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Welcome to the September of Grade Three edition
Of the KISS Grammar Linear Workbooks
The KISS Grammar Workbooks contain far more material than any student or teacher will need, and deciding what to use can be a time-consuming task. The linear workbooks make the task easier by presenting material in sequence, such that you can print it out, put it in a three-holed notebook, and have the equivalent of a paper workbook. Because the pages will not be bound, I have decided to put the analysis keys on separate pages immediately after each exercise rather than at the end or in a separate book. This format should make it easier for parents and teachers not only to find the answer keys, but also to use them. I am assuming that parents will simply give their children copies of the exercise pages. Likewise, teachers can print out as many copies of an exercise as they need for the students in their classes.
Most of the exercises for this month have been adapted from Reed and Kellogg's Graded Lessons in English (1889). They should provide a good, simple introduction to the parts of speech and basic sentence patterns.
The KISS Objectives for Third Grade
Parents and teachers rightfully have different opinions about how much grammar third graders should learn. Some will want students to do the minimum; others will want to go far beyond that. The KISS Objectives for Third Grade are relatively simple. By the end of the year, students should be able to identify:
- almost all of the simple prepositional phrases in anything that they read or write,
- most simple adjectives and adverbs, and what they modify.
Members of the KISS List convinced me that students should also do some simple work with basic sentence patterns. Thus this September menu was added to the Workbooks. Please remember that the monthly organization of the Workbooks has turned out to be more a method of organizing different types of assignments, and is not a schedule. The thirty-four exercises in this book could probably be spread across seventeen weeks, two per week. When the students have finished the material in this book, you can select additional exercises from the workbooks (assuming that the intended additional linear books are not yet ready). Or you can make up exercises of your own. It is very important, however, for the students to do at least two short exercises every week of the school year. If they don't, they will likely forget what they have learned and thus have problems when they return to it in the following year.
A Note on the Links
The analysis keys on the web site include numerous links to additional explanations. I have not taken the time to delete all of these links from this MS Word version, but I have made the "Back to September Menu" a link from each answer key to the September menu of Grade Three in the KISS web site. Thus, if you are on-line, you can use this link to get to the relevant exercise and answer key and follow the links from there. You will probably also want to get a copy of the "Code and Color Key" from the KISS web site.
Contents
Introduction to September of Grade Three......
Exercise #1 Recognizing Subjects and Verbs......
Exercise # 2 Recognizing Subjects and Verbs......
Exercise # 6 Recognizing Subjects and Verbs......
Exercise # 7 Recognizing Noun Subjects and Finite Verbs......
Exercise # 8 Recognizing Subjects and Verbs......
Exercise # 9 Recognizing Subjects and Verbs......
Exercise #11 Identifying pronouns as subjects......
Exercise #12 Adjectives......
Exercise #13 Writing Modified Subjects......
Exercise #14 Recognizing Subjects and Verbs......
Exercise #15 Sentence-Building with Adjectives......
Exercise #16 Verbs modified by adverbs......
Exercise #17 Verbs modified by adverbs......
Exercise #18 Verbs modified by adverbs......
Exercise #19 Review Exercise......
Exercise #20: Sentence-Building with Adverbs......
Assessment Quiz from "The Little Match Girl"......
Exercise #21 Sentences with Prepositional Phrases......
Exercise #22 Sentence-Building with Prepositional Phrases......
Exercise #23 Rewriting Adjectives and Adverbs as Phrases......
Exercise #24 Sentences with prepositional phrases......
Exercise #25 Compound Subjects and/or Verbs......
Exercise #26 Sentences with Interjections......
Exercise #27 Writing Sentences with Compound Subjects and Verbs......
Exercise #28 Adding Direct Objects and Predicate Adjectives......
Exercise #29 Adding Complements......
Exercise # 30 Writing Sentences with Complements......
Exercise # 31 Analyzing more complicated sentences......
Exercise # 32 Analyzing more complicated sentences......
Exercise # 33 Analyzing more complicated sentences......
Exercise # 34 Writing Sentences with Complements......
Assessment Quiz: from "Cinderella"......
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The KISS Grammar Workbooks / Back to September MenuIntroduction to September of Grade Three
Members of the KISS List convinced me that, in primary or middle school, the best place to start instruction in grammar is with the parts of speech and basic sentence patterns. I must admit that I was hesitant to do this. At the first ATEG conference, in 1990, presenter after presenter discussed how they were trying to teach the parts of speech to primary school students, to middle school students, to high school students, and to college students. Students are not stupid, so obviously something was wrong with the instruction. My conclusion was that the parts of speech were being taught as an end in themselves -- that students were not being taught how to use this knowledge to analyze their own sentences. Working with college students, I therefore began instruction with prepositional phrases, in large part because, within the context of a single semester, there is not time to cover everything. But students who begin in primary or middle school will have a lot more time, and beginning with the parts of speech does make sense.The Parts of Speech -- Word Bins, or Functions?
Part of the problem with instruction in the parts of speech is that not enough thought has been give to what these "parts" actually are. Are they simply categories, or bins, into which words can be placed? Or do the "parts" designate various functions that words can have in sentences? Within the KISS Approach, the "parts" can be seen as both of these, but the ultimate focus of KISS is on the parts of speech as performing various functions within sentences. Thus, for example, nouns normally function as subjects, as objects of prepositions, or as complements of verbs (predicate nouns, direct objects, or indirect objects). Since the focus of KISS is to enable students to discuss the structure of any sentence, the students have to understand how the words function. And this is where the members of the KISS List showed me the problem in my logic.
Prepositional phrases almost always function as adjectives or adverbs. To understand that, members pointed out, students have to understand what adjectives and adverbs are, and how they function. And, to understand that, students have to be able to identify nouns, pronouns, and verbs. That argument certainly makes sense, so September of third grade is devoted to the parts of speech and basic sentence patterns.
Most of the exercises for this month have been adapted from Reed and Kellogg's Graded Lessons in English (1889). They should provide a good, simple introduction to the parts of speech and basic sentence patterns. The following excellent suggestions concern sentences which students are to write.
To the Teacher. Let some of the pupils write their sentences on the board, while others are reading theirs. Then let the work on the board be corrected.
Correct any expression that does not make good sense, or that asserts something not strictly true; for the pupil should early be taught to think accurately, as well as to write and speak grammatically.
Correct all mistakes in spelling, and in the use of capital letters and the period.
Call attention to the agreement in form of the predicate [verb] with the subject.
Insist on neatness. (Reed & Kellogg, p. 16)
I cannot overemphasize the importance of Reed and Kellogg's advice. As I write this, I have just finished most of the exercises for November of Grade Six. Those exercises are primarily based on writing samples from the 200-2001 Pennsylvania State Assessment Handbook Supplement. The evaluators' assessments and comments on those samples, given in the "Notes" for each exercise, demonstrate the importance of correct spelling and punctuation. The argument for "creative spelling" -- letting students spell words however they wish -- has been a disaster. Precision is important.
Please keep in mind the purpose and scope of the exercises for this month. The exercises from Reed and Kellogg introduce students to nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs, interjections, coordinating conjunctions, and prepositions -- all eight parts of speech. They also introduce the basic sentence functions -- subjects, finite verbs, complements (predicate nouns, predicate adjectives, direct and indirect objects), and modifiers -- adjectives, adverbs, and prepositional phrases. This instruction is, in large part, comparable to what all those presenters were trying to do at the 1990 ATEG conference. But it is just a beginning, and not an end in itself. If instruction stops here, it might as well not even start.
To be meaningful, the instruction that starts here needs to be applied to randomly selected texts, and, ultimately, to the students' own writing. That is, you will find, both easier and harder than it sounds. It is one thing to ask students to identify the subjects and verbs in twenty sentences such as "Birds fly." Asking them to identify the subjects and verbs in the sentences that they themselves write is a whole different ball game. The latter takes a lot of time and practice.
On the positive side, the constructions introduced in the work for this month cover the majority of the KISS curriculum for grades three through six! If you browse the analysis keys for the exercises based on sixth graders' writing, you will see that approximately 95% of the words in their writing can be explained in terms of the material covered in this month.
Last but not least, remember that the Workbooks are set up as a series of instructional material from which you can choose. The "months" are simply an organizational framework. I would not expect anyone to do all of the assignments for this "month" within one calendar month. Indeed, third graders might well spend the first half of the year just on the exercises for this "month." During the second half of the year, teachers of third graders could then select some of the exercises from the other months to expand and reinforce the concepts of prepositional phrases, adjectives, and adverbs. This would put almost all the students in the class in an excellent position to begin to focus on S/V/C patterns in fourth grade.
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The KISS Grammar Workbooks / Back to September MenuExercise #1 Recognizing Subjects and Verbs
Reed and Kellogg No. 1 (from page 13.)(from Grade 3, September 1st)
Directions: Some of the following are sentences, and some are not. In those that are, underline the subject once and the verb twice. After those that are not, write "NS" for "Not a Sentence."
1. Flowers bloom. / 12. Sugar graze. / 23. Birds chirp.
2. Ice melts. / 13. Dew sparkles. / 24. Gentle cows.
3. Bloom ice. / 14. Hissing serpents. / 25. Eagles are soaring.
4. Grass grows. / 15. Smoke curls. / 26. Bees ice.
5. Brooks babble. / 16. Serpents hiss. / 27. Working bees.
6. Babbling brooks. / 17. Smoke curling. / 28. Bees work.
7. Grass soar. / 18. Serpents sparkles. / 29. Crawling serpents.
8. Doors open. / 19. Melting babble. / 30. Landscape piano.
9. Open doors. / 20. Eagles soar. / 31. Serpents crawl.
10. Cows graze. / 21. Birds chirping. / 32. Eagles clock.
11. Curling smoke. / 22. Birds are chirping. / 33. Serpents crawling.
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The KISS Grammar Workbooks / Back to September Menu(Codes Color Key)
Recognizing Sentences
[Answer Key]
(from Grade 3, September 1st)
1. Flowersbloom. / 12. Sugar graze. NS / 23. Birdschirp.
2. Icemelts. / 13. Dewsparkles. / 24. Gentle cows. NS
3. Bloom ice. NS / 14. Hissing serpents. NS / 25. Eaglesare soaring.
4. Grassgrows. / 15. Smokecurls. / 26. Bees ice. NS
5. Brooksbabble. / 16. Serpentshiss. / 27. Working bees. NS
6. Babbling brooks. NS / 17. Smoke curling. NS / 28. Beeswork.
7. Grass soar. NS / 18. Serpents sparkles. NS / 29. Crawling serpents. NS
8. Doorsopen. / 19. Melting babble. NS / 30. Landscape piano. NS
9. Open doors. NS / 20. Eaglessoar. / 31. Serpentscrawl.
10. Cowsgraze. / 21. Birds chirping. NS / 32. Eagles clock. NS
11. Curling smoke. NS / 22. Birdsare chirping. / 33. Serpents crawling. NS
Educated people disagree about the definition of "sentence." Some people, for example, claim that a sentence has to "make sense." This requirement would eliminate # 12 ("Sugar graze"), even if it were "Sugars graze." Another problem is context. I have, for example, marked #9 ("Open doors") as a non-sentence, but within a burning room, "Open doors." would be a perfectly correct (and important) sentence. The context would supply an understood "You."
In general, a sentence names something, i.e., presents a "subject," and then states something about that subject. Thus we get the definition of "sentence" as a "statement." For philosophers, that "saying something" is called "predication," and thus we get the traditional definition of a sentence as a "subject" and a "predicate." With very simple sentences such as those in this exercise, this definition of "sentence" works, but, as is explained later in the workbooks, it causes problems as students attempt to explain more complicated sentences.
Perhaps the most important distinction for this exercise is that between "Brooks babble." (# 5) and "Babbling brooks." (#6). In #5, "Brooks" will be interpreted as a subject, and then "babble" will be interpreted as a predicating verb. In #6, on the other hand, "Babbling" will be interpreted as an adjective modifying "brooks" and no predication follows. A final problem involves grammatical correctness. I have marked # 18 ("Serpents sparkles.") as a non-sentence, but one could argue that it is a sentence, but simply an incorrect one because the subject and verb do not agree in number. Had it been written as "Serpents sparkle," I would have marked it as a sentence.
If this little explanation gives you a headache, don't worry about the definitions. Simply remember that the grammarians themselves disagree and that you will learn to make the distinction between sentences and non-sentences by seeing lots of examples of well-formed sentences.
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The KISSGrammar Workbooks / Back to September MenuExercise # 2 Recognizing Subjects and Verbs
Reed and Kellogg No. 2 (combined from pages 14 and 15)(from Grade 3, September 1st)
A noun names a person, place, or thing. A finite verb makes a sentence.
Directions: In each of the following, underline the (noun) subject once and the (finite) verb twice.
1. Magnets attract. / 13. Plants droop.
2. Horses neigh. / 14. Books help.
3. Frogs leap. / 15. Clouds float.
4. Cold contracts. / 16. Exercise strengthens.
5. Sunbeams dance. / 17. Rain falls.
6. Heat expands. / 18. Time flies.
7. Sunlight gleams. / 19. Rowdies fight.
8. Banners wave. / 20. Bread nourishes.
9. Grass withers. / 21. Boats capsize.
10. Sailors climb. / 22. Water flows.
11. Rabbits burrow. / 23. Students learn.
12. Spring advances. / 24. Horses gallop.
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The KISS Grammar Workbooks / Back to September Menu(Codes and Color Key)
Recognizing Subjects and Verbs -- Exercise # 2
[Answer Key]
(from Grade 3, September 1st)
1. Magnetsattract. / 13. Plantsdroop.
2. Horsesneigh. / 14. Bookshelp.
3. Frogsleap. / 15. Cloudsfloat.
4. Coldcontracts. / 16. Exercisestrengthens.
5. Sunbeamsdance. / 17. Rainfalls.
6. Heatexpands. / 18. Timeflies.
7. Sunlightgleams. / 19. Rowdiesfight.
8. Bannerswave. / 20. Breadnourishes.
9. Grasswithers. / 21. Boatscapsize.
10. Sailorsclimb. / 22. Waterflows.
11. Rabbitsburrow. / 23. Studentslearn.
12. Springadvances. / 24. Horsesgallop.
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The KISS Grammar Workbooks / Back to September MenuExercise # 3 Recognizing Subjects and Verbs
Reed and Kellogg No. 3 (from page 16)
(from Grade 3, September 2nd)
A noun names a person, place, or thing. A finite verb makes a sentence.
Directions: In each of the following, underline the (noun) subject once and the (finite) verb twice.
1. Waves dash. / 13. Lions roar.
2. Kings reign. / 14. Tigers growl.
3. Fruit ripens. / 15. Breezes sigh.
4. Stars shine. / 16. Carthage fell.
5. Steel tarnishes. / 17. Morning dawns.
6. Insects buzz. / 18. Showers descended.
7. Paul preached. / 19. Diamonds sparkle.
8. Poets sing. / 20. Alexander conquered.
9. Nero fiddled. / 21. Jupiter thunders.
10. Larks sing. / 22. Columbus sailed.
11. Water ripples. / 23. Grammarians differ.
12. Lambs frisk. / 24. Cornwallis surrendered.
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The KISS Grammar Workbooks / Back to September Menu(Codes & Color Key)
Exercise # 3 Recognizing Subjects and Verbs
Answer Key
(from Grade 3, September 2nd)
Directions: In each of the following, underline the subject once and the verb twice.
1. Wavesdash. / 13. Lionsroar.
2. Kingsreign. / 14. Tigersgrowl.
3. Fruitripens. / 15. Breezessigh.
4. Starsshine. / 16. Carthagefell.
5. Steeltarnishes. / 17. Morningdawns.
6. Insectsbuzz. / 18. Showersdescended.
7. Paulpreached. / 19. Diamondssparkle.
8. Poetssing. / 20. Alexanderconquered.
9. Nerofiddled. / 21. Jupiterthunders.
10. Larkssing. / 22. Columbussailed.
11. Waterripples. / 23. Grammariansdiffer.
12. Lambsfrisk. / 24. Cornwallissurrendered.
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The KISS Grammar Workbooks / Back to September MenuExercise # 4 Recognizing Subjects and Verbs
Fill in the blanks with Nouns as Subjects
Reed and Kellogg No. 4 (from page 17)
(from Grade 3, September 3rd)
A noun names a person, place, or thing. A finite verb makes a sentence.
Directions: In each of the following, supply a noun as a subject for the finite verb.
1. ______swim. / 13. ______flashes.
2. ______sinks. / 14. ______flutters.
3. ______hunt. / 15. ______paddle.
4. ______skate. / 16. ______toil.
5. ______jingle / 17. ______terrifies.
6. ______decay. / 18. ______rages.
7. ______climb. / 19. ______expand.
8. ______creep. / 20. ______jump.
9. ______run. / 21. ______hop.
10. ______walk. / 22. ______bellow.
11. ______snort. / 23. ______burns.
12. ______kick. / 24. ______evaporates.
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