Grammar
Parts of Speech
"Running Through the Parts of Speech"
It goes...
Noun, verb, adjective, adverb,
Pronoun, preposition, conjunction, interjection.
Uh-uh, uh-uh, pardon me,
We're… uh… running through the p-p-p-p- parts of speech.
Nouns are people, things and places,
Ideas and concepts, so face it.
Your face is a noun, your name is a noun,
I see nouns all around when I roll through the town:
Chris, sidewalk, conversation,
Kitten, popcorn, and some patience,
Unicorn, dreams, shoelace, kings,
Nouns are ideas, people, places and things.
A verb expresses action, like "I see,"
Or a state of being like the verb “to be.”
So we sing, you sang, he sings songs,
We brought her, you should bring him along.
Adjectives? - that's where the magic is.
They modify a noun or a pronoun, wow.
The big bad wolf had hairy paws,
Sharp little teeth and scary claws.
It goes...
Noun, verb, adjective, adverb,
Pronoun, preposition, conjunction, interjection,
Uh-uh uh-uh, pardon me,
We're… uh… running through the p-p-p-p- parts of speech. x2
Pronouns replace nouns, a little bit,
Instead of a specific thing, you could use "it,"
Or me or mine or you or we,
Or that or this or hers or she.
Want to quickly modify a verb?
You really need an adverb, ya heard?
You can usually take an adjective and add "-ly",
So we easily won the game last night.
The prepositions in a sentence are the links,
Like on, in, at, upon and against.
Prepositions tell you where and when,
Go up by the rock to see all of your friends.
And, but, or - those are conjunctions,
They link up phrases, that's their function.
Yet they – No! Don't forget interjections, yo!
They interrupt things like Hey! Or Whoa!
It goes
Noun, verb, adjective, adverb,
Pronoun, preposition, conjunction, interjection,
Uh-uh uh-uh, pardon me,
We're… uh… running through the p-p-p-p- parts of speech. x4
Nouns
"Cooking with Nouns"
“Hey man, hey, I’m really hungry.”
Yeah, me too Frankie.
“Alright, well...”
I heard of a new spot in town.
“Well alright, I’ll try it as long as it’s not too fancy.”
Have you heard about a chef named Shelly?
She cooks up food that you can put into your belly.
It's always tasty, and it's never smelly.
“Well, hey, is there anything else that you can tell me?”
Yes! She does things a little different,
And cooks up nouns when she's working in the kitchen.
“Well, how?”
What, you don't know about a noun?
It's a person, place, thing, or idea.
“Oh, I know now.”
Like for breakfast, the chef cooked eggs from a farm,
And she drank milk from cows in a barn.
“What about an idea? You can't cook that!”
But she cooked with some love when she made flapjacks.
Most nouns you can feel with the senses, but ideas you have to think about.
“Oh, I get this.”
After cooking, Shelly was looking around,
And saw we were ready to devour some nouns.
The flapjacks, eggs and milk weren't enough,
So she went into the kitchen and made some other stuff:
Apple frittata, spaghetti and meatballs,
Lobsters from Maine and some tacos with cheese sauce.
“Excuse me, but I only eat nouns.”
Well, you can eat all of these! That's how we get down.
“How?”
Cooking in the kitchen with Shelly for sure,
Using nouns all around, yeah I know you heard.
“Look, there she is!”
I'm the chef and I love to cook.
I have a lot of nouns in my recipe book.
Places, things, ideas and people,
When it comes to a chef there is no equal.
I'm in the kitchen and I love getting down.
Cooking with “What?!” I'm cooking with nouns.
Maybe one day I'll make it out to your town,
Cause I’m cooking with “What?!” I’m cooking with nouns.
Now Chef Shelly had a friend coming by,
So all of her nouns needed to get pluralized.
Usually you just add an "s,"
And things that are single are more and not less.
But some nouns are unique,
Like the two fish that she just caught from the creek.
She cuts with one knife, “Choosing from a few knives,”
And she chews with her teeth, not tooths. “That's right.”
It's her friend, Miss Proper
She gets real specific and nobody can stop her.
She came in her car. “Well, what kind?”
A Ford. “How many more proper nouns can you find?”
Well, she brought grapes over from the state of Oregon,
From a farmer, I mean from Farmer Morgan.
Most of the time they get capitalized,
There's so many proper nouns right in front of your eyes.
“I tell you what, man.”
What?
“All this talk about nouns has got me mighty hungry.”
Yeah, me too, Frankie.
“Well let’s have a roll call.”
Ok, let’s count ‘em down.
“Here we go.”
C’mon!
Person: me, your teacher, Ms. Brown
Place: Venice Beach, or a building downtown
Things: Hula hoops, a wolf or this song
Ideas: I feel hunger, but I won't for long, ‘cause...
I'm the chef and I love to cook.
I have a lot of nouns in my recipe book.
Places, things, ideas and people,
When it comes to a chef there is no equal.
I'm in the kitchen and I love getting down.
Cooking with “What?!” I'm cooking with nouns.
Maybe one day I'll make it out to your town,
Cause I’m cooking with “What?!” I’m cooking with nouns.
“Well hey man, Chef Shelly, you are the bomb dotcom. You know what I'm saying?”
I know, right?
“I mean...”
That was the best meal I’ve ever had.
“I have never had this food so good.”
I’ve never...
“And who would have thought it was all just a bunch of nouns.”
I know, it’s crazy!
“Everything’s a noun!”
Yup.
“Just about... I mean, a person a place or a thing”
Yeah, even ideas too.
“And I’m out. Peace”
Adjectives
"Talking About Adjectives"
Ladies and gentleman... Random presents: Adjectives. Adjectives are describing words, as you may
know. But they can be used in many, many, many ways. Listen up.
We’re talking about
Size, like tiny; Opinion, like wise;
Feelings, like happy, sad or otherwise;
Age, like antique; Color, like brown.
Adjectives are words that describe nouns. (x2)
Sometimes you just need more info,
You need words to keep descriptions from being simple.
And they're asking the reasoning,
Think of words as food, and adjectives? They would be the seasoning.
One time I had a little puppy,
Six-month-old Collie by the name of Lucky.
Every day we would run and frolic all playfully,
‘Til I lost my grip on the leash, she got away from me.
Made signs to put up around the neighborhood,
Hoping someone saw her and she wouldn't stay away for good.
Without those describing words,
I don't think I would've had a chance of finding her.
We’re talking about
Size, like tiny; Opinion, like wise;
Feelings, like happy, sad or otherwise;
Age, like antique; Color, like brown.
Adjectives are words that describe nouns. (x2)
Something you need to know before you write it down,
Adjectives will more than likely come before a noun.
The big bad wolf? Big and bad are adjectives,
Stir 'em in the pot, no artificial additives.
Hear my advice and take this,
Master the basics and watch your grades rise like cake mix.
Any good recipes got those in the mixture,
And those are descriptors so now you get the picture.
Last thing I'll add which is definitely worth mentioning,
Adjectives usually describe intensity.
Add an -er, an -est,
Now it's nicer, or the nicest thing that I've ever seen.
Brighter than the bright light, that would be the brightest,
Grammar is free, but adjectives are priceless.
Thank you for listening, and remember this,
If you enjoy something, be sure you can describe it!
Size, like tiny; Opinion, like wise;
Feelings, like happy, sad or otherwise;
Age, like antique; Color, like brown.
Adjectives are words that describe nouns.
We’re talking about
Size, like tiny; Opinion, like wise;
Feelings, like happy, sad or otherwise;
Age, like antique; Color, like brown.
Adjectives are words that describe nouns.
Verbs
"I Want Action"
V to the E to the R to the Bs,
Everywhere I go that's all I see.
I want action and I want it free.
I grab some verbs; that's all I need. (x2)
I think, I dance, I move,
I sleep, yes sir that's an action, too.
My favorite verb would have to be
The verb “to be,” it works masterfully.
I am, you are, it is, yep!
He was, we were, she has been,
They're being, you will be soon,
With no verbs, what would we do?
Some verbs help you know more--that's good,
Like could, should, would.
I could have gone to the little pond.
I should have planned for it all along, but I did it wrong.
I would have have fun playing in the pond with the swans.
Ya, I coulda, shoulda, woulda, but instead I wrote a little song.
These words don't mean you did it:
But if you say, "I'll do it" - then you're committed,
V to the E to the R to the Bs,
Everywhere I go that's all I see.
I want action and I want it free.
I grab some verbs; that's all I need. (x2)
Verbs move, verbs chill,
Verbs can give you life, and verbs can kill.
My verbs tell me when,
Will it be in the future? Or was it in the past tense?
I ran down the block, I was running,
I run a lot, right now I'm running.
I will run tomorrow, you copy?
I ran through the tenses, and nobody could stop me.
In the past tense some verbs aren't easy,
Usually to make it past add an “-ed,”
Like: he slips, you can say he slipped,
She flips, yeah, say she flipped.
But take this word: the word "take,"
If you say “I taked,” you would make a mistake,
I took, he didn't shaked, he shook,
Not selled, it’s sold, not telled, it’s told, c'mon!
V to the E to the R to the Bs,
Everywhere I go that's all I see.
I want action and I want it free.
I grab some verbs; that's all I need. (x2)
Adverbs
"Adverbs Are Preferred"
An adverb modifies a verb,
Adjective or even another adverb.
This is how it works, yep, haven't you heard?
Adverbs are preferred when it comes to writing words.
Listen: (x2)
This is a story of my homegirl, Tory,
She had a lot of homework and thought it was boring.
She had a paper due that was about ten pages,
And she needed the words to make it outrageous.
Adverbs: words to describe
The verbs and the adjectives that she was gonna write.
So she skillfully wrote,
While she silently thought,
And instantly, she was off to a good start.
But then she got stuck trying to talk about a place,
Adverbs gave her a taste of literary grace.
She could talk about anywhere: right here,
over there, inside out or upstairs.
She was elated from what she created.
Was it because the words that she just integrated?
Since adverbs can be about purpose,
They intentionally brought her point to the surface.
An adverb modifies a verb,
Adjective or even another adverb.
This is how it works, yep, haven't you heard?
Adverbs are preferred when it comes to writing words.
Listen: (x2)
Usually homework could get tough,
But Tory was in the zone and she couldn't get enough.
Seldom did she get into her work like this,
But she had a lot of adverbs in her bag of tricks.
She could talk about how often something went down,
Or describe when, like later or right now.
She was finally happy with what she had prepared,
With a smile on her face from here to there.
And her head held high, she could tell why.
You can take plenty of words, and add an “-ly,”
And automatically you can have an adverb,
One of the best writing tips that she had heard.
So next time when you're feeling kind of trapped,
You've hit writer's block and you're about to snap,
You should take a tip from Tory, my home girl.
She could help you write the best paper in the whole world.
An adverb modifies a verb,
Adjective or even another adverb.
This is how it works, yep, haven't you heard?
Adverbs are preferred when it comes to writing words.
Listen: (x2)
Conjunctions
"FANBOYS Party"
Dude, did you guys get the text? Yeah man, I got it. There’s gonna be a FANBOYS party tonight.
Yeah, I heard about that! This is gonna be awesome! ‘Aight then. Let’s go! ‘Aight, let’s go!
People say that I'm the life of the party.
Conjunctions connect...
A word, a phrase and a clause for everybody.
Conjunctions! Connect! (x2)
Send a text to your friends, pass it around,
A FANBOYS party is about to go down.
They throw a soiree to make phrases meet,
And words and clauses, this is the elite.
When the FANBOYS host a party,
You'll see these conjunctions the most, so come party with me.
“F” is FOR - FOR is formal,
A fancier way of saying because, sort of.
"Could you please pass the peas,
For my arms are a little too short to reach?"
Well, if FOR is fancy, AND is greedy,
Always adding things, AND is needy.
"Eating feasts of meats and various treats."
AND always wants more - "and I want it free!"
Meet NOR, he works as a waiter,
NOR isn't nice, no, he’s a hater.
"I won't serve you now, nor will I serve you later,"
Yeah - neither and neither are his neighbors.
B is BUT, not really full of hate,
But when BUT shows up, she's going to debate.
We talk but she butts in and disagrees,
She's cool, but she can be tough, you see?
O is OR, who can't decide,
No - OR can't ever make up her mind,
Like, does she want the fish or the steak,
OR is always afraid of making some mistake.
She could go out or she could stay in,
She’s eating vegan or loving bacon.
Y is YET, and he's a Yeti,
He's a lot like BUT, yet he
Is more fancy, see the bow tie?
Yeti YET contradicts, oh my.
He's dressed nice, yet he's a monster,
"This party's refined," - yet it's so bonkers,
SO's from the valley, loves to shop,
She hits the mall so she can get some socks,
So she could look cute in her so-called boots,
SO knows the reason, yep that's the truth.
That's the cast, and there are plenty more,
Connecting words, phrases and clauses for sure!
People say that I'm the life of the party.
Conjunctions connect...
A word, a phrase and a clause for everybody.
Conjunctions! Connect! (x2)
Capitalization
"Capitalize"
Man! I ever tell you about my trip to New York City? It was crazy! I mean, it’s not the capital or
anything, but there’s a lot of things out there that deserve capitals. Check it out...
My Grandma Nelly, Uncle Rob and I,
Went to New York City, yeah it was July.
We flew JetBlue, landed at JFK,
Went to The Met, saw the Mets, it was a Saturday.
There was traffic 'cause President Barack Obama,
Was visiting Queens, that was causing drama.
I was reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone,
In the back of a Subaru, sipping a Coke.
It was Independence Day, I'm not Will Smith, see,
But I started liking this day real quickly.
And, I bought a I ♥ NYC tee,
Down on Canal Street, they were speaking Chinese.
An FBI van zoomed right by me,
I saw dudes in Central Park doing tai chi.
I even saw a mural of B.I.G.,
Overall, it was a fun trip to the East.
I’m saying,
When you get specific? Capitalize.
First word of a sentence? Capitalize.
Months and days? Capitalize.
The pronoun "I"? Capitalize.
When you get specific? Capitalize
Title before a name? Capitalize
All proper nouns? Capitalize
Now let's try it again with hardly any capitals...
My grandma and my uncle and me,
We took a trip last summer to a big city.
We landed at the airport after taking a plane,
Saw some art and baseball, what a long day.
There was traffic, because the president was in town,
And that was causing drama, it was hard to get around.
I was reading a book, I don't know what it was called,
In the back of a car, sipping soda with a straw.
It was a holiday, and I'm not an actor,
But it was good day, and what came after.
I bought a t-shirt and a sandwich,
Down on some street, they were speaking a language.
I almost got hit by a police car,
I saw dudes in the park, they were doing martial arts.
I even saw a big mural up on the wall,
It was a fun trip, overall.
Prefixes
"Like a Remix"
Prefixes!
It's like a remix.
It changes things,
Like what a word means.
You can find 'em at the front of a word.
Learn 'em, you need 'em,
To figure out words and their meanings. (x2)
Prefixes are an important part,
They tell you about a word, right from the start.
When you see non- or un-, that means not,
Like unintelligent or the word nonstop.
It's a few more for not, that I'll hit you with,
Il-, if you can't read, then you're illiterate.
Inactive? No. Not moving,
Impossible is something you cannot be doing.
Irrational - you should have thought a bit,
Dis- and de- mean opposite.
If you disagree, well hey, that's cool,
But your whole style gets devalued.
The prefix anti- means against,
You're antisocial if you don't have friends.
Here comes the intermission, everybody sing,
'Cause inter- means between and the hook's here, see?
Like...
Prefixes!
It's like a remix.
It changes things,
Like what a word means.
You can find 'em at the front of a word.
Learn 'em, you need 'em,
To figure out words and their meanings. (x2)
Allow me to reintroduce this word,
'Cause re- means again, let's be sure you heard.
Even the word prefix has a prefix in it,
Pre- means before, man, I hope y'all remembering.
You may ask where they come from,
Most are Greek or Latin, there's a whole bunch of 'em,
Like macro- is large and micro- is small,
Mono- is one. Are you hearin me, y'all?
I could talk in a monotone on a telephone,
And tele- goes the distance just like a telescope.
If you kinda understand that's semi-,
You'll halfway get it till you commit it to memory.
Keep these in your mind's foreground,
'Cause fore- means front and you'll need 'em around.
This song is over and I don't mean ending,
It's overqualified, too much of a good thing.
Prefixes!
It's like a remix.
It changes things,
Like what a word means.
You can find 'em at the front of a word.
Learn 'em, you need 'em,
To figure out words and their meanings. (x2)
Suffixes
"At the End of a Word"
Listen up, I don't know if you heard,
But if you have a need for the meaning of a word,
Just take a look and check at the end;
If a suffix is there then that'll be your friend.
Like -able or -ible, it's able to be done,
If it's visible it’s able to be seen like the sun.
I'm capable of having fun but now I gotta run to
'-A-L', -al is another one.
That means it relates to the root word,
Like natural is all about nature; observe
How the suffix, -en means made of whatever,
Wooden is made out of wood, now that’s clever.
I dig golden nuggets like a miner, ‘cause
-er or -or means one who does.
A baker, no doubt, that’s the one who bakes,
What about the suffix -ful? Let’s get it straight.
Of course it means full of, I hope that's helpful,
I mean full of help with this lesson we dealt you.
What about -ous — ‘O-U-S’?
That also means full of; there’s no need to guess.
Like someone who's gracious is full of grace,
If you’re feeling nervous, you might wanna meditate.
If it ends with -y that means it tends to be,
You tend to feel good when you’re cheery, so cheer for me.
Suffixes, these are the suffixes —
At the end of a word, they tell you what it is.
If you need the meaning of a word, you can trust:
If you look at the end, you can tell by the suffix.
Yeah, you see all you've got to do is look at the end. Now hold up, here are some more, right:
There’s verse two ‘cause there's still a few suffixes left,
Like -ion, -tion & -sion, now they represent
The act, result or state of something done,
Like if it's cancelled you get a cancellation.
If it's contagious then it's a contagion,
So you need to vacate — go on a vacation.
Okay, I'm not trying to be exhaustive,
The -ive suffix means — wait, I lost it.
Oh yeah, it means tending to,
Like abusive tends to create abuse.
Next is -less and it means without,
Without care is careless, that’s not what I’m about.
We stay peerless, fearless,
The flow is Van Gogh, but I will never be earless.
Can’t keep running fast 'cause now I'm all spent,
Guess I should have taken another supplement.
The -ment suffix is the result or act of,
If it’s in containment, it’s the result of being packed up.
Make an amendment, keep adding, don’t rest,
I’m never living in a state of carelessness.
-ness means the state of; my restlessness
Is probably ‘cause I'm studying for this suffix test.
Don't forget -ward, that’s the direction of,
Forward never backward, we gotta keep stepping up!
That ain’t all the suffixes, either; that’s just the most popular ones.
Suffixes, these are the suffixes —
At the end of a word, they tell you what it is.
If you need the meaning of a word, you can trust:
If you look at the end, you can tell by the suffix.
Synonyms & Antonyms
"So Many Words"
Uh-huh...listen,
Do you know about the synonyms?
They say the same thing again and again, again.
They use different words with the same meaning,
They might appear in the twilight or evening.
Don't be fearful, don't be scared,
You should be happy and glad they're here.
Their team is so large, I'm not lying,
Big, and gigantic like a giant or a titan.
Use synonyms when you're writing,
Scribbling, scrawling, jotting, noting.
They're hoping, they're wishing, praying,
That you'll use them instead of saying
The same thing with the same words.
The same thing with the same words.
Their names are printed in the thesaurus,
So look around that book and explore it!
Synonym, then it means the same,
So many words, what's in name?
Antonym, then it means the opposite,
So many words that you have got to get. (x2)
Uh-huh...look,
Another group, they're known as antonyms,
They're my enemy, nah we can't be friends.
The don't mean the same thing, they mean the opposite,
They pick it up when I'm dropping it.
Whenever I feel good, they feel bad,
Whenever I'm permanent, they're just a fad.
When they come around - I'm up, they're down,
I'm flying though the sky, they're digging underground.
They're brilliant, when I feel stupid,
They're useful, when I am useless.
The far to my near, the slow to my fast,
Bravery to my fear, the first to my last.
Shoot, I guess day needs night,
Synonyms need antonyms, they don't need to fight.
So now you know about these groups, aight?
You should use both of 'em when you write... right?
Synonym, then it means the same,
So many words, what's in name?
Antonym, then it means the opposite,
So many words that you have got to get. (x2)
Commonly Confused Words
"The Story of Hom and Nym"
I hope you're all ready for a story, but the truth is it already began. This story takes place long ago in
the past. But if you look past that fact, you'll see it has a lot to do with today.
It's the story of two brothers: Hom and Nym. Hom was strong and almost too handsome. Nym was
small and had devoted his whole life to writing poems. He'd sit under a tree without moving,
completely stationary, and write love poems on beautiful stationery. Nym liked looking into the
distance and sighing.
Hom, meanwhile, would be out wrestling bears with his bare hands. He liked high-fives and was
proud of how accurately he could spit. One day, he had his customary breakfast of steak and
pancakes, and then he saw her. She was more beautiful than anyone he had ever seen. He could
hardly breathe. She took his breath away. He couldn't even find the words to ask her name.
Thankfully, she was wearing a name tag. Sondra.
Weeks passed and Hom still didn't have the guts to talk to Sondra. In principle, Hom knew it was
important to be confident. But Sondra looked really well put together, like a middle school principal or
something. Hom was so scared of her, he went to his brother for help.
He found Nym under a tree, smiling at a chipmunk.
HOM:
"Nym, I need your help."
NYM:
“You never visit me. What brought or led you here?"
HOM:
"I feel like my brain is full of lead. I can't think. I'm obsessed with a lady named Sondra."
NYM:
"Oh I know Sondra. She and her friends are into Live Action Role Playing. They're really into
dressing up in their wizard costumes over there by the river."
HOM:
"That's her, Nym. It's like I've got a screw loose. I'm scared to lose her. Please help me."
NYM:
"Why don't you read her a poem? I'll write one for you."
Later that day Hom approached Sondra. He cleared his throat and read, for the first time, the poem
his brother had given him.
HOM:
"To whom it may concern: I am a man who fights the bears,
I once threw a bear through the air,
So if you are a lady who,
Can bear a bear fighter, I'm for you,
If instead you want another,
You should probably date my brother.... hey what the heck!"
This really affected Sondra all right. But it didn't have the effect he was hoping for. Hom realized that
instead of doing it live, he probably should have rehearsed. Sondra started dating Nym, and he
really came out of his shell. They lived their lives happily ever after.
Commas
"Comma Camp"
55 Washington Street
Brooklyn, NY 11201
July 21, 2012
Dear Mom and Dad,
Here I am at Camp Okee-Dokee. Things here are really great! First of all, my counselor is a real
grammar nerd. He says every time I use a comma correctly in my letters, he’ll give me an Okee.
That’s like a dollar you can use at the camp store.
So I’ve been using commas every time I write lists. During morning activities I built a scale model of
the Millennium Falcon, learned Hebrew and took an acting class with Leonardo DiCaprio.
I’m using commas after a dependent clause at the beginning of a sentence too. After we finished our
morning activities, we ate a small lunch of lobster tails and Belgian waffles.
Anyway, I’m also using commas after an introductory word in a sentence. See what I just did?
I’m also learning to use commas between two independent clauses. We challenged another camp to
a game of capture the flag, but they declined.
I’m even using commas between separate adjectives. I met this tall, funny girl from Cleveland
named China.
You know I’m using two commas to add a little more information about someone in a sentence.
China, a girl who is not from China, convinced me to sign up for the talent show.
The comma is helpful when I am setting off quotations marks. I asked China, “Do you think I should
juggle flaming torches for the talent show?”
China said, “Why don’t you teach people how to use commas correctly?”
Oh man, she just cracks me up. Well, I’m gonna go spend the Okees I earned to buy a jet pack or
something. Camp is great. I can’t believe I’ve only been here one day!
Your son,
Leroy
Subject & Predicate
"What They Do"
Find the verb, the main verb in a sentence,
Then ask yourself who or what did it?
That's the subject. Like a sentence's captain,
Subjects make verbs happen.
So: Dana couldn't stop laughing.
"Dana" is the subject, she's doing the action.
She was rolling on the floor.
"She" is the subject, are you keeping score?
The other kids started laughing, too.
"The other kids" is the subject, that's true.
Her teacher told her to stop, please.
"Her teacher" is the subject, yes indeed.
But let's get a little more tricky,
This one's messy, so follow along with me:
Despite her teacher asking,
Dana couldn't stop giggling and laughing.
Now - you might say that "her teacher" comes first,
But "her teacher" is not the one doing the main verb.
It's "Dana," the subject once again,
Now keep your head bobbing while the hook comes in,
Come on,
A subject does what subjects love to do,
Predicates are what they do.
Subjects and predicates too,
Make all sentences' dreams come true. (x2)
If you want to know what the subject does, it's evident,
You better go get the predicate.
It's based on a verb, the subject's action,
Let's get back to Dana and see what happens:
Dana told her friend a joke.
"Told her friend a joke" is the predicate, yo.
The whole class started chuckling.
"Started chuckling" is the predicate, once again.
Or you find the simple subject, simple predicate,
These are just the main noun and verb that we've got to get.
Take: The girl with the tattoo ate a cashew.
The subject is "The girl with the tattoo,"
The simple subject would just be "girl" true.
The predicate would be "ate a cashew."
The simple predicate? That would be "ate,"
We've got grammar, now we're getting cash--who could ever hate?
A subject does what subjects love to do,
Predicates are what they do.
Subjects and predicates too,
Make all sentences' dreams come true. (x2)
Prepositions
"Riding Through the City"
Yo. You kids know about prepositions? Well, this story’s filled with prepositions. Check it out.
I woke up. Got out of bed,
Put my favorite cap on my head.
Grabbed my dog's leash in my hand,
While I tied the other end to him.
Got onto the skateboard, I hopped,
And my dog started running down the block.
My dog moves fast like a bobsled,
At least that's what my mom said.
My dog sped across the street,
I was being dragged fast, trying not to freak.
Then he ran past Mike, a bully I hate,
Mike got on his bike, and he started to chase.
Instead of stopping, my dog kept going,
He ran through a park, and he wasn't slowing.
Mike was chasing after us,
I tried to leave him in the dust, but I guess I needed a...
Prep-prep-prep-prep-preposition,
It tells you about a thing and it’s position.
When it went down, so now listen,
If you’re riding through the city then you're not missing a... (x2)
We kept skating, and son, you'd be amazed,
That I saw more than one prepositional phrase:
I went underneath a bridge; it was over water.
It helped us lose Mike so we went a bit farther.
We kept going and didn't wanna stop,
Until the moment that we got to the ice cream shop.
Two scoops on top of the cone,
Sprinkles all over it, homes!
After that we headed home,
Towards the spot where I rest my dome.
But during the ride, my dog got loose,
He ran up to a guy and started sniffing the dude.
I grabbed his leash awfully tight,
I saw my dog was standing underneath Mike.
Fast forward ten year later,
Mike and I own a pet shop in Decatur.
Prep-prep-prep-prep-preposition,
It tells you about a thing and it’s position.
When it went down, so now listen,
If you’re riding through the city then you're not missing a... (x2)
Active & Passive Voice
"The Grammar Detective"
ESTEBAN FLORES:
She blew into my office like a cold breeze. Off the bat I could tell she was the type to talk in the
passive voice - putting verbs before subjects. Her sentences would be one big murky puddle, and I'd
be the one getting my feet wet. My name's Esteban Flores. I'm a grammar detective.
LADY:
First off, my house was built like a fort,
By my uncle, Count Leroy the Fourth,
He was thought of as an evil mastermind,
Then he was thrown in jail for the last time.
Inside the fort, many diamonds had been stored,
Inside a safe, for forty years or more.
It was decided...
ESTEBAN:
By who?
LADY:
Me, probably,
To move the diamonds to the collar of my doggie.
So that he would be the subject of more talk,
And not be ignored, when he was walked.
But a mistake was made, my dog was puppy-napped,
The criminal must be found, and must be nabbed!
ESTEBAN:
Tell me about the night!
LADY:
Okay, that can get done,
The gate had been opened, the guards had been drugged,
A handkerchief was found, initialed LIV,
I must be helped, c'mon detective, please!
ESTEBAN:
Oh, she was using the passive voice alright - in her sentences, the action came before the person or
thing that did the action. In some cases, she didn't reveal who was doing the action at all. When she
said the guards were drugged - the real question was: “By whom?” I knew the only way to solve this
case was to switch to the active voice. Even if it cost me my career.
Then I got to thinking, but thinking can be hard,
So I took a break, and drove around in my car.
I listened to the radio, NPR,
I heard a news flash that almost stopped my heart.
Count Leroy the Fourth had escaped from jail,
The police were hunting, but weren't on his trail.
It hit me like a wall hits a crash test dummy,
I called the lady with the news that was not funny.
I said, the LIV handkerchief's not inscrutable,
It stands for Leroy the Fourth in Roman numerals.
It was your uncle. He escaped from prison.
He opened the gate. He drugged the guards. Listen:
You find uncle, you'll find your diamonds and puppy.
LADY:
But where can he be found?
ESTEBAN:
Ha, look, trust me,
When I know, I'll tell you in the active voice.
Subject before verb: that's my word.
That’s my word.
Transitions
"From Pong to Today"
Listen, ok,
Way before games were what we all played,
You could find me on a Rampage in the arcade.
First, it started with Pong,
A table-tennis game but it wasn't too strong.
For instance, it was only black and white.
Nonetheless, kids would play it every night.
Next came Space Invaders,
Where you shoot aliens with little lasers.
Kids wanted to play. Consequently,
Machines appeared all over the place,
Indeed Atari fulfilled lots of orders,
And made 2 billion dollars in quarters.
Meanwhile, you have to know,
Pac-Man was the captain at eating ghosts.
And then the 80's craze,
The industry experienced a golden age.
PCs and home consoles came,
You didn't need to drop quarters to play games.
Equally important, games were sick,
Legend of Zelda in '86.
Simultaneously, Super Mario Bros,
On Nintendo came in to a lot of our homes.
Immediately, it became a hit,
You ran through mushrooms to get big.
Beyond sales, there's a story,
These games had our imaginations soaring.
Of course, we were just in a chair,
But on the screens, we'd fly through the air.
We had a need for speed - honest,
So we rolled with a hedgehog we called Sonic.
Then the 90s, games were ill,
Such as SimCity, where we learned to build.
Similarly, the game that sold the most,
On the PC was The Sims, so you know.
3D chips had us Quaking and Doomed,
First person shooters came with a boom.
Despite the appeal to the youth, um,
Some saw the violence as too gruesome.
Accordingly, ratings were introduced,
To make all these games easier to choose.
Playstation had hits like MLB,
Specifically Final Fantasy.
Truly Xbox CDs had graphics,
And the cartridges couldn't catch it.
Moreover, CDs were cheaper to make,
On the other hand, CDs were cheaper to take,
Cheaper to copy and to steal,
But in 2006 that's when things got real.
Wii finally made games appeal,
To the whole family, and they played for real.
And on mobile phones, we can all be nerds,
When we shoot down pigs with our Angry Birds.
In sum, in summary, to sum up, too,
On the whole, in the end, to conclude,
The transition from Pong to today,
Has given us amazing games along the way.
Complete each sentence by choosing
the best transition.
Next