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Syntax and Sentence Structure
Illustrate Your Pronouns & Adjectives!

Summary

In this literacy centre, designed for grades 7 and 8, students will explore and master the use of reflexive and intensive pronouns and proper adjectives. Through creative writing and comic strip creation, students will develop a deeper understanding of how these grammar components enhance meaning and clarity in both written and visual contexts.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this centre, students will be able to:
  • Demonstrate and understand reflexive and intensive pronouns and proper adjectives by correctly identifying and using them in written and visual contexts;
  • Apply their knowledge of reflexive pronouns, intensive pronouns, and proper adjectives by constructing grammatically correct sentences within a creative writing task and a comic strip, ensuring that these elements are used effectively to enhance meaning and clarity;
  • Revise their work to ensure that reflexive pronouns, intensive pronouns, and proper adjectives are used appropriately and effectively, demonstrating a deeper understanding of these grammatical concepts.

Material to Prepare

  • Appendix A: Reflexive and Intensive Pronouns (Worksheet)
  • Appendix B: Proper Adjectives (Worksheet)
  • Appendix C: Comic Strip Template
  • Pencils or pens
  • Highlighters (yellow, blue, orange)
  • Drawing tools (crayons, markers, etc.)
  • Dictionaries and thesauruses (optional)

Procedure

Instructions for Students
Getting Started
  • Collect the needed materials: Appendix A, Appendix B, Appendix C, pencils or pens, and drawing tools.
  • Review the definitions and examples provided on the worksheets (Appendix A and Appendix B) for reflexive and intensive pronouns and proper adjectives.
Identifying Pronouns and Adjectives
  • Step 1: In Appendix A, read the quotes provided and highlight the reflexive pronouns in yellow and the intensive pronouns in blue.
  • Step 2: In Appendix B, read the provided sentences and highlight the proper adjectives in orange.
    • Example (Appendix A): “I knew I had to face the darkness myself.” → Highlight “myself” in blue.
    • Example (Appendix B): “We’re dealing with something straight out of Norse mythology.” → Highlight “Norse” in orange.
Creative Writing Task
  • Step 1: Choose your favourite character or create an original one. Write a short scene involving this character, ensuring that you include the following:
    • 3 Proper Adjectives (e.g., “American hero”).
    • 2 Intensive Pronouns (e.g., “I’ll do it myself”).
    • 2 Reflexive Pronouns (e.g., “She helped herself to the snacks”).
  • Step 2: Focus on how these grammatical elements enhance the meaning and clarity of your writing. Be imaginative and think critically about their use.
Comic Strip Creation
  • Step 1: After completing your scene, use the comic strip template provided (Appendix C) to turn your written scene into a visual comic strip.
    • Include speech bubbles, narrative text, and drawings to represent the scene creatively.
    • Ensure that the reflexive pronouns, intensive pronouns, and proper adjectives you used in your writing are incorporated into the comic strip dialogue or captions.
  • Step 2: Use the drawing tools to bring your comic strip to life with colours and details.
Reflection and Peer Review
  • Step 1: Reflect on your work by answering the following questions in your notebook:
    • How did using reflexive and intensive pronouns change the portrayal of your character’s actions and thoughts in your scene?
    • What role did proper adjectives play in making your descriptions more vivid or specific?
    • How did the visual elements of the comic strip help or challenge you in conveying the grammar concepts?
  • Step 2: Pair with a classmate to share and discuss your comic strips. Provide feedback on each other’s use of pronouns and adjectives, and discuss how these elements enhanced your stories.

DIFFERENTIATION: Observing and providing support during analysis.

Possible Observation Intervention Strategies
Students struggle to identify or differentiate between reflexive and intensive pronouns.
  • Provide targeted examples that clearly contrast reflexive and intensive pronouns within sentences. Use colour coding or underlining to visually differentiate them.
  • Conduct a brief mini-lesson using visual aids such as charts or diagrams that categorize reflexive and intensive pronouns with corresponding examples.
  • Use manipulatives like flashcards or sentence strips where students can physically arrange and identify pronouns, reinforcing the differences through hands-on practice.
Students are unable to come up with creative uses of proper adjectives in their writing.
  • Offer a curated word bank of proper adjectives tailored to the theme of the students’ writing (e.g., cultural, geographical, historical adjectives).
  • Guide the students through examples of sentences using proper adjectives in real-world contexts, discussing how these adjectives add specificity and depth.
  • Encourage brainstorming sessions where students can connect the proper adjectives to the character or setting in their scene, fostering creativity through guided prompts.
Students have difficulty transitioning their written scene into a visual comic strip format.
  • Collaborate with the students to storyboard their scene, breaking down the narrative into key moments that can be visually represented in separate panels.
  • Discuss using speech bubbles, thought bubbles and captions to convey dialogue and internal thoughts, emphasizing how text and visuals work together in a comic strip.
  • Provide simple comic strip examples as models, showing how other creators have transitioned text into visual narratives, and encourage the student to follow a similar approach.

Appendixes

Download the Appendixes document

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