Grammar

On this page you can access our Language Awareness Challenge Reading Maze, read about the Associative Model of Language, and learn about our books about grammar and language.


The Language Awareness Challenge

A language awareness reading maze; can you find your way out of the labyrinth safely?

Click here to try the Language Awareness Maze.


The English Noun Phrase: A Handbook for Teachers

The English noun phrase is the most complex part of English grammar. Noun phrases may be single word nouns and pronouns or multi-element noun phrase complexes which can contain a huge range of sub-elements. Noun phrases can include determiners, adverbs, adjectives, nouns modifying nouns, and compounds, relative clauses, prospective-to clauses, do-ing clauses, done clauses, prepositional phrases, and noun content clauses. All these elements are used to help make the noun understandable and the reference clear, and to give essential information about the noun. This book explores the intricacies of the noun phrase, with a special focus on the complexities of determiners and post-nominal modification, and helps you improve your understanding of both simple and complex noun phrases. It then shows you ten techniques you can use with learners of all levels to improve their understanding and production of noun phrases. The book includes photo-copiable materials for you to use in class with intermediate + learners.

The English Noun Phrase: A Handbook for Teachers


The Ideas of English Grammar is an exploration of English grammar which identifies the grammar a teacher really needs to teach and the grammar a learner needs to learn.

It is a complete re-imagining of pedagogical grammar.

It is based on Lexical Priming theory and the Associative Model of English.

Grammar is envisaged as a system of Distance, Meaning and Conventions. These ideas are explored in depth and the ideas of verb and noun pathways are introduced.

The Ideas of English Grammar is available from Amazon: The Ideas of English Grammar


The Associative Model of Language

The human brain is an association-making ‘machine’; we look for associations and patterns everywhere and language is used to make our associations clear enough to communicate what we think, feel and want to get done in the world.

The Associative Model applies this insight to the structure and meaning of language. You can read more about this model here.

Keywords

Associative Model Verb Pathways Noun Pathways Placement Principle Start Here Associative Principle

You can also study Associative Model sentence diagrams here.


Understanding English: An Introduction to the Associative Model

The Associative Model of English is a way of understanding the process of how we use English at the time of articulation (when we speak-hear) or when we read. It is a linear dependency relation model of language. By using the ideas in this short introduction to the Associative Model you will deepen your understanding of how English is used. You will also be able to effectively diagram sentences (and texts) to show the associations between words and how they ‘work’ as meaning units.

Understanding English is available from Amazon: Understanding English: An Introduction to the Associative Model