Korean Job Discussion Forums

[ajuma]

Does anyone have any good ideas/lessons for teaching fairly high level university students prepositions and pronouns? I've got lots of stuff for teaching articles and verbs, but can't seem to think of any good writing projects (both in class and as homework) where the students can practice prepostions or pronouns. Any help will be GREATLY appreciated!!

[bluelake]

For my university students, I often like to refer to some of the internet sites, such as Purdue's online writing lab (OWL): http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/.

A few others:

http://www.lousywriter.com/

http://www.icteachers.co.uk/resources/resources_literacy.htm (British English)

https://www.vanguard.edu/writingcenter/index.aspx?doc_id=32

http://202.204.212.40/personal/WuJun_webpages/materials/writing/Course/2words%20and%20sentences.ppt

There are tons more--some have really great PPT lessons.

[Woland]

If you can get a hold of a copy of Dave Willis' Rules, Patterns, and Words from Cambridge University Press, it has a chapter on lexical phrases and patterns. Within that chapter, there is a section that looks specifically at teaching prepositional patterns, using 'for' as an example (pp. 152-157). It also refers to an earlier discussion of 'between' in the book, but I'm a little too busy today to go hunting those page numbers.

Hope this helps.

[Hotpants]

For prepositions and uni students, I print off a load of room interior pictures. Students chose a picture and write a para to describe it. Beforehand, I will ask the students what they can see in the classroom. Typically, they will just say, 'There is a desk.' Then, I tell them I want more detail, so next will come, 'There is a wooden desk'; 'There is a wooden desk in the corner'; 'There is a wooden desk in the corner next to the coatstand'; 'There is an antiquated wooden desk in the corner next to the coatstand approximately 2 feet away from where I'm standing'... And so on... Then, we do one more example expression, this time avoiding starting with 'There is...'. Then, students write their paras. Pretty simple and conventional to set up this activity.

[ajuma]

Woland: That book sounds great! I'm going to order it.

Hotpants: Great plan! I think the students will like it!!

[cubanlord]

[Privateer]

[ajuma]

Actually, my students have the vocab and some of the structure to say things like "about 1 meter away from...". They just have a few problems with things like "in" the yard as oppose to "on" the yard, and things like the difference between "in the car", "on the bus", and "on the plane". And before you say they have to "just remember" some of the things, I know that and THEY know that. I'm just trying to give them some extra practice so that they'll remember to actually use them! Many of them will be attending uni in the States and I want them to be as prepared as possible.

Privateer: You think it's easy? Do you use "in", "on" or "at" the playground? When do you use each one? How do you explain the difference?

[Woland]