This document provides an agenda and information for language skills and practical English grammar courses. It introduces the instructor and covers topics like introductions, roll call, word classes including nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs. Students are instructed to review clause elements like subjects and verbs on their own before the first seminar. The document also includes information about course content, materials, assessments, and miscellaneous course details.

1. Roll call & Grammar lecture 1
ENA121 Language skills
ENA131 Practical English grammar
Instructor and course coordinator
Elisabeth Wulff Sahlén

2. Agenda
• Introductions
• Course information
• Roll call
• Why Grammar?
• Word classes
• Nouns
• Verbs
• Adjectives
• Adverbs
• Clause elements
• Subject & Verb
There are more word classes and
clause elements presented in these
slides. Go through them on your
own before seminar 1.

3. Who’s the
teacher?

4. Who are you?
• …has studied language at university before?
• …is a native speaker of English?
• …is an exchange student?
• …is a student on the communication program?
• …is a student on the teacher education program?
• …is a student on neither of these programs?
• …feels comfortable speaking English?
• …feels comfortable writing in English?
• …knows when to use the 3rd person singular ’s’?
• …can name three uncountable nouns?
• … feels that grammar is a little terrifying?
• …thinks that grammar is fun?
• …likes to run?

5. Course content
ENA121 Language skills
• English grammar
• Dictionaries and other language
resources
• Vocabulary & (some)
pronunciation
ENA131 Practical English grammar
• English grammar
• Teaching and learning (instructor:
Helena Darnell Berggren)

6. Course materials
Grammar (ENA121 & 131)
• Estling Vannestål, M. (2015). A university grammar of English with a
Swedish perspective. Studentlitteratur.
• Grammar compendium (Canvas)
Teaching and learning (ENA131)
• Tornberg, Ulrika. (2015). Språkdidaktik. Gleerups Utbildning.
• Additional materials provided by your instructor on Canvas (websites,
online dictionaries, articles and other resources)

7. Passing the course
ENA121 Language skills
OBN1, 1 hp (U,G)
mandatory attendance
ÖVN1, 1 hp, (U,G)
grammar quizzes
INL1, 2 hp, (U,G,VG)
written and spoken vocabulary assignments
TEN1, 3.5 hp (U,G,VG)
a written exam (grammar & pronunciation)
ENA131 Practical English grammar
OBN1, 1 hp (U,G)
mandatory attendance
ÖVN1, 1 hp, (U,G)
grammar quizzes and translation tasks
INL1, 2.5 hp, (U,G,VG)
written and spoken assignments
field study
TEN1, 3 hp (U,G,VG)
a written exam (grammar)

8. Miscellaneous information
• Canvas – our brand new LMS (Learning Management System). Accept
the invitation and log in ASAP.
• View the study guide and seminar plan on Canvas.
• Course syllabus & schedule (online)
• Previous course evaluations and changes to the courses will be
presented at your first seminars.
• ENA121: 2 seminar groups (A and B). The same groups are used in the
literature course (ENA122).
• ENA131: Ämneslärarprogrammets dag imorgon, 9.15-12.00 i
Filharmonin, Eskilstuna.

9. Roll call

10. About this lecture
• Talk to your neighbor.
• In English.

11. Quick poll – which sentence is correct?
Check all that apply!
1. Where is my scissors?
2. Eating too many cookies are bad for your health.
3. His progress have not been very good.
4. All the furniture were from the 1950s.
5. Here is the latest news.

12. Grammar – why?
• For advanced learners such as yourselves, thinking you know how to say
it is not enough. You have to know why.
avoid simple mistakes
improve your own
speech and writing
self-confidence tools for life-long
professional
development

15. Grammar – why?
• For advanced learners such as yourselves, thinking you know how to say
it is not enough. You have to know why.
• The rules of grammar are based on word classes and clause elements, so
we’ll start there.
• Knowing grammatical terminology will help you get the most out of your
learner dictionary.

17. word classes
• Nouns
• (Lexical) verbs
• Adjectives
• Adverbs
• Auxiliary verbs
• Pronouns
• Prepositions
• Conjunctions
• Numerals
lexical/content words
function/grammar words
The distinction between lexical
and function words is important
to pronunciation.

18. Lexical words
• …are the main carriers of information.
• …express lexical content (book, run, dark).
• …belong to the following word classes
• Nouns
• Lexical (main) verbs
• Adjectives
• Adverbs
• …are open classes, i.e. new words are added all the time…

19. Function words
• …have very little lexical content and express grammatical
relations between lexical words (the, will, but, off)
• …belong to the following word classes:
pronouns, auxiliaries, prepositions, and conjunctions.
• …are closed classes, i.e. rarely accept new words.

20. lexical words vs. function words
• Identify at least 3 lexical words and 3 function words from
the text below. Share them with your neighbor.
Warrick investigates the death of a John Doe killed by a
modified automatic weapon, which goes off accidentally in
the lab.

21. • Lexical words have lexical content and convey information:
Warrick investigates the death of a John Doe killed by a
modified automatic weapon, which goes off accidentally in
the lab.

22. Function words
• Function words have little or no lexical content.
They indicate relations between lexical words, and
do not convey any information.
Warrick investigates the death of a John Doe killed by a
modified automatic weapon, which goes off accidentally in
the lab.

23. Lexical word classes
• Nouns
• Lexical (main) verbs
• Adjectives
• Adverbs
3 criteria for identifying lexical
word classes:
• meaning
• form
• function

24. Nouns...
• ...denote concrete or abstract things or people
( book, students, wish, adulthood)
• Names are called proper nouns (Grissom, Las Vegas)
• ...can be singular (gun) or plural (guns)
• ...take an article (the gun, a gun)
• Typical function: head of NP which typically functions as
subject or object in a sentence
• The best test is the definite article!

25. How can you prove that the underlined
words are nouns?
The morning had dawned clear and cold, with a crispness that hinted at
the end of summer. They set forth at daybreak to see a man beheaded,
twenty in all, and Bran rode among them, nervous with excitement.

26. Lexical verbs
•...denote actions (kick, run, kill), states (be, feel), experiences
(smell, see).
•...can show tense: present (play, plays)& past (played)
•...have infinitive forms (to play, to live)
•...can be regular (walk-walked-walked) or irregular (drink-
drank-drunk)
•…are often preceeded by one or more auxiliary verbs (has
drunk, will have been drinking)

27. Adjectives
• …denote qualities in things and people (e.g. nice, evil, green)
• Function: modify (describe) nouns (the suspect is dead, a
heavy box, the situation is serious)
• Most adjectives can occur in two positions:
- before nouns = attributive function
(a heavy box)
- after copula verbs = predicative function
(the suspect is dead, the situation is serious)

28. Adverbs
• ...express degree (totally wrong), time (yesterday), place
(here), manner (quickly), attitude (honestly), link to previous
clause (however) etc.
• …modify (describe) almost anything – except nouns!
(adverbs are in bold, below, and what they modify is
underlined)
sing beautifully
very beautifully
very beautiful
Unfortunately, I can’t sing.

29. Adjective or adverb?
• People with fast cars drive fast.

30. What word class is the underlined word?
1. It’s time to pay a visit to our relatives from the north.
2. You should visit your relatives in Canada next year.
3. There is no place like home.
4. They were going to place him in command.
5. This password will permit access to the entire building.
6. You need to apply for a permit before you can go abroad to work.
7. For the past ten years, we’ve spent every summer in Italy.
8. My parents always used to summer in Paris.
9. It’s hard work digging ditches and if you want to succeed you need to work
hard.

31. Function word classes
• Auxiliaries
• Pronouns
• Prepositions
• Conjunctions
• Function words often need to
be considered in context before
you can determine their word
class.
• Terminology varies between
sources!

32. Auxiliaries (= helping verbs)
modal auxiliaries (will, can, shall, may, must, would, could,
should, might)
•are used before lexical verbs
e.g. can play, would (not) like)
•have no inflected forms (i.e. no -s, -ing, -ed)
primary auxiliaries(be, have, do)
•may be used as auxiliaries, i.e. before a lexical verb e.g. is
playing, does play
•may be used alone, i.e. as lexical verbs, e.g:
e.g. Spencer Reid has a yellow Volvo

33. Pronouns
(I,you, that, those, who, everybody…)
• …refer to nouns, can replace a noun or noun
phrase
• are used on their own or function as determiners in noun
phrases
The house that/which Jack built
The brainy kid = he
Grissom and Sara = they

34. Prepositions
(in, to, below, under, over, of…)
• may be simple or complex
• stand in front of nouns/noun phrases
above her head
about a boy
from Las Vegas
with Spencer
against all odds
to me
In spite of the rain
due to ignorance

35. Conjunctions
(and, but, or, if, while, even though…)
• Connect clauses, phrases, words
• Coordinators connect units at the same level:
Wine and cheese
Nick likes wine but Sara prefers beer.
• Subordinators introduce dependent clauses:
I didn’t do it because I like you.
Hotch kept working even though it was getting late.

36. Clause elements
Words have jobs to do
in a sentence.
Words don’t like to
work alone.
Words often team up
with other words to
form phrases.

37. clause elements = elements (units) of a
clause
1. Yoda is green.
2. Yoda fought the emperor with a lightsaaber.
3. That creature can handle a gun.
4. That green old creature has been fighting like a fearsome warrior.

38. clause elements = elements (units) of a
clause (sentence)
What are the units in these sentences?
1. (Yoda) (is ) (green).
2. (Yoda) (fought) (the emperor) (with a lightsaaber).
3. (That creature) (can handle) (a gun).
4. (That green old creature ) (has been fighting) (like a fearsome warrior).

39. Major clause elements
action =
VERB
circumstances
= ADVERBIAL
When? Why?
How? Where?
doer of action
= SUBJECT
affected by action
= OBJECT
Who? What?
Yoda fought the emperor with a lightsaber

40. Clause elements
• Subject
• Verb
• Object
• direct object
• indirect object
• Adverbial
• Subject predicative (subject complement)

41. The Subject (S)
• …typically occurs before the verb
• Form: NP (or a clause)
• …determines whether the VP will be singular or plural
• …often represents the ”doer” of the action or the topic.
Identify the subject in these examples:
1. A suspect bit Greg.
2. Greg was bitten by a suspect.
3. Two people have actually been bitten.
4. Being bitten is not a very pleasant experience.

42. The Subject (S)
• …typically occurs before the verb
• Form: NP (or a clause)
• …determines whether the VP will be singular or plural
• …often represents the ”doer” of the action or the topic.
Identify the subject in these examples:
1. A suspect bit Greg.
2. Greg was bitten by a suspect.
3. Two people have actually been bitten.
4. Being bitten is not a very pleasant experience.

43. The Verb (V)
• …is the central part of the clause
• Form: always a VP
• The lexical verb determines what obligatory elements will
follow.
• …often represents the main action or state
Identify the verb element in these examples:
1.A suspect bit Greg.
2.The suspect died.
3.Greg was bitten by a suspect.
4.Two people have been bitten recently.

44. The Verb (V)
• …is the central part of the clause
• Form: always a VP
• The lexical verb determines what obligatory elements will
follow.
• …often represents the main action or state
Identify the verb element in these examples:
1.A suspect bit Greg.
2.The suspect died.
3.Greg was bitten by a suspect.
4.Two people have been bitten recently.

45. Identify the subject and verb element in
these sentences!
1. Yoda died.
2. The Jedi master has died.
3. Some guys with fake IDs might be dying behind the casino.
4. Grissom stole the banana.
5. Yesterday Grissom stole the banana because he was hungry.
6. Two nights ago Grissom and his team could have solved the case.

46. Identify the subject and verb element in
these sentences!
1. Yoda died.
2. The Jedi master has died.
3. Some guys with fake IDs might be dying behind the casino.
4. Grissom stole the banana.
5. Yesterday Grissom stole the banana because he was hungry.
6. Two nights ago Grissom and his team could have solved the case.

47. The direct object (Od)
• …typically follows the verb
• Form: NP (or a clause)
• …denotes the entity affected by the verb action
Identify the direct object in these examples:
1.The suspect bit Greg.
2.Greg hurt his hand really bad.
3.Sara wrote Grissom a long letter.
What + S + V:
• What (who) did the suspect bite?
• What did Grissom hurt?

48. The indirect object (Oi)
• …typically follows the verb and precedes the direct object.
• Form: NP
• …is the recipient of the verb action
• …typically answers the question: ’to whom…? ’
1.Nick passed me a can of cold beer.
2.Sara wrote Grissom a letter.
3.Give the man a break.
4.Yoda offered Luke some food.

49. The adverbial (A)
• Meaning: time, place, manner, direction, reason etc.
• ...can occur in different places in the clause.
• Most adverbials are optional, but some are obligatory.
For example:
1.Last year, Sara went to LA because she needed a break.
2.Unfortunately, she forgot her glasses at home.
3.The astronauts put the flag on the moon.

50. The subject predicative element (SP)
• …describes the subject and follows a copular verb (e.g. be,
seem become)
1. Yoda is green.
2. Luke was incessantly whiny.
3. Yoda felt extremely old and tired.
4. Yoda became a star.

51. SV agreement – fill in the present tense form of the verb in
parentheses (from a past exam)
1. The shine on my hardwood floors ___TAKES__ a lot of abuse from the
ragged toenails of my dog. (take)
2. When Matthew is having a bad day, watching old episodes of The X-
Files always __BRIGHTENS__ his mood. (brighten)
3. Even though Joe would never hurt a fly, the police always _MAKE__ him
nervous. (make)
4. In the last few years, considerable progress in terms of the diversity of
countries represented__HAS_____ been made. (have)

52. Let’s review
• A word class is a group of words with some grammar and meaning
characteristics in common. Word classes can usually be identified in
isolation.
• For example:
• banana, gun and furniture are NOUNS because they take the definite article.
• kill, run and eat are VERBS because they have past tense forms (killed, ran, ate)

53. Let’s review
• A clause element is a part of a clause (sentence). Clause elements only
exist within the context of a clause.
• For example:
• The banana is yellow
• Yoda ate the banana.
• The green banana tastes good.

54. Let’s review
• The rules of (English) grammar are based on word classes and clause
elements.
• If you know your word classes and clause elements, you will be in a
position to understand the information in a grammar book, a learner
dictionary, and will be able to avoid common errors made by non-native
speakers.
• The most common error, and possibly the most annyoing one, is the
subject-verb agreement error, e.g:
*She are a student.
*It have been fun.
*They works here.

57. For seminar 1, this week
• Explore the course site on Canvas.
• Read through the study guide and seminar plan.
• Read through chapters 1-3 in UGE (the grammar book) and do the
exercises at the end of chapter 3 AND/OR Review the lecture slides and
notes.
• ENA121 Language skills: find your seminar group!
• ENA131 Practical English grammar: Do task 1 (on Canvas).

58. Thank you!