Im4u

2012年11月8日星期四

Happy hours, Learning English is fun




Wish you all
Merry Christmas & 
Happy New Year



             
Learn grammar topics of Year 5 English
Introductions

I love teaching collective nouns. I always encourage my students to use collective nouns because it makes their writing more descriptive
and increases their vocabulary of words. Students like it too because they are so literal and therefore easy to remember e.g. a party of friends. I am particularly interested in sharing my own personal lesson plans, tests and activities among may panel teachers.  Teachers need to share ideas and support each other because in doing so, we actually help to educate our students and develop ourselves as teachers.

Technology is ever evolving and we as teachers should get on board with it, collaborate and keep up to date with this new age that we live in. Our students belong to this technological era and we must embrace opportunities to learn from each other in this global community. I also love to express my creativity in the classroom. I always enjoy cutting, gluing or making a game, a chart, a learning center, etc. So, teachers, parent and students feel free to stop by and see what's new in my blog.


Fun With Words
Learning of Collective Nouns


Collective nouns are easy to recognize and they’re fun to work with, too.  Not only they rich in developmental history, in some case they can add vivid imagery to writing.  The following explains the usage of this unique class of nouns. One of the craziest oddities of the English language is that there are so many different collective nouns that all mean "group" but which are specific to what particular thing there is a group of: a herd of elephants, a crowd of people, a box of crayons, a pad of paper, etc. There is great diversity of collective nouns associated with animals, from a sleuth of bears to a murder of crows. The following is a list of the correct terms to describe groups of various types of animals.


          
A charm of hummingbirds                   
     A group of finches or  hummingbirds is called a charm. 

                        
                                                               A bundle of sticks                                                                                                  
A bundle is several things tied or gathered together, like a bundle of sticks or cloth. 
A bundle of sticks is  called a faggot.    
                
                                                         

                                                        A clump of yellow flowers                                                               
   A clump is a group of similar things, very close together and hard to separate.         
                                                                                                                  

A group of flowers 
A group of flowers gathered together so you can hold them or put them in a vase is called a bouquet, or sometimes just a bunch. Brides often carry a bouquet of flowers when they get married.

             
 A brood of baby chicks
 A brood is a group of offspring. The hen in the picture has a brood of baby chicks.                                    

             
              A bunch of grapes
         A group of grapes all together is  called a bunch.

              
              An army of caterpillars 
A group of caterpillars is called an army. Sometimes, a group of  ants is called an army too.                                                                   
         
     A band of musicians 
A band is a group of  musicians who perform music together.


                                                           

             A barren of donkeys or mules  
           A group of donkeys or mules is called a barren.                                 
                                                          
             A bloat of hippopotamus
               A group of hippopotamus is called a bloat.


         
                                                                
                                                                          A fleet of planes                                                                                                  
             A group of planescarstrucks or ships is called a fleet.                             

             
               A gaggle of geese
                  A group of geese is called a gaggle.





What is a Collective Noun?
Collective nouns denote a group of people, objects, ideas, or animals as a single concept. Though the collective noun refers to more than one in a group, the noun itself is considered a single thing.
However, they can be used as either singular of plural.  It all depends on the sentence.
Tying to decide which form to use can get confusing because you have to use the correct verb and pronoun forms, too.  One way to make it a little easier is to determine if the collective noun is referring to a unit working as individuals or if they are working together in unison.

Examples of Collective Nouns
The singular verb and pronoun form is used is if they are acting in unison.  For example:
The class listens [singular verb form] carefully to its [singular pronoun] teacher’s instructions.  (Here the class is a unit acting together as one.  They are all doing the same thing, listening, at the same time.)
When the members of the group are acting on their own, use the plural verb and pronoun forms.  For example:
The class start [plural verb form] their [plural pronoun] projects while the teacher grades their [plural pronoun] papers.  (The class is a unit, but they act individually when they work on their own projects.)
Need more examples of collective nouns?  You’ll find a whole list below.


Collective Nouns
Collective nouns are those nouns that denote a group of people, animals, objects, concepts or ideas as a single entity.

These collective nouns are  commonly used under the category of people.
1. A  class of students                         2. An army of soldiers.
3. A  choir of singers.                           4. A  crew of sailors.
5. A  band of musicians.                      6. A  bunch of crooks.
7. A  crowd of people.                          8. A  gang of thieves.
9. A  group of dancers.                        10. A  team of players.
11. A  crowd of spectators.                12. A  pack of thieves.
13. A  troupe of artists.                       14. A  staff of employees.
15. A  regiment of soldiers.                16. A  tribe of natives.
17. A  troupe of dancers.                   18. An audience of listeners.
19. A  panel of experts.                      20. A  gang of labourers.
 21.A  flock of tourists.                        22. A  board of directors.

The following collective nouns are used for animals.
1.         A catch of fish.                         2. An army of ants.
3.   A flight of birds.                        4. A flock of birds.
5.   A haul of fish.                           6. A flock of sheep.
7.   A herd of deer/cattle                8. A hive of bees.
9.   A litter of cubs.                        10. A host of sparrows.
11. A team of horses.                   12. A troop of lions.
13. A zoo of wild animals.            14. A pack of wolves.
15. A litter of puppies/kittens.       16. A swarm of bees/ants/rats.
17. A team of horses/ducks.        18. A murder of crows.
19. A kennel of dogs.                    20.A pack of hounds.
21. A herd of elephants/ buffaloes.

   The following collective nouns are used for things.
1.   A group of islands.                     2.  A galaxy of stars.
3.   A wad of notes.                        4.  A forest of trees.
5. A stack of wood.                        6.  A fleet of ships.
7. An album of stamps                   8.  A string of pearls.
9.   A hedge of bushes.                 10.  A library of books.
 11. A basket of fruit.                       12. A bowl of rice.
13.  A pack of cards.                       14.  A pair of shoes.
15.  A bouquet of flowers.               16.  A bunch of keys.
17.  A chest of drawers.                  18.  A pack of lies.
19.  A range of mountains.              20.  A cloud of dust.
21.  An album of photographs.


 Collective nouns are endless and these are just a list of those used more often. As you continue to work on improving your English, you will stumble across many more. Be sure to add them to your list and use them as frequently as you can.


Others Common Collective Nouns
Pod    :      A group of large marine mammals in the ocean: 
                 whales, dolphins
Colony:    A group that has established itself at a particular location: 
                  seals, bats
Troop :    A group of simians: 
                 Gorillas, monkeys, baboons
Swarm :    A mass of insects: 
                  Bees, ants, flies, locusts
Litter  :    Group of newborn animals (of the same mother): 
                  puppies, kittens
Bed    :    A group of animals (usually immobile) attached to one
                 particular plot of land : Oysters, clams,   mussels
School/Shoal   :   A group of fish : 
                               Herring, mackerel, tuna.

Other collective nouns :
a  gang  of  elk, a  pride  of  lions, a  smack  of  jellyfish, a  covey  of  pheasants, a  murder  of  crows,  a  parade  of  elephants, a  mob  of  kangaroos, a  wake  of  vultures


COLLECTIVE NOUNS 


Exercise 1
Choose the correct collective nouns then fill in the blanks.
a flock of         a chest of       a class of        a herd of         a troupe of
a comb of       a string of       a gaggle of     a library of      a troop of
1.   ………………… soldiers is camping in the forest.
2.  Siew Peng likes to read. She has ……………….. books in her room.
3.  ………………… geese is chasing the little boy.
4.  Mr Soo bought ………………. pearls for his wife on her birthday.
5.  The monkey snatched    …………….. bananas from the zoo keeper’s hand.
6.  ………………… dancers is performing on stage now.
7.  There is …………………… cows grazing in the field.
8.  It is very difficult to teach ……………………. naughty pupils.
9. He found his keys after searching through ………………. drawers.
10.   The sheepdog is chasing …………………. sheep to the field.



Exercise 2
Choose the correct option.
1.      A ………….. of playing cards.     A   flock    B  pack
2.      A shoal of ………………… .           A   fish       B  birds
3.      A ……………….. of keys.               A   bunch   B  group
4.      A …………….. of events.              A   group    B  series
5.      A choir of ………………. .             A   singers    B  painters
6.      An army of ……………… .           A   ants        B  birds
7.      A pack of ………………. .            A   cats        B  dogs
8.      A swarm of ……………. .             A   bear       B  bees
9.      A herd of ………………. .    A   elephants      B  lions
10.    A bunch of ……………. .    A   apples            B  bananas
11.    A hedge of …………….. .   A   bushes           B  trees
12.    A chest of ……………… .    A   drawers        B  cupboards
13.    A fleet of ………………. .    A   ships               B  aeroplanes
14.    A host of ………………. .     A   crows            B  sparrows

                                             Exercise 3
                  



Others useful tips of learning collective nouns…….


 “A herd of cows that belong to the farmer are grazing in his field.”
 “a herd of cattle is”, because there is only ONE herd of cattle. Other examples include: A bunch of bananas does not cost much. However, we say a group or a number of students are ... .whether to use a singular verb or a plural one after: a collective noun/quantifier + of + a plural noun
The words herd”, “flock”, “bunch and group are all collective nouns which are nouns that refer to groups of people or things. “A number of” is a quantifier, which is a word or phrase used before a noun to refer to its quantity or amount.
In British English, either a singular or a plural verb can be used with a collective noun, after phrases like “a herd of cows/cattle (cattle here is a plural noun)”, “a flock of sheep”, “a bunch of bananas/flowers/grapes”, or “a group of students”. A plural noun and verb are used after the quantifier “a number of” and some other quantifiers, while others are used with singular or uncountable nouns and singular verbs.
Generally, in using a collective noun, when the group is seen as a unit or impersonally, a singular verb is used. But when the group is seen as a collection of individuals, a plural verb is used. Here are some examples from the Internet, with my comments on each:
Herd
1a. “In much of Africa, a herd of cattle is more than just cows. It’s a savings account, protein store, dowry ...” (from African Content, a website about Africa)
1b. “A herd of cattle are meandering the other way down the road. Seeing me eating, one cow saunters up to the table to investigate, only to be shooed away by the waitress.” (telegraph.co.uk travel section)
In 1a, the singular verb “is” is used after “a herd of cattle” because the emphasis is on what the whole herd as a unit means to the owner.
In 1b, however, “are” is used after “a herd of cattle” because it is clear that the cattle are regarded as a collection of individual cows, especially with one of them behaving in a most individual way.
Bunch
2. “Here is what she says, ‘the inspiration to bake a banana cake always seems to strike when a bunch of bananas are mottling on the counter ...’ ” (from Dujour Magazine, an online lifestyle magazine)
In the above extract, “a bunch of bananas” is followed by the plural verb “are mottling” (which means getting spotty due to over-ripeness) because the bunch is regarded as a collection of individual bananas, each of them getting brown spots. In contrast, your sentence, “A bunch of bananas does not 

Parts of the activities organized by the English panel
 in the year 2012



   
         
The teacher is showing how to get learning materials from the internet.


One of the participants during the Annual English storytelling Competition


Another participants of Annual English Storytelling competition

Pupils are listening attentively during the Annual Storytelling Competition

Members of The English Society used the recycled bottles  and  papers to produce a  colorful chair. 

A pupil weighs below 20 kg sat on the chair



The recycled chair can even hold up to 35 kilogram weigh.


Notes 



1.0       Nouns
            
Nouns are names given to people,
places and things.
Nouns are mainly classified as the   following:

 a.   Common Nouns : e. g. school, teacher, computer etc.

 b.   Proper Nouns : e. g. Proton Saga, John, Garfield, Deepavali          

 c.   Countable and Uncountable Nouns :

       (i) Countable nouns : e. g. boys, dahlias, doves..…

       (ii) Uncountable nouns:  e. g. soup, rice, butter, tea, flour ……

 d.    Singular Nouns and Plural Nouns
 A singular noun is one person, animal or thing. A plural noun is more
than one person, animal or thing. To form the plurals of nouns:

       (i)   We add ‘-s’ to most nouns e.g: girl – girls, bag – bags, desk – desks
       (ii)  We add ‘-es’ to nouns ending in ‘-s’, ‘-ch’, ‘-sh’ and ‘-x’.
              e. g. glass – glasses,  match -  matches, bush – bushes, box – boxes

      (iii)   We add‘-s’ to some nouns ending in ‘-o’. e.g. radio – radios,
               piano – pianos.

      (iv)  We add ‘-es’ to some nouns ending in ‘-o’. e. g. buffalo – buffaloes,
              tomato – tomatoes

      (v)   We change ‘-y’ to ‘-ies’. e. g. city – cities, lorry – lorries, lady – ladies.

      (vi)  We change ‘-f’ or ‘-fe’ into ‘-ves’. e. g. leaf – leaves, knife– knives,
              wife – wives.

      (vii)  We add ‘-en’ e. g. child – children, ox – oxen


 Collective Nouns

Collective nouns refer to a group of people, animals
and things of the same kind.
                        e.g. a litter of puppies, a flock of sheep, a  team of players etc.


2.0       Imperatives Quantifiers  
a.  quantifiers for countable nouns
    (i)  a /an : for one item only. e g. a pupil, a spider, an iron, an office

   (ii)  a few/ a small number of / several / some : more than two item / not many.

          e g. a few children, a small number of sweets, several chairs, some books

   (iii) many/ a large number of/ a lot of/ plenty of : in big quantities.

          e g. many people, a large number of stocks, a lot of flowers, plenty of shops

   (iv)  any/ many : use mainly in questions or negative sentences.e g.

            Are there any magazines in the library?

            How many apples are left in the basket?

   b.         quantifiers for uncountable nouns
     (i)   a little/ a small amount of / some : not much. e g. a little dust,
            a small amount of flour, some oil.

       (ii)  much/a large amount of / a great deal of/ a lot of/ plenty of : a big amount.

             e g. much effort, a large amount of rubbish, a great deal of fun, a lot of/ 
             plenty of space.

      (iii) any/much: use mainly in questions or negative sentences. e. g.

             Is there any water in the bottle?

            How much money do you have?  
     some, any , a lot of, plenty of are quantifiers used to both countable and
uncountable nouns. : e g. some lines/ air, any files/ information, a lot of
cakes/ water, plenty of coins/ money


Tips to improve English:

a)         Learn English Grammar
            - adjectives, adverbs, articles,
               nouns (possessive Nouns, noun as adjectives)
            - verbs
            - prepositions
            - pronouns
            - conjunctions
            - interjections
            - tenses, subjects, verbs and objects
            - conditionals, determiners, quantifiers
            - subjunctive
            - direct and reported speech
            - independent and dependent clauses
            - grammar rules
b).        Improve English Vocabulary
            - punctuation
            - common mistakes in English
            - other resources
            - career Resources
            - exercise