How can I get better grades in English grammar?

Question

The student needs tutoring.

Answer 1

Hi there,

I tell my students--both ESL and native-English speakers--to copy down sentences that already have the correct grammar. Copy them several times without analyzing or fretting about the grammar for the moment.

Why?

When you copy something after hearing or seeing it, your brain makes a connection and you remember it better. So when you write down sentences that already have correct grammar, you will automatically get used to the sentence structure. Do this and I bet you'll see your grammar grades improve very soon!

Get in touch if you need tutoring.

All the best,

Ilene

Answer 2

Hi!

I would be happy to answer your question! I'm not entirely sure what grade you have or what you're struggling with, but a good way to improve your English grammar is to write essays or short stories on a topic you like. Once you have written the text, you can get a tutor or teacher to help you correct any grammatical errors and explain the WHY behind the grammar rules. The best way to improve is by taking action and practicing!

Hope that helps!

Answer 3

Dear Student,

You have asked a great question! Proper rules of grammar are not taught consistently throughout our educational institutions, so by the time students get to High School and/or College, they find they have very little understanding of proper grammar and are dealing with high expectations from teachers who assume they already know this stuff.

I recommend, first and foremost, that you download an online program. There are also other really terrific free online tools that have simple step-by-step curricula that teach you the basics.

There are some mistakes that are so commonly made and actually can change the meaning of a sentence. It's actually pretty easy to learn the basics with a little practice. Grammar Bytes! is fun because it's constructed a little bit like a low-end video game.

Here are some tips:

Even with a list of great resources, learning will be easier if you follow specific steps.

1. Have a goal. Having a goal helps you create focus. Choose a specific goal for your grammar learning, such as feeling comfortable for a job interview, or fixing your spoken mistakes in the past tense.

2. Break that goal down into smaller goals. Now that you know what you want to achieve, you can figure out how to get there. Let’s say that you want to fix your past tense mistakes. First you will need to figure out what those mistakes are. To do that, you can ask others to point out your mistakes when you speak, record yourself and listen carefully, work on the past tenses you’re less familiar with and more.

Whatever you’re working on, you should find a way to break it down into smaller chunks.

3. Focus on one topic at a time. Don’t try to learn everything at once. Instead, learn one rule at a time and practice, using and reviewing that rule until you know it so well that you could teach it to someone else.

4. Study a few minutes a day. You don’t need to study for hours to learn English. All it takes is five to 10 minutes a day, as long as you use them wisely.

Each day, you can read a grammar rule, do a few exercises and then practice it for the rest of the day. The next couple of days, use that rule while writing and speaking to make sure you didn’t forget it. Look for examples of that rule while you read, watch or listen to anything in English.

Follow these steps, and before you know it you’ll feel much more comfortable with English grammar.

I also can help you learn grammar quickly, if you'd like to schedule a few appointments!

Best,

Amy M.