So today I want to talk to you about some common
sense ways that you can improve your grammar.
That's coming up.
So grammar is basically what ties is language together.
It gives us rules. It gives language structure.
And because of that I think many adults out there
really want to focus on grammar and and learn grammar.
Because they think it gives them a "yes" or "no" answer to many things.
In my opinion, I think people end up emphasizing
grammar maybe a little too much, and focusing on
structure and rules without realizing that we're...
we practice our grammar skills all the time when we are
listening, when we are reading, as well as when we're practicing speaking and writing.
So today I want to talk to you about some
common sense ways that you can practice your grammar skills.
And these are things that we should all know and we should all be doing.
And it's that doing part that is a little difficult because
I think many people tend to overlook some of
these tips and suggestions, and therefore don't end up
continuously practicing and improving their grammar skills.
The first suggestion I have for you is to get more language exposure.
And the easiest way to do this, and the most accessible
way to do this is by listening and reading.
You can listen to a podcast, listen to music, listen to TV, movies.
And that's going to provide you with some additional
exposure because you're not only hearing what
people say, but you're hearing correct grammatical structures.
And that's the same with reading.
When you're reading a story or when you're reading an article online,
you are reading the way that grammar is correctly used.
And that's going to help reinforce your overall skills
as well as your knowledge of grammar.
So exposure is so, so, so important for improving
not just your grammar skills, but your overall English fluency.
Get more exposure with more listening and more reading.
Next, it is very important that you use the grammar.
And when I say use the grammar, I think especially in speaking.
If many of you are out there and you're studying grammar,
perhaps you have a book and you learn something new and you have these written exercises,
continue practicing and try to actually speak the grammar.
And you can do this by talking yourself, thinking of
questions and trying to actually use it because that's the best way that you're going to remember it.
And also just end up using it correctly.
So really try to practice the grammar and use it, especially with speaking.
You can also practice identifying grammar when reading.
And you can do this and make it an exercise all on your own.
So say that you're learning new grammar, you're learning
either gerunds, or verb tenses, or phrasal verbs.
you can read an online article and try to identify the different grammar.
And go through the article and see what you can find.
Because again, that is going to help reinforce
your understanding of the grammar, and you'll be able to
get that exposure and see how it's used correctly.
The next suggestion that I have for you, and it's
something that I tell students all the time, is don't
try to think of grammar as being right or wrong.
Think of it more in terms of being acceptable or unacceptable.
Because often when people are learning grammar, they want a clear answer.
Is this correct or is this correct?
And again, there's not always going to be one clear-cut answer.
It's better to look at it as acceptable or unacceptable
So for example, we use the subjunctive with the second conditional.
And you would say "If I were..." / "If he were..."
However, in informal colloquial speech it's pretty common
that you might hear somebody say "If I was..."
Now if you want to be really strict with grammar, then
you'd say "No, you should use the subjunctive."
But the issue is so many people don't end up using it.
So instead of looking at it as...well this is wrong and this is right,
look at it as something that's either acceptable or unacceptable.
With other grammar you might find that something is not as acceptable.
And if something's not acceptable, then you should try to avoid using that.
So try to be comfortable with not always having a Yes/No answer.
That something is right. That something is wrong.
Think about it as acceptable or unacceptable.
Another common sense suggestion, which I think
a lot of people don't end up doing, is review old grammar concepts.
When it comes to learning grammar, I think so many
people out there just...you know, I want to learn something new. I've already studied this.
I want to learn something new.
You should constantly be reviewing old grammar concepts because
that's just going to help you improve your overall English fluency.
So it's great to learn new things.
It's great to practice new things.
But also don't overlook reviewing old grammar concepts.
So for example, we have a lot of grammar lessons on
this channel, and even if you have studied this grammar
and you think you're familiar with it, probably helps to go back and watch it.
And practice using that grammar.
Next...and this kind of ties in to grammar being acceptable and unacceptable,
keep in mind that rules are meant to be broken.
You're going to encounter some grammar rules
and you're going to say, "Okay. This is what I need to do."
This is how I'm going to use it.
But you may then see that those rules are broken
when you're listening to a song or maybe you're watching a TV show.
For example, I think it's much more common nowadays
for people to end up using the verb LOVE in the continuous tense.
And they say, "You know, I'm really loving this song.
Or this...you know, I'm absolutely loving this.
I'm loving these odds.
I'm loving this.
And I'm loving it.
I'm loving you too.
And as a stative verb, it should not be used in the continuous tense.
But these are some of the rules that people might break.
Also, if you're traveling in the US and you go into a grocery store,
you might see a sign that says, "10 Items or Less."
Instead of saying, "10 Items or Fewer."
Those two words are commonly confused, and people
will use "less" instead of "fewer."
And they will end up breaking those grammar rules.
So again, my recommendation would be that you should
always try to learn the rules and try to follow them.
But don't get too frustrated or hung up if you
discover that some rules are being broken.
The next common sense suggestion, well This is more of a reminder for you,
is that grammar is evolving.
That it is going to be constantly changing.
Now, it's not really going to change too quickly.
But the grammar from 500 years ago is different from the grammar today.
And that's going to be different from the grammar 500 years from now.
So just remember that it's constantly evolving
and that there will be some changes along the way.
And you can either decide to embrace those changes if you feel that this is acceptable or
or you may decide not to use them if you think it is something that's unacceptable.
Another very useful suggestion, which I think
many of you know, but many of you may not
always do, is don't worry about making mistakes.
Don't let grammar or your knowledge of grammar
get in the way of you speaking or writing.
And trying to actually use the language.
Because I've seen students that they're worried about saying something incorrectly.
And because of that if they make it a little anxious.
And that anxiety keeps them from actually practicing the language.
And if you're not practicing the language, it becomes
more difficult to improve your language skills.
Don't let anxiety get in the way.
And don't worry too much about making grammar mistakes.
We did a lesson on how you can overcome your anxiety
and I will link that up above.
Here at interactive English, we love doing grammar lessons
so now we want to hear from you.
And in the comments tell us what kind of grammar lesson you would like to learn.
What kind of grammar are you studying?
Or what would you like to learn more about?
Let us know in the comments.
And as always, thanks for watching and I'll see you next time.