Grammar as a Working Tool: English Week 1
by cinojosa0705 · English grammar and sentence mechanics for reading and writing literature
A 10-hour overview of English grammar and sentence mechanics — parts of speech, clauses, punctuation, and error signatures — treated as instruments for close reading and clear writing. Examples are drawn from literary prose, with occasional Spanish/English contrasts. Prepares for a 12-week literature sequence culminating in original criticism.
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modules
13
lessons
9.7h
estimated work · target 10h
What's inside
40 tasks · 81 flashcards · 49 concepts · 31 recall prompts
Sample recall prompts — this is what studying it feels like
- Explain the difference between a transitive and an intransitive verb, and give one example sentence of each.
- What is a finite verb, and why can't a string of words without one be a complete sentence?
- Explain concrete vs. abstract nouns and describe one stylistic effect of leaning heavily on each type.
Syllabus
Words at Work: Parts of Speech as Functions
Parts of speech are jobs, not labels. This module builds the functional vocabulary — nouns, verbs, modifiers, and connective words — that every later analysis depends on.
- The Engine Room: Nouns and Verbs reading · flashcard · quiz · 7 cards
- Modification: Adjectives and Adverbs reading · flashcard · quiz · 5 cards
- Connective Tissue: Pronouns, Prepositions, Conjunctions reading · flashcard · quiz · teach_back · 7 cards
The Sentence: Clauses and Structure
The clause is the unit of assertion. This module covers subjects and predicates, the phrase types that decorate clauses (including participles and gerunds), and how coordination and subordination build compound and complex sentences with different centers of gravity.
- Subjects, Predicates, and the Independent Clause reading · flashcard · quiz · 6 cards
- Phrases and Verbals: Participles, Gerunds, Infinitives reading · flashcard · quiz · 8 cards
- Coordination and Subordination: Building Complex Sentences reading · note · quiz · 6 cards
- Sentence Shapes: Simple to Compound-Complex, Periodic to Loose reading · quiz · teach_back · 6 cards
Punctuation and Error Signatures
Punctuation is clause logic made visible. This module derives the comma, semicolon, colon, and dash rules from the clause/phrase machinery of Module 2, then catalogs the five error signatures that account for most real-world grammar mistakes.
- Commas and Clause Boundaries flashcard · reading · quiz · 7 cards
- Semicolons, Colons, and Dashes reading · flashcard · quiz · 6 cards
- Error Signatures: Fragments, Splices, Agreement, Danglers reading · quiz · teach_back · 7 cards
Grammar as a Reading and Writing Tool
The payoff module: a repeatable method for syntactic close reading, a comparative look at Spanish/English structures that sharpen both languages, and a capstone essay analyzing the syntax of a passage from a novel you are actually reading.
- Reading Syntax in Literary Prose reading · flashcard · quiz · 6 cards
- Spanish/English Contrasts: Subjunctive, Subject-Drop, Ser/Estar quiz · reading · flashcard · 6 cards
- Capstone: Grammar for the Critic note · reading · essay · 4 cards