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Grammar for Writers
- Age: 14+
- Half Credit
This is a deep dive into English grammar—but not grammar for its own sake. The goal is to give learners a mastery of grammar that results directly and immediately in better writing. Grammar for Writers builds on a native speaker and reader’s instinctive understanding of language in order to demystify English grammar and sentence structure. The course provides very concrete tools to analyze, diagnose, and repair writing problems. The series is taught by Jonathan Rogers, author of The Wilderking Trilogy and The World According to Narnia.
Description
Designed to help students become better writers, Grammar for Writers teaches them to analyze their own writing, discover problems, and write better sentences. The result is less fear about getting grammar wrong, and more freedom in the flexibility that English affords your homeschool student.
Benefits:
- Overcomes Fear of Grammar: The course is designed to alleviate the intimidation and fear associated with English grammar. It aims to transform this fear into an understanding of the language’s flexibility and richness, empowering writers.
- Flexibility in Expression and Nuance: It emphasizes the English language’s ability to communicate ideas in multiple ways, offering various shades of meaning and nuances. This aspect of the course encourages writers to explore different expressions to find the best fit for their ideas.
- Practical Tools for Improved Writing: The course provides concrete tools for analyzing, diagnosing, and repairing problems in writing. This isn’t just about correcting errors; it’s about enhancing the overall quality of writing.
- Systematic Approach to Writing: Grammar for Writers helps learners to think systematically and analytically about sentence structure, aiding in the construction of better sentences and clearer writing.
- Builds on Instinctive Language Understanding: The course builds on the student’s instinctive understanding of language to demystify grammar and sentence structure, helping them to make more informed choices in their writing.
Includes:
- 41 videos lessons (6.5 hours total)
- Lecture Notes for each lesson (PDF)
- Quizzes for each lesson (PDF)
This course is a great choice for homeschool families or for independent learners.
Credit: ½ Credit for High-School (or Upper Middle-School) Language Arts or Writing
License: This product is licensed for use by one family. For group, co-op, or school use, each family will need to purchase a copy or purchase licenses for each student. For more information, visit our group license page.
Additional information
| Age | 14+ |
|---|---|
| Age/Grade | |
| Credit | 1/2 HS |
| Credit Amount | |
| Lessons | 41 |
| Lesson Length | about 9 minutes |
| Teacher | Jonathan Rogers |
| Format | DVD, Download, Streaming, USB Thumb Drive |
| Runtime | 6 Hours, 30 Mins |
| Addl Mtls | Lecture Notes & Quizzes (PDF or Printed Book) |
| Type |
Lessons
The course is divided into four modules:
Module 1: The Main Line
- Module 1 Introduction (5:45)
- The Main Line (7:00)
- Identifying Verbs and Subjects (12:05)
- Identifying Objects and Complements (9:37)
- The Five Clause Patterns (12:43)
- Actors and Actions, Subjects and Verbs (9:37)
- What Is Passive Voice? (9:14)
- Uses of the Passive Voice (5:53)
- Nominalization (10:57)
- Strong Verbs vs. Precise Verbs (12:38)
- Keeping Subjects Close to Verbs (12:29)
- Compounds on the Main Line (11:05)
- Verb Tenses (9:04)
Module 2: Modifiers
- Module 2 Introduction (11:54)
- Adjectives and Adverbs (14:52)
- What’s So Bad About Adverbs? (8:54)
- Prepositional Phrases (Part 1) (8:52)
- Prepositional Phrases (Part 2) (9:29)
- Participles (10:56)
- Participial Phrases (12:19)
- Infinitives and Infinitive Phrases (7:25)
- Subordinate Clauses (Introduction) (14:44)
- Adjective Clauses (8:59)
- Adverb Clauses (10:49)
- More on Subordinate Clauses (10:13)
- Misplaced Modifiers (8:02)
- Module 2 Conclusion (7:16)
Module 3: Noun Equivalents
- Module 3 Introduction (7:55)
- Noun Clauses (8:48)
- Gerunds and Infinitives (8:03)
- Appositives (7:16)
- Essential and Non-Essential Elements (10:12)
- Module 3 Review (5:45)
Module 4: Connections and Transitions
- Module 4 Introduction (4:20)
- Subject-Verb Agreement (8:10)
- Pronouns and Antecedents (9:21)
- Connecting Clauses (Part 1) (9:08)
- Connecting Clauses (Part 2) (8:15)
- Parallelism (16:03)
- Nominative Absolutes (5:41)
- Course Wrap-Up (5:38)
Sample Lessons
Want to see Grammar for Writers in action? Experience sample lessons inside our learning platform—just as your student will. See how a structured approach to writing comes to life with engaging video lessons, comprehensive lecture notes, and interactive quizzes!
Step inside our online classroom!
In the meantime, here is just one of the three videos available at the link above.
Sample Book
Resources
How to Teach Grammar For Writers: Don’t know where to begin with this product (or need a refresher)? Try our brief jumpstart guide to see how all the pieces fit together.
Grammar For Writers Resources: Additional links, videos, and games you can use to supplement the curriculum. Best of all, they’re free!
Errata
View an updated list of corrections for this product here.
12 reviews for Grammar for Writers
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Lorie S –
Grammar for Writers is an excellent way to introduce or reinforce grammar for your students. My favorite thing about Jonathan Rogers course is his encouragement to break the rules, once you have learned them, to make your writing personal.
Corlia J –
Presented in an excellent, well expressed manner. English is our second language and this course makes it easy to understand the grammar and usage of the language. So glad we found this course.
Jennifer G –
My son completed this earlier this year. He enjoyed it and the format.
Rebecca R –
My very wordy son who doesn’t realize he is a good writer has really taken to this course. I think he sees the point of some of the “rules” of grammar for the first time in 11th grade!
Nina E –
Enjoyed. May take again. We loved it. Excellent class. I plan to have another child take the class too.
Sandra S (verified owner) –
My daughter enjoyed it.
Sherryn F (verified owner) –
My kids are still using this and love it. We’ve actually gone back to do some review and they are working through it a second time!
Betsy F –
LOVE this course; we used the teacher’s guide from Compass Classroom, but accessed the videos through our membership with Jonathan Rogers. Outstanding grammar course: thorough, engaging, and to the point.
Linda I (verified owner) –
Jonathan Rogers is an excellent communicator. I was not as familiar with his particular diagramming of sentences which made it a bit hard to follow, but my daughter seemed to catch on to it eventually.
Heather B –
Has been very helpful for my daughter. She can FINALLY understand passive voice! Yay!! She loves the program!
Maria C (verified owner) –
Grammar for Writers is great because the sentences used are so funny and engaging that my student likes reading the exercises and correcting them, just to see what funny thing will be said next. He loves the absurdity of some of the sentences. The program needs a supplement to explain the concepts in more depth and give more examples. Having the explanations in the answer key is helpful, but some of that could be expanded on and put into a supplement. My child thinks he gets it, only to realize that all or many of his answers are incorrect. I think it just needs more explanatory material. That said, I would recommend it.
Katie T –
It’s been good – my two teens using it this year haven’t complained/commented negatively about anything.