[ELTWeekly Volume 8, Issue 11 | June 27, 2016 | ISSN 0975-3036]
Of course, teachers know correct grammar rules, but it’s one thing to know them, and another thing to effectively teach them, and transmit them so that students not only understand the rules, but also apply them correctly.
In my experience, grammar shouldn’t be taught “by the book”. At least not in teaching English as a second language. That’s not what students are there for. They don’t want to know all of these rules; they’re not interested in them. They want to learn English. They want to speak, read, and write in English. So, how do we as ESL teachers teach them essential grammar and give them what we need, rather than boring them to death with “the rules”. It’s actually quite simple: by teaching grammar in context. And in fun ways.
Let’s move on to some examples, and you’ll see what I mean.
How to teach the ever-elusive past perfect tense
Yes, it’s hard to find an ESL student who spontaneously uses the past perfect tense. In fact, there are some “native” English speakers who don’t use it either (along with other forms of “correct” English). But it must be taught, never overlooked, or your students will be lacking something that they need to take their English fluency to the next level.