on there they have a "word of the day" section. If you click that link above, you're brought to the archive area where you can see past words of the day.

There are tons of great words there that you may not know. I'd like you to visit that site (DailyWritingTips.com/), find a word you do not currently know (or know well), and click on it. When you do that, you'll see the word and its definition. Come back here & post the word plus its definition so we can all learn new words.

I'll start!

Word of the Day: Meritocracy
Meritocracy (mĕr’ĭ-tŏk’rə-sē) is a system where the advancement of individuals is based on their performance and ability. American companies, for instance, are said to be more meritocratic than Italian ones, where nepotism (family connections) prevail.

Now you try!

Tell me a story - October's edition

There's nothing worse than writing because you're forced to do so. Not every writing task should be like that, so let's have some fun and do a "tell me a story" blog! I'll give you some key terms that I'd like you to weave into your story. You can make your entries funny, serious, informative, or persuasive. It's up to you. The only "rules" are that you should write your entries correctly and, most importantly, you have to enjoy this task! :-)

Here are the key words to use.
lizard
palm tree
clouds
cell phone

I look forward to seeing what you submit!!!

Writing - Let's End Hunger (Part 2)

The September 26th blog introduced you to the freerice.com website where you could play vocabulary games and help end hunger. For every question that you answer correctly, the freerice.com website will donate 20 grains of rice through the United Nations' World Food Program to help end hunger. Isn't that a great thing?

I'd like you to visit the site (freerice.com), play at least 3 vocabulary games, and then come back here & post your results. Did you win all 3 games? Did you win 2 of them? Maybe you won 1 of them. Don't worry about the result, but do give it your best shot & see if you can learn something new while helping someone else.

Vocabulary - Use It Or Lose It (Part 15)

We're expanding our minds & vocabularies today with this installment of "Vocabulary - Use It Or Lose It." Are you ready?

Take a look at the word list (shown below) and pick one word that you're not already familiar with in your day-to-day vocabulary. Use an online dictionary (such as this one: http://www.merriam-webster.com) to define it. Post the word, its part of speech (noun, verb, adjective, etc.), and the definition. Be sure to look through what others have posted! It'll help all of us improve our vocabularies! As an extra challenge, you can try using that word correctly in a sentence!

Abstain
Blighted
Credulous
Enshroud
Haughtiness
Lachrymose
Obfuscate
Plethora
Repudiate
Tedium