Week 9: The class is a joy, and understanding is a delight.

Class Overview

Grammar Rule

We covered the rest of the comma rules (1b,c,d,  pp. 56-58).  These include some review of adding a comma before the coordinating conjunction in a compound sentence, the comma that comes after an introductory prepositional phrase or series of prepositional phrases, and the sentence interrupter that is set off by commas.

S/Vl/PN

This week, we continued to focus on compound, declarative sentences, but we introduced a new sentence pattern, S/Vl/PN.

We learned that a predicate nominative can replace or rename the subject, and a linking verb is never an action verb.  Those are the two key components to understanding the S/Vl/PN pattern.

The questions that you need to ask to identify an S/Vl/PN are...
1) Who or what is this sentence about?  Answer: subject
2) What is that subject doing? action? being?  Answer: verb
3) Now ask, verb + who/what?  Answer: direct object?
4) Is the verb a linking verb (memorize list or look for state of being instead of action), and can the direct object replace the subject?  If yes to both, it is not an S/Vt/DO.  It is an S/Vl/PN.

We looked at the example A bluejay is a bird, and talked about the fact that it can be turned around to say A bird is a bluejay and still makes sense.  God is love.  Love is God.  Sonya is a girl.  A girl is Sonya.  My favorite is chicken.  Chicken is my favorite.  New York is a city.  A city is New York.

For advanced students, we covered the fact that a pronoun used as a PN has to be in the nominative case (subjective, the form you use when it is used as a subject) because it must be able to take the place of the subject.

It is I. (correct)  It is me. (incorrect)
The captain is he. (correct) The captain is him. (incorrect)

You could turn around The captain is he. to make it He is the captain, but you wouldn't turn around The captain is him, to make it Him is the captain.

So, kids, next time you answer the phone, you won't say, "It's me, Dad."  You'll say, "It's I, Dad." : )

We also spent some time using the task sheet to work the sentence, Tom is the captain, but Jane is the coach.  This compound, S/Vl/PN was fun to diagram.  Remember to connect the compounds at the verb and put that coordinating conjunction on the "chair".  Also, remember that the line between the linking verb and predicate nominative is just like the direct object line except that it slants back toward the subject.

Grammar

First and foremost, drill memory work.
Also, engage early in memorizing the linking verbs.  There is a song to help on the sidebar of this blog. This will make identifying S/Vl/PNs easier.  Especially focus on the "to be" verbs (am, are, is, was, were, being, been).
Review charts.

Dialectic

Dust off those task sheets and work through at least one sentence per day.  Get adventurous and flip it to the back and see if you can tackle parts or all of task 5.

Moms, remember the trick of saying subject/verb linking/article...  If you add an a, an, or the after the linking verb, the student will have to supply a noun, making it a predicate noun.  Watch out for adjectives.  We will cover predicate adjectives next week.  Try to steer clear of them until I introduce them in class.

Sample sentences

The flowers are tulips, and the ribbons are satin.
The day is Halloween, and the costume is Darth Vader.
Greensboro is our town, but North Carolina is our state.
Voting is a privilege, yet it is also a duty.
It is he, and it is I.
The candy is Snickers, and the eater is Mom.
Under the spreading tree during the heat of the day, the sleeper is the tiger.