The document outlines the agenda and assignments for an 8th grade language arts class, including a grammar lesson on subject complements and linking verbs. It provides examples of sentences containing predicate nouns and predicate adjectives as subject complements. The document also discusses the importance of answering the "So What?" question to give writing a clear purpose and significance.

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September 10, 2013
9/10/13
8th Grade Language Arts
Agenda:
1. Independent Reading
2. Grammar
3. The Rule of "So What"
Assignments:
-Workbook pages (W)
-Spelling Test (F)
-comments on 2 students' responses (F)
-Vocabulary Bubbles (M)
-Grammar Test (M)

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Action Verbs Non-action Verbs
dangle
sitting
was
swim
am
being
visiting
is
gulp
climb
gallop
were
Some verbs show action, while others are
"state-of-being" or non-action verbs.
Sort this list into these two groups.

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Many non-action verbs are "to be" verbs and
often act as linking verbs.
The words that follow a linking verb
rename the subject or describe it.
Click the checkmark to see all of the "to be" verbs.
was, were, be
To "be" verbs
am, is, are
been, being
Legolas is an elf.
Legolas is swift.
Renames the subject:
Describes the subject:
predicate noun
predicate adjective

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Chapter 1: Lessons 8­ Subject Complements
Subject Complements: A word or group of words
that follows a linking verb ; renames or describes
the subject
• Predicate Nouns (nominatives) PN­ defines or
renames a subject
o Philadelphia is the largest city in Pennsylvania.
o Philadelphia equals the largest city…
o The largest city in Pennsylvania is Philadelphia.

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• Predicate Adjectives PA­
describes a quality of the subject
o Philadelphia taste .
great
The is .historic
cheesesteaks
Liberty Bell

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1. New Orleans is a city in Louisiana.
2. It was the birthplace of Jazz.
3. Preservation Hall is famous for its jazz concerts.
4. The restaurants of New Orleans are another attraction.
5. The Cajun dishes taste spicy.

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September 10, 2013
Drag these words into
place to make sentences.
subject + linking verb + predicate noun
subject + linking verb + predicate adjective
Our refrigerator is very noisy
For the past five years Mr. Wallace has
been our family's accountant
new

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Write some sentences that have
predicate nouns.
Subject + linking verb + predicate noun
Example: My dog, Oreo, is an affectionate Dalmatian.
A predicate noun
renames the
subject.
Click here
to remember...

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September 10, 2013
Example: My dog, Oreo, is affectionate and playful.
Write some sentences that have
predicate adjectives.
Subject + linking verb + predicate adjective
A predicate adjective
describes the
subject.
Click here
to
remember...

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September 10, 2013
1. In the late afternoon, Sarah is walking
our neighbor's dog.
2. The twins, Joe and Sam, are quite amusing.
3. This towering mountain range is the Himalayas.
4. He has been a champion for many years.
6. I am an enthusiastic fan of our city's football team.
5. For this school term I am running for school president.
Put a star by the sentences that have a
linking verb followed by a predicate noun
or a predicate adjective.
Otherwise, put an "x".

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SO WHAT?
I remember that when I was in fifth grade I got really sick. My throat
was raw, and all my joints ached. The family doctor said I had
rheumatic fever.
I had to stay in bed for six months. I couldn't walk up and down
stairs or even go to the bathroom by myself.
When my dad came home from work at night, he'd carry me
downstairs so I could watch television and be with the rest of the family,
then carry me back upstairs at bedtime. Otherwise it was a lonely,
boring time. All I could do was read. During the six months I had
rheumatic fever I practically ate books. I made my poor mother go to
the library almost every day for new ones.
Finally the doctor said I could go back to school. It was one of the
happiest days of my life, even though I couldn't run or play sports for a
long time.
­Nancie A.

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The Rule of So What?
• Good writing in every genre answers the question SO WHAT?
Good writing has purpose, a point, a reason it was written.
• The good writer looks for and finds the meanings, the
significances, the implications in the subject he or she has
chosen.
• Sometimes the SO WHAT? is subtle and implicit. Sometimes it's
explicitly stated.
• Robert Frost wrote "No tears in the writer, no tears in the
reader." If you don't find the deep meaning in your life or your
characters' lives, your readers won't find meaning in their own.
• A good writer often discovers the SO WHAT? through the
thinking of the writing process. But even with hard thinking,
some topics may not have a SO WHAT? These pieces can be
abandoned or put on hold.

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Every time you write...
• an itch you're trying to scratch
• something the topic that intrigues you

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Observations and impressions of My Secret
Garden

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"Is there a SO WHAT? Can you tell yet, as a
reader, why I'm writing about this?"