Set I, 21

! ! !MORE SUBJECT VERB AGREEMENT! ! !

1. When the subject of a sentence is composed of two or more nouns or pronouns
connected by and, use a plural verb.
2. When two or more singular nouns or pronouns are connected by or or nor, use a
singular verb.
3. When a compound subject contains both a singular and a plural noun or pronoun
joined by or or nor, the verb should agree with the part of the subject that is nearer the
verb.
4. Doesn't is a contraction of does not and should be used only with a singular subject.
Don't is a contraction of do not and should be used only with a plural subject.
5. Do not be mislead by a phrase that comes between the subject and the verb. The verb
agrees with the subject, not with a noun or pronoun in the phrase.
6. Expressions such as with, together with, including, accompanied by, in addition to, or
as well as do not change the number of the subject. If the subject is singular, the verb is
too.
7. The words each, each one, either, neither, everyone, everybody, anybody, and nobody
are singular and require a singular verb.
8. Nouns such as civics, mathematics, measles, and news require singular verbs.
9. Nouns such as scissors, tweezers, trousers, and shears require plural verbs. (There are
two parts to these things.)
10. Sentences beginning with there are are usually in inverted order. Be sure the verb
agrees with the subject. There is never a subject of the sentence in the true sense of the
word.
11. A collective noun requires a singular verb if the group is thought of as a unit (The
family holds an annual reunion). In a very few cases, the plural is used if the individuals
in the group are thought of and specifically referred to (My family have never been able
to agree).
This guide to better grammar is designed not as something to be read once and
thrown or filed away, but it should be treated as pages in a text that should
be carefully kept and referred to often.

Set I, 22

MAKING SUBJECTS + VERBS AGREE

1. When the subject of a sentence is composed of two or more nouns or pronouns
connected by and, use a plural verb. --she and her friends are
2. When two or more singular nouns or pronouns are connected by or or nor, use a
singular verb. --the book or the pen is
3. When a compound subject contains both a singular and a plural noun or pronoun
joined by or or nor, the verb should agree with the part of the subject that is nearer the
verb. --the boy or his friends run --his friends or the boy runs
4. Doesn't is a contraction of does not and should be used only with a singular subject.
Don't is a contraction of do not and should be used only with a plural subject. --he doesn't
--they don't
5. Do not be misled by a phrase that comes between the subject and the verb. The verb
agrees with the subject, not with a noun or pronoun in the phrase. --one of the boxes is
--the people who listen to that music are --the team captain, as well as his players, is --the
book, including all the chapters in the first section, is --the woman with all the dogs walks
6. The words each, each one, either, neither, everyone, everybody, anybody, anyone,
nobody, somebody, someone, no one are singular and require a singular verb. --each one
of these hot dogs is --everybody knows --either is
7. Nouns such as civic, dollars, mathematics, measles, and news require singular verbs.
--the news is boring
8. Nouns such as scissors, tweezers, trousers, and shears require plural verbs. There are
two parts to these things.)
9. In sentences beginning with there is or there are, the subject follows the verb. Since
there is not the subject, the verb agrees with what follows. --there are many questions
--there is a question
10. Collective nouns are words that imply more than one person, but that are considered
singular and take a singular verb, such as: group, team, committee, class, family, etc. In a
very few cases, the plural verb is used if the individuals in the group are thought of and
specifically referred to. --the team runs --the committee decides --the family has (But,
---My family have never been able to agree.)

ACTIVITY 4(a)
Subject Number: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Date: _ _ _ _ __ _ _

Subject-Verb Agreement (Subjects)

Underline the subject in each of the following sentences and then choose the verb in
parentheses that correctly completes the sentence. Write the verb in the
blank to the left.
__ ___

1. One of the boys (is, are) not coming.

_______ 2. The boy with the fishing pole on his shoulder and the dog trotting at his heels
(make, makes) a charming picture.
_______ 3. Either Mr. Smith or one of the other librarians (are, is) getting the book for
me.
_______ 4. Neither Anne nor her friends (were, was) at the party.
_______ 5. The attitude of the boys (is, are) annoying.
_______ 6. Mr. Jones is one of those people who (become, becomes) easily annoyed.
_______ 7. The woman in the sofari and the gentleman in the turban (are, is) an exotic
pair.
_______ 8. Mrs. Rafferty, as well as other members of her bridge club, (is, are) planning
to sponsor a tortoise in the race.
_______ 9. The schedule announcing the week's events (contain, contains) an error.
_______ 10. The situation in the Middle Eastern countries--Iran, Turkey, and Jordan-- (is,
are) rapidly becoming serious.
_______ 11. Neither the men nor the one woman in the class (understand, understands)
the professor's lectures.
_______ 12. A million dollars (is, are) a lot of money.
_______ 13. Any one of the men who (get, gets) the job will do his best.
_______ 14. The team (is, are) in training.

_______ 15. The scissors (is, are) on the table.

_______ 16. (Is, Are) my trousers being washed?
_______ 17. Either Sue or her brothers (is, are) feeding the cat while we are away.
_______ 18. He is one of those people who (dislike, dislikes) all classical music.
_______ 19. One of the boys (is, are) taking a camera on the picnic.
_______ 20. Where (are, is) the man and woman who want to see me?
Adapted from:
http://www.uwm.edu/Dept/English/wcenter/WCO4/handouts/seti/SETI39P.html

ACTIVITY 5(a)
Subject Number: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Date: _ _ _ _ __ _ _

Circle the subject in these sentences. The subject is the who or what word.
1. The girl hugs her best friend.
2. A large green tree grows near the lake.
3. By 4:00 a.m., the fire spreads to the whole block.
4. A gang robs my grocery store.
5. On Thursdays, my niece goes to the movies.
6. My father's car rolls down the hill and hit a wall.
7. Walking down the street, the young woman spots her parents on a bus.
8. The students write their term papers over the Christmas holiday.
9. Minah's buys herself a nice baju kurung.
10. That dirty old dog sits in my favorite chair.
11. Tomatoes grow rapidly in warm weather.
12. He takes the large dog for a walk around the park.
13. I see a yellow cigarette case near the bed.
14. All day the heavy rain wets the street.
15. The book provides many good pictures of the African plains.
Adapted from:
http://www.uwm.edu/Dept/English/wcenter/WCO5/handouts/seti/SETIC9P.html

ACTIVITY 6(a)
Subject Number: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Date: _ _ _ _ _ _ _

In these sentences, the subject has been omitted, and you must find out where it
would fit and fill one in. Put in a who or what word (subject) that makes
sense. (You may have to fill in more than one subject in a sentence.)

Example: Ran down the street. My friend ran down the street.
1. Stopped at the grocery and bought some cupcakes.
____________________________________________________________________
2. Always goes to the library after he visits his parents in Bangi.
____________________________________________________________________
3. On Monday, had to appear at the Dean's office to receive her award.
____________________________________________________________________
4. All day long, my slept curled up in the corner.
____________________________________________________________________
5. Are never on time, but like them anyway.
____________________________________________________________________
6. Because of the party upstairs, fell off the shelf and broke.
____________________________________________________________________
7. If want to learn to play guitar, have to practice.
____________________________________________________________________
8. At the dance, spent three hours doing the cha-cha until couldn't move any longer.

_____________________________________________________________
Adapted from:
http://www.su.edu/writing_center/handouts.html

Answers

Set I, 1A

Circle the subject in these sentences. The subject is the who or what word.
1. The girl hugged her best friend.
2. A large green tree grew near the lake.
3. By 4:00 a.m., the fire had spread to the whole block.
4. A gang robbed my grocery store.
5. On Thursdays, my niece always goes to the movies.
6. My father's car rolled down the hill and hit a wall.
7. Walking down the street, the young woman spotted her parents on a bus.
8. The students wrote their term papers over the Christmas holiday.
9. Minah's is having a fantastic sale on baju kurung.
10. That dirty old dog sat in my favorite chair.
11. Tomatoes grow rapidly in warm weather.
12. He took the large dog for a walk around the park.
13. I saw a yellow cigarette case near the bed.
14. All day the heavy rain drenched the street.
15. The book provided many good pictures of the African plains.

Now that you have had practice in filling subjects in blank spaces and
circling subjects, these exercises are a final check on whether you
completely understand subjects.In these sentences, the subject has
been omitted, and you must find out where it would fit and fill one
in. Put in a who or what word (subject) that makes sense. (You may
have to fill in more than one subject in a sentence.)
Example: Ran down the street. My friend ran down the street.
1. Stopped at the grocery and bought some cupcakes.
I stopped at the grocery and bought some cupcakes.
2. Always goes to the library after he visits his parents in Brooklyn.
Tony always goes to the library after he visits his parents in Brooklyn.
3. On Monday, had to appear at the Dean's office to receive her award.
On Monday, Dawn had to appear at the Dean's office to receive her award.
4. All day long, my slept curled up in the corner.
All day long, my cat slept curled up in the corner.
5. Are never on time, but like them anyway.
My neighbors are never on time, but I like them anyway.
6. Because of the party upstairs, fell off the shelf and broke.
Because of the party upstairs, a picture fell off the shelf and broke.
7. If want to learn to play guitar, have to practice.
If you want to learn to play guitar, you have to practice.
8. At the dance, spent three hours doing the cha-cha until couldn't move any longer.
At the dance, Juan and Carla spent three hours doing the cha-cha until they couldn't
move any longer.
Adapted from:
http://www.su.edu/writing_center/handouts.html

ACTIVITY 7(a)
Subject Number: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Date: _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Circle the subjects in these sentences. In the blank at the right of the sentence, write
an S if the subject is Singular; write P if the subject is Plural.

1. His mother and father come to visit him. _____

2. His mother comes to visit him. _____
3. These fish tanks are beautiful. _____
4. My textbook costs $8.00. _____
5. I love apple pie for dessert. _____
6. In the afternoon, we go for the football game. _____
7. The baby eats hungrily. _____
8. His books and mine are missing. _____
9. His book and mine is missing. _____
10. After the party, the dancers go home. _____
11. I am so tired! _____
12. She is very fond of her instructor. _____
13. The chairman cancels the meeting. _____
14. Cigarettes are bad for your health. _____
15. Those lamps look great in my apartment. _____
16. The bookcase is in bad shape. _____
17. This Thursday, all the classes are closed. _____
18. He arrives on time. _____

19. The man and the woman walk hand in hand. _____
20. Susan is my best friend. _____
21. They play basketball together. _____
22. The students' papers are excellent. _____
23. Their television set works badly. _____
24. Dick seems to be a terrific guy. _____
25. My typewriter and my radio need repair. _____

Adapted from:
http://www.su.edu/writing_center/resources/handouts/seti/prints/SETI2PA.htm

ANSWERS
Set I, 2

Circle the subjects in these sentences. In the blank at the right of the
sentence, write an S if the subject is Singular; write P if the subject is
Plural.
1. His mother and father came to visit him. Plural
2. His mother came to visit him. Singular
3. These fish tanks are beautiful. Plural
4. My textbook costs $8.00. Singular
5. I love apple pie for dessert. Singular
6. In the afternoon, we left for the football game. Plural
7. The baby ate sloppily. Singular
8. His books and mine are missing. Plural
9. His book and mine are missing. Plural
10. After the party, the dancers went home. Plural
11. I am so tired! Singular
12. She is very fond of her instructor. Singular
13. The chairman called the meeting to order. Singular
14. Cigarettes are bad for your health. Plural
15. Those lamps will look great in my apartment. Plural
16. The couch and the bookcase are in bad shape. Plural
17. By Thursday, all the classes were closed. Plural
18. Will he arrive on time? Singular
19. The man and the woman walked hand in hand. Plural

20. Susan is my best friend. Singular

21. They play basketball together. Plural
22. The students' papers were excellent. Plural
23. Their television set works badly. Singular
24. Dick seems to be a terrific guy. Singular
25. My typewriter and my radio need repaired. Plural
http://www.su.edu/writing_center/resources/handouts/seti/prints/SETI2PA.htm

Sequence of Tenses
Brought to you by the Purdue University Online Writing Lab.
Strictly speaking, in English, only two tenses are marked in the verb alone,
present (as in "he sings") and past (as in "he sang"). Other English language
tenses, as many as thirty of them, are marked by other words called auxiliaries.
Understanding the six basic tenses allows one to recreate much of the reality of
time in his writing. The six are
Simple Present: They walk
Present Perfect: They have walked
Simple Past: They walked
Past Perfect: They had walked
Future: They will walk
Future Perfect: They will have walked

Problems in sequencing tenses usually occur with the perfect tenses, all of which are formed by
adding an auxiliary or auxiliaries to the past participle, the third principal part.
ring, rang, rung
walk, walked, walked
The most common auxiliaries are forms of "be," "can," "do," "may," "must," "ought," "shall," "will,"
"has," "have," "had," are the forms we shall use in this most basic discussion.

Present Perfect
The present perfect consists of a past participle (the third principal part) with "has" or "have." It
designates action which began in the past but which continues into the present or the effect of which
still continues.
1. Betty taught for ten years. (simple past)
2. Betty has taught for ten years. (present perfect)
The implication in (1) is that Betty has retired; in (2), that she is still teaching.
1. John did his homework. He can go to the movies.
2. If John has done his homework, he can go to the movies.
Infinitives, too, have perfect tense forms when combined with "have," and sometimes problems arise
when infinitives are used with verbs such as "hope," "plan," "expect," and "intend," all of which
usually point to the future (I wanted to go to the movie. Janet meant to see the doctor.) The perfect
tense sets up a sequence by marking the action which began and usually was completed before the
action in the main verb.
1. I am happy to have participated in this campaign!
2. John had hoped to have won the trophy.
Thus the action of the main verb points back in time; the action of the perfect infinitive has been
completed. (Notice present, present perfect sequence in the comment.)

Past Perfect
The past perfect tense designates action in the past just as simple past does, but the action of the past
perfect is action completed in the past before another action.
1. John raised vegetables and later sold them. (past)
2. John sold vegetables that he had raised. (past perfect)
The vegetables were raised before they were sold.
1. Renee washed the car when George arrived (simple past)
2. Renee had washed the car when George arrived. (past perfect)

In (1), she waited until George arrived and then washed the car. In (2), she had already finished
washing the car by the time he arrived.
In sentences expressing condition and result, the past perfect tense is used in the part that states the
condition.
1. If I had done my exercises, I would have passed the test.
2. I think George would have been elected if he hadn't sounded so pompous.
Notice: There can be only one "would have" action group in a sentence.

Future Perfect Tense

The future perfect tense designates action that will have been completed at a specified time in the
future.
1. Saturday I will finish my housework. (simple future)
2. By Saturday noon, I will have finished my housework. (future perfect)

Review
1. Judy saved thirty dollars. (past)
2. Judy will save thirty dollars. (future)
3. Judy has saved thirty dollars. (present perfect)
4. Judy had saved thirty dollars by the end of last month. (past perfect)
5. Judy will have saved thirty dollars by the end of this month. (future perfect)
The following information must remain intact on every handout printed for distribution.
This page is located at http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/print/grammar/g_seqtense.html.
Copyright 1995-2004 by OWL at Purdue University and Purdue University. All rights reserved.
Use of this site, including printing and distributing our handouts, constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of
fair use, available at
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/lab/fairuse.html.

To contact OWL, please visit our contact information page at

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/lab/contact.html to find the right person to call or email.

Set I, 4

Finding Verbs
HELPING VERBS A verb may be preceded by one, two, or three helpers called
"auxiliaries." ONE-WORD VERB Mr. Berton trains circus animals TWO-WORD
VERB Did he train our school mascot? THREE-WORD VERB He has been
training our school mascots for years FOUR-WORD VERB You should have been
told about him long ago.
The helping verbs are in italic type. Occasionally, as in the second example, the
parts of verb are separated.
The helping verbs are: (be group) is, be, am, are, was, were, been; (have group) has,
have, had; (do group) do, does, did; (others) may, might; can, could; shall, should;
will, would; must.
The have verbs, and the do verbs can be either main verbs or helping verbs.

Main Verb Helping Verb

Randy has a rowboat. He has painted it green. Its length is twelve feet. He is burning the
name on the bow. He did all the work himself. Did he catch any trout? The boys were
quiet all day. They were writing their own comics.

Find the verbs in the following account.

YOUR EYESIGHT--NATURE'S MIRACLE
A.
1. Your eye is a masterpiece of fine workmanship.
2. Like a motion-picture camera, your eye takes a series of pictures, ten
exposures a second, 36,000 an hour.
3. In a lifetime it takes billions of snapshots with only one film.
4. It blends these still snapshots rapidly.
5. Like a movie camera, the eye gives the impression of movement.
6. Actually the eye switches on and off constantly.
7. Half your daylight hours you live in complete darkness.
8. Your mind simply disregards the blank intervals.
9. Like an expensive camera, your eyes have shutters, lenses, filters, and
focusing devices.
10. The cornea acts as a protective covering for the eye.

B.
11. The eyelids, with the help of the tear glands, clean the cornea constantly.
The iris is the shutter.
12. An automatic light meter controls the shutter opening.
13. In very bright light the opening is very tiny.
14. At night the shutter opens wide.
15. The lens too is remarkably adaptable.
16. It acts as a color filter.
17. 8. It filters out certain colors at the extremes of the spectrum.
18. In later years we see fewer blues and violets.
19. The cells of all parts of the eye are remarkably efficient and highly
specialized.
ANSWERS
Set I, 4

Finding Verbs
HELPING VERBS A verb may be preceded by one, two, or three helpers called
"auxiliaries." ONE-WORD VERB Mr. Berton trains circus animals TWO-WORD
VERB Did he train our school mascot? THREE-WORD VERB He has been
training our school mascots for years FOUR-WORD VERB You should have been
told about him long ago.
The helping verbs are in italic type. Occasionally, as in the second example, the
parts of verb are separated.
The helping verbs are: (be group) is, be, am, are, was, were, been; (have group) has,
have, had; (do group) do, does, did; (others) may, might; can, could; shall, should;
will, would; must.
The have verbs, and the do verbs can be either main verbs or helping verbs.

Main Verb Helping Verb

Randy has a rowboat. He has painted it green. Its length is twelve feet. He is burning the
name on the bow. He did all the work himself. Did he catch any trout? The boys were
quiet all day. They were writing their own comics.

Find the verbs in the following account.

YOUR EYESIGHT--NATURE'S MIRACLE

A.
1. Your eye is a masterpiece of fine workmanship.
2. Like a motion-picture camera, your eye takes a series of pictures, ten
exposures a second, 36,000 an hour.
3. In a lifetime it takes billions of snapshots with only one film.
4. It blends these still snapshots rapidly.
5. Like a movie camera, the eye gives the impression of movement.
6. Actually the eye switches on and off constantly.
7. Half your daylight hours you live in complete darkness.
8. Your mind simply disregards the blank intervals.
9. Like an expensive camera, your eyes have shutters, lenses, filters, and
focusing devices.
10. The cornea acts as a protective covering for the eye.
B.
11. The eyelids, with the help of the tear glands, clean the cornea constantly.
The iris is the shutter.
12. An automatic light meter controls the shutter opening.
13. In very bright light the opening is very tiny.
14. At night the shutter opens wide.
15. The lens too is remarkably adaptable.
16. It acts as a color filter.
17. 8. It filters out certain colors at the extremes of the spectrum.
18. In later years we see fewer blues and violets.
19. The cells of all parts of the eye are remarkably efficient and highly
specialized.
ANSWERS

Find the verbs in the following account.

YOUR EYESIGHT--NATURE'S MIRACLE
A.
1. Your eye is a masterpiece of fine workmanship.
2. Like a motion-picture camera, your eye takes a series of pictures, ten
exposures a second, 36,000 an hour.
3. In a lifetime it takes billions of snapshots with only one film.
4. It blends these still snapshots rapidly.
5. Like a movie camera, the eye gives the impression of movement.
6. Actually the eye switches on and off constantly.
7. Half your daylight hours you live in complete darkness.
8. Your mind simply disregards the blank intervals.

9. Like an expensive camera, your eyes have shutters, lenses, filters, and
focusing devices.
10. The cornea acts as a protective covering for the eye.
B.
11. The eyelids, with the help of the tear glands, clean the cornea constantly.
The iris is the shutter.
12. An automatic light meter controls the shutter opening.
13. In very bright light the opening is very tiny.
14. At night the shutter opens wide.
15. The lens too is remarkably adaptable.
16. It acts as a color filter.
17. 8. It filters out certain colors at the extremes of the spectrum.
18. In later years we see fewer blues and violets.
19. The cells of all parts of the eye are remarkably efficient and highly
specialized.
http://www.su.edu/writing_center/resources/handouts/seti/prints/SETI4PA.htm

ACTIVITY 4

Date: _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Subject Number: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Fill in the correct form of to be--am, is, are--in the space to the right of the
subject.
1.

he

___________________

11.

they ____________________

2.

we

___________________

12.

we

____________________

3.

you ___________________

13.

you

____________________

4.

___________________

14.

she

____________________

5.

she ___________________

15.

it

____________________

6.

we

___________________

16.

she

____________________

7.

it

___________________

17.

he

____________________

8.

he

___________________

18.

we

____________________

9.

you ___________________

19.

they ____________________

we

20.

you

10.

___________________

____________________

Fill in either has or have in the space to the right of the subject.
1.

he

___________________

11.

they ____________________

2.

we

___________________

12.

we

3.

you ___________________

13.

they ____________________

4.

___________________

14.

you

____________________

5.

they___________________

15.

she

____________________

6.

she ___________________

16.

he

____________________

7.

it

___________________

17.

we

____________________

8.

they___________________

18.

they ____________________

9.

we

___________________

19.

we

____________________

you ___________________

20.

it

____________________

10.

Fill in either doesn't or don't in each blank.

____________________

1. It ___________ work any longer.

2. If he ___________ arrive soon I'm leaving.
3. They ___________ seem to care.
4. She ___________ let anyone upset her.
5. I ___________ want to leave this great party.
6. We ___________ drive much now because of the fuel shortage.
7. Although you ___________ like walking two miles a day to school, it certainly
_________ do your health any harm.
8. He ___________ usually go out much.
9. Because you ___________ complete your homework, you ___________ stand a good
chance of passing the course.
10. They ___________ have the time for baseball this Sunday.

Adapted from:
http://www.melta.org.my/ET/2004/2004-62

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Page 1
USINGMNEMONICSTOIMPROVEVOCABULARY,
BOOSTMEMORYANDENHANCECREATIVITY
INTHEESLCLASSROOM
NirmalaRamakrishnanPillai
SMKIdealHeights,Selangor
ABSTRACT

InlinewiththeaspirationsoftheNationalEducationalPhilosophyandVision2020,
schoolsareexpectedtoproducestudentswhoarenotonlyproficientinEnglishbutare
alsocreativeandinnovative.However,weakandaverageabilitystudentsintheESL
classroomatboththeloweranduppersecondarylevelshavebeenfoundtohaveproblems
withvocabulary,spellingandpronunciationdespiteyearsoflearningthesamething.One
techniquethathasbeenfoundeffectivetoaddresstheaboveproblemsintheESL
classroomismnemonics.Thispaperprovidesinformationonhowvisualmnemonics,
physicalmnemonicsandothermnemonicdevicescanbeusedintheESLclassroomto
improvevocabulary,boostmemoryandenhancecreativity.

Introduction
Mnemonics(pronouncedasnimoniks)comesfromtheGreekwordmnemon
whichmeansmindful.AccordingtoSolso(1995),mnemonicsaretechniquesor
devices,suchasarhymeoranimage,thatservetoenhancethestorageandtherecall
ofinformationcontainedinmemoryandtheycanbeeitherverbalorvisualinnature.
Mnemonicshavebeenproventobeextremelyeffectiveinhelpingpeopleremember
things(Mastropieri&Scruggs,1989;Bulgren,Schumaker&Deshler,1994).As
mnemonicsaresystematicproceduresforenhancingmemory,theirparticularuseisin
developingbetterwaystotakein(encode)informationsothatitwillbemucheasier
toremember(retrieve).Ifmaterialispresentedinawaywhichfitsinorrelates
meaningfullytowhatisalreadyknown,thenitwillberetainedforrelativelylong
periodsoftimeandthusretrievalthroughverbalorvisualcluesbecomesquiteeasy.
Inotherwords,byusingmnemonicstrategies,teacherscanrelatenewinformationto
informationstudentsalreadyhavelockedintheirlongtermmemory
However,itshouldbenotedthatmnemonicsisnotconsideredtobejusttheskill
ofsimplememorization,butratheratrue,rigorousartwhichrequiresimagination,
effortandagoodmind.Allmnemonicsystemsattempttoimposeaplanof

meaningfulorganization.Thebestofthemworkasamemoryaidpreciselyasthey

Page 2
mimicnaturalorganizationalschemataassociatedwithmeaningfulmaterial
(Wingfield,1979).
Manystudentswithdisabilitiesandthoseatriskofeducationalfailurehavebeen
consistentlyshowntohaveparticulardifficultiesrememberingacademiccontent.
Mnemonicscanbeusedtoincreaselearningandmemoryofthesegroupsofstudents.
Whileweasteachersareconstantlytellingstudentsthatthisorthatmaterialis
importantandthattheyshouldrememberit,wegenerallydonottellthemhowto
accomplishthis.Throughtheactive(orevensupplemental)useofmnemonics,we
cannoweffectivelydothis(Gray,1997).
Empiricalstudiesinthefieldofcognitivepsychology(Searleman&Herrman,
1994;Ormond,1995)whichhavebeenconductedwithcollegestudentsinvolving
freeandserialrecallandassociationlearningshowthatwhenanindividuallearns
newmaterial,heorsheisnotjustapassiverecorderofassociations,butanactive
participantwhomanipulatesinformationaccordingtovariousmemorystrategiesor
systems.Theseprocessesarecontingentuponwhatisbeingstudied,thepersonal
experienceofthelearner,andthekindofworkathand.Studentswillremember
informationwhichismeaningfulandpersonaltothem.Furthermore,peoplearelikely
torememberthingsthatareunusual,outrageousoroutofplace(Paul,1996).
Creativeavenuesmustbeexploitedtogiveallchildrenthechancetoachieve
somelevelofsuccess.Itisourdutyasresponsibleteacherstopromotecreativityasa
rightforeverychild.(Beetlestone,1998)
MnemonicsandLanguageLearning
Buildingalargevocabularyisessentialwhenlearningtoreadinasecondlanguage.
Simplyput,peoplewithlargevocabulariesaremoreproficientreadersthanthose
withlimitedvocabularies(Beglar&Hunt,1995).Inthefieldoflanguagelearning,
mnemonicshasmostlybeenusedforthelearningofvocabulary.Onecognitive
strategythathasprovedtobeeffectiveinthememorizationofvocabularyisthe
keywordtechnique(Atkinson,1975)inwhichstudentsconnectthesoundofaword
theyarelearningtoonetheyalreadyknowineithertheirfirstlanguageorthetarget
language.Theythencreateanimagetohelpremembertheassociation(Pressley,
Levin&Delaney,1982).Thistechniqueprovidesapowerfultoolwithrespectto
wordswhichhaveahighdegreeofimageability(Richardson,1980)ortoword
pairsbetweenwhichthelearnercanformsomekindofsemanticlink(Ellis,1995).
Studentswillfindthistechniqueusefulwithwordsthatareparticularlydifficultto
remember.Theimportantthingisthatthemnemonicshouldclearlyrelatetothething
beingremembered.
Linkingnewmeaningstolanguagethatisalreadyknowncanpositivelyaffect
vocabularylearning(Richardson,1980;Schmitt&Schmitt,1995;Ney,1996;Gray,

Page 3
1997;)Theselinksarenowmorecommonlyknownascognitivestrategies,andare
widelyreportedinvocabularyacquisitionresearch.Forthemostpart,thesecognitive
strategiestakethelearnerbeyondmeaninglessrepetition,andprovidemnemonic
devicesthatproduceadeeplevelofsemanticprocessingofthewordinquestion
(Craik,1979;Stevick,1976).
MnemonicsandLearningStyles
Thewayinwhichpeoplelearnaffectsthesortofmnemonicstheyshouldconsider
usingtostoreinformation.AccordingtoPaul(1996),thewayinwhichwelearnbest
canbecategorizedintovisuallearning,auditorylearningandkinestheticlearning.

Visuallearnersfinditeasiertorememberthingstheyseeeitherwritten,inpicture
formorasapictureinthemind.Auditorylearnerslearnbestbyhearingthings.They
rememberwhattheyhearmoreeasilythanwhattheysee.Ontheotherhand,
kinestheticlearnerslearnbestbyactuallydoingitthroughtouchandmovement.They
preferhandsonlearningtojustseeingorhearingaboutsomething.However,itis
veryuncommontocomeacrossastudentwhoissolelyavisualoranauditoryora
kinestheticleaner.
ClassroomApplication:TheTeachersVoice
Ifirstcameupontheideaofusingvisualmnemonicswhileteachingspecialchildren.
AccordingtoJefreeandSkeffington(1980),mentallyhandicappedpupilswhohave
reachedthestageofreadingorrespondingtopicturesneedhelpbeforetheycan
respondtowordsinprint.Onewayofbridgingthatgapistousesymbolaccentuated
words(wordpictures)whichIwouldrefertoasvisualmnemonics.Anotherpieceof
materialwhichfurtherenhancedmyinterestinvisualmnemonicswasanarticleby
RichardMacAndrewinthePracticalEnglishTeachingmagazine(December1985)
entitledPictureaword.AccordingtoMacAndrew,thisideacouldbeusedtohelp
elementarylevelstudentsremembervocabulary.Itinvolveddesigningpictorial
representationsofwordstomakethemmorememorable.Forexample,theuin
musiccouldbeturnedintomusicalnotesandthexinaxecouldbeturnedinto
musicalnotes.
Ihavebeenusingmnemonics(bothvisualandothermnemonicdevices)since1989
withweakandaverageabilitystudentsatthelowersecondary(RemovetoForm3)
anduppersecondarylevels(Forms4and5)inPerak,KedahandSelangor.These
studentshavestudiedEnglishforseveralyearsandsomehavedevelopedanegative
attitudetowardsthelanguage.TheyalsodonotcomefromEnglishspeakinghomes,
findlearningEnglishdifficultandsufferfrompoorconcentration.
Ifirststartedusingmnemonicstoteachconfusingwords(eg.lend/borrow,
principal/principle,stationery/stationary,price/prize,weather/whether,bored/boring,

Page 4
desert/dessert,life/live,affect/effect,eligible/illegibleetc))toForm4and5students
inasecondaryschoolinSungaiSiput,Perak.Icontinuedusingthemwhileteaching
uppersecondarystudentsinKedah.IdentificationofErrorswasasectionwhichwas
testedintheSPMexaminationandIdidnotwantmystudentstoguessthecorrect
answerorsimplylearnwithoutunderstanding.Byusingmnemonics,Ifoundthatmy
studentscouldeasilytellmethemeaningofeachconfusingwordandatthesame
timetheyhadfunThiscouldbeduetothefactthatthemorecolourful,funnyand
vividthemnemonic,themoreeasilythewordcanberemembered.
WhileteachingtheweakandaverageabilitystudentsintheRemoveclassand
Form1classesinSelangor,Ifoundthattheyhadproblemswithevensimple
grammaticalitemssuchassubjectpronouns,possessiveadjectivesandsubjectverb
agreement.Eventhoughthesetopicsarecoveredintheprimaryschool,studentsstill
findthemproblematicatthesecondaryschoollevelAccordingtoChitraveluetal.,
(1995),thethirdpersonsingular(he/she/it)isnotdistinguishedforgenderinBahasa
MelayuandMandarin.IhavefoundthistruenotonlyofMalayandChinesestudents
butalsooftheIndianstudents.Thestudentswouldeasilyforgetwhattheywere
taughtsoIcreatedmyownvisualmnemonicstohelpthem(Appendix1).My
studentsalsohadproblemswithpossessiveadjectivesnamelyhisandhersoIdevised
amnemonicstrategytoaddressthisproblem(Appendix2).
Anotherproblematicareaformystudentsatboththeloweranduppersecondary
levelsisSubjcctVerbAgreement.Chitraveluetal.,(1995)statethattheruleof
subjectverbagreementinEnglishdoesnothaveaparallelinBahasaMelayuor

Mandarin.Therefore,MalayandChinesepupilsoftenfaceproblemswithsubject
verbagreement.Tohelpstudentsremembertheruleseasily,Icameupwithaformula
(Appendix3).
Apartfromthat,Ihavealsousedvisualmnemonicstohelpstudentsimproveand
remembercorevocabularyrelatedtodescription(Appendix4),moodsandemotions
(Appendix5)aswellasconfusingwords(Appendix6)whicharelistedoutinthe
syllabus.AccordingtoChitraveluetal.,(1995),visualsareextremelyeffectivein
conveyingmeaning.Lewis(1990)observesthatwordassociationandimageryhave
longbeenrecognizedasoneofthemosteffectivewaysofabsorbinginformation,
sincethevisual/pictorialmemoryisstrongerthanthevisual/verbalmemory.
InmyESLclassroom,Ihavealsousedvisualmnemonicsandothermnemonic
devicestohelpstudentsrememberthespellingofwords(Appendix7),pronunciation
ofwords(Appendix7)aswellastenses(Appendix8).AccordingtoGordon(1998),
Englishspellingisnotoriouslydifficult.Thisisbecausetherelationshipofsoundto
lettersymbolislessregularthaninmanyotherlanguages.Inteachingpronunciation
ofcertainwords,IhaveaskedstudentstoassociatethewordswiththeLI.A
techniquewhichcanbeveryeffectivewhenlearningthebasicvocabularyofanew
languageistoattempttomakesomesortofmeaningbridgebetweenthetargetword

Page 5
anditsL1translation.Itdoesnotmatterhowfarfetchedorridiculousthebridgeis.
Somewouldsaythatthemoregrotesqueitis,thebetterformemorization.Italso
helpsifthebridgecanbeclearlyvisualizedinthelearnersmind(Wallace,1987).I
havealsoadaptedtheNarrativeChainmnemonicstrategytohelpForm4and5
studentsremembersingularnouns(Appendix9).
In1997,duringmyschoolsEnglishLanguageWeek,Igavesomeexamplesof
visualmnemonics(takenfromthePracticalEnglishLanguagemagazineandLetme
read)toLowerSecondarystudents.Ialsogavealistofwordsthatstudentscould
refertoandaskedthemtocomeoutwithpictorialrepresentationsofthesewords.It
wasveryencouragingtonotethatsomestudentscameupwiththeirownlistof
words.Displayingthestudentspiecesofworkfortheotherstudentsandteachersto
viewwasonewayofboostingtheselfesteemandmoraleofthestudents.
Theseoriginalandverycreativepiecesofworkprovidedmetheimpetustotry
usingvisualmnemonicswithForm4studentsofweakandaverageabilityduringthe
KotaSetardistrictEnglishLanguagefestwhichwasheldthefollowingyear.Igave
thesestudentsanentirelynewlistofwordstoworkon.Themoreenterprising
studentscameupwithadditionalwords.Ialsoprovideddictionariesandacopyof
1000picturesforteacherstocopybyWright,A.(1985).Studentsfromdifferent
schoolsworkedtogetherinanonthreateningenvironmentandcameoutwithoriginal
andverycreativeaswellascolourfulpiecesofwork.Ifoundthestudentsvery
enthusiasticandengrossedintheirwork.Theleaderofeachgroupcameuptothe
frontandexhibitedhisorhergroupsworkandsharedbrieflytheirexperience
workingtogether.Themajorityofstudentssaidthattheyhadneverdonesuchan
activitybeforeanditwasnovelandenjoyable.Thesestudentsalsotaughtmethat
althougheachgroupwasgiventhesameword,theyperceiveditindifferentwaysand
theresultwasonewordbeingrepresentedvisuallyindifferentways.AsanESL
teacher,Imighthaveopenedtheeyesofmystudentstotheworldofmnemonicsbut
atthesametime,Ihavelearntfrommystudentstoseewordsfromtheirperspective
andtheimportanceofrelatingittotheirbackgroundsothatlearningbecomes
engagingandmeaningfultothem.AccordingtoChiam(1995),parentsandteachers
havethetendencytocoercechildrentoperceivetheworldfromtheadults
perspective,criticizetheirideas,curbtheirfantasyandimaginationandevaluatetheir
successorfailureaccordingtoadultsperceptionsandstandards.

SomeofmystudentsintheRemoveClassandForm1inmypresentschoolhave
becomesointerestedinvisualmnemonicsthattheyhavebeeninspiredtocomeup
withtheirownmnemonics.OneoftheRemoveclassstudentspresentedmewitha
compilationofseveraloriginalpiecesofmnemonicswhichshehaddonebyherself.I
wasalsopleasantlysurprisedwhenaForm1studentgavemeapictorial
representationofageckowhichhehaddone.Afewdaysearlier,Ihadtoldhisclass

Page 6
thatanotherForm1boywassocreativeandenterprisingastomakegeckosand
crocodilesoutofbeadsandsellthem.
IamstillexperimentingwithmnemonicsandIcansaythatithasbeenavery
satisfyingrewardingexperiencesofar.Forinstance,in1998,oneofmystudents
designedapictorialrepresentationofasafetypin.Shehadturnedtheiintoa
safetypin.Lastyear,Icutoutwordsfromthenewspaperandreplacedtheiwiththe
pictureofasafetypin.Teachersarealwaysencouragedtouserealiaintheclassroom
sothisyearIdecidedtoreplacetheiwitharealsafetypin!.
HerearesomeideasfortheuseofmnemonicsintheESLclassroom.
a.Relatethelanguagetothestudentsthemselvesasthiswillmakethelanguage
moremeaningfulandmemorableforthem.(Tice,1997)
b.Connectthespelling,pronunciationandnewwordstothestudentsprior
knowledgeorwhathealreadyknows.Thus,theteacherincreasestheprobability
ofreachingouttothemajorityofstudentsintheclassroom.
c.Theodder,morecomicalandmorepersonaltheassociations,themorelikely
theyaretobeencoded.(Fletcher,2001).Ourbrainsaregoodatremembering
unusualorsillythings.Thesillinessfactorhelpshooktheinformationtogether.
d.Useofmultisensorytechniquessuchascolours,visualpictures,songs,rhythms,
ormovementoftencapitalizeonstudentsstrengths.Linkthewordstothe
picturesasmostofushavepowerfulvisualmemories(Fletcher,2001).Images
whichareconcrete,sensory,practical,interactive,andinterestinghaveamuch
greaterrateofrecallthanthosewhicharenot(Ormond,1995).
e.Childrenwholearndifferently,especiallydyslexicchildrenandthosethat
strugglewithlanguagedevelopment,tendtolearnbestwithactivelearningand
creativeinvolvementwiththetaskorconcept.
f.Tangibleobjectsaremucheasiertovisualizethanareintangibles.Thetangibles
areusuallyconcretenounswhicharetheeasiesttovisualizebecausemostof
themhavebeenseenatonetimeoranotherandyouknowwhattheylook
like(e.g.flower).Intangiblesincludeabstractnouns(eg.truth)whicharenotas
easilypictured.
BenefitstoStudents
Mnemonicshaveimportantimplicationsforteachingandlearning.Myclassroom
experiencesusingmnemonicssince1989stronglysupportthefactthatstudentswho
usevisualmnemonicsandothermnemonicdevicesareabletoretrieveinformation
moreeffectivelyandforlongerperiodsoftime.Apartfromboostingtheirlongterm
memoryinlearningandrememberingvocabulary,spellingandpronunciation,the
studentsarealsoactiveparticipantsinthelearningprocess.Mnemonicsalsomotivate

Page 7
thestudentstobemorecreativeandenjoyusingtheirmindsmoreproductively.Even
weakstudentswhoareoftenconsideredfailuresinourexaminationorientedsystem
canproduceoriginalandcreativepiecesofworkwhichisatestamenttothefactthat
everychildhaspotentialanditisuptotheteachertounearththePicassointhem.
AccordingtoFletcher,(2001),itwouldbegreatifeachpersonineachclassfelt

themselves,atleastforamomenttobeastar.Asateacher,Ibelievethatchildren
shouldbeprovidedtaskswhichwillenablethemtobeengagedincreativeand
imaginativethinking.ThisopinionissupportedbyBeetlestone(1998)whostatesthat
theclassroomshouldtherefore,provideasafeenvironmentforrisktaking,problem
solvingandexperimentation,whichwillprovidethenecessarychallengeand
opportunityfororiginality.
Conclusion
Ithasbeenfoundthattheuseofmnemonicscanenhancetheabilityofthestudentsto
organizeandretrieveinformationeasily.Thisinturnhelpsincreasethestudentsself
esteemaswellastheirlearning.Visualmnemonicsforinstancecanbeexploitedto
bridgetheboundariesbetweenwordsandtheirmeanings.Theultimategoalisfor
studentstousethestrategieslearnedwhileusingandcreatingmnemonicstoenhance
lifelongandindependentlearning.AstheclassroomESLteacherknowshisstudents
best,heshouldadoptoradaptthemnemonicsaccordingtothebackgroundofhis
studentsandmakelearningasmeaningfulandengagingaspossible.Accordingto
Kyriacou(1986),weshouldseeteachingasinvolvingachangefromapassive
acquisitionofknowledgetowardsactivitieswhichhelpchildrentodiscoverand
developtheircreativeabilitiesbydoing,makingandorganizing.
Itishopedthatmnemonicswillopenupchildrensmindsandreleasethetreasure
within.

Page 8
References
Atkinson,R.C.1975.Mnemotechnicsinsecondlanguagelearning.AmericanPsychologist,
30:821828.
Beetlestone,F.
1998.
CreativeChildren,ImaginativeTeaching.Buckingham:Open
UniversityPres.s
Beglar,D.&Hunt,A.1995.Vocabularyandreading:teachingandtesting.InG.vanTroyer,
S.Cornwell,&H.Morikawa(Eds.)
ProceedingsoftheJALT1995International
ConferenceonLanguageTeaching/Learning.pp.210214.Tokyo:JALT.
Bulgren,J.A.,Schumaker,J.B.&Deshler,D.D.1994.Theeffectsofarecallenhancement
routineonthetestperformanceofsecondarystudentswithandwithoutlearning
disabilities.LearningDisabilitiesResearchPractice,9:211.
ChiamHengKeng.1995.UnderstandingChildren.Selangor:PelandukPublications
Chitravelu,N.,Sithamparam,S.andTehSooChoon.1995.ELTMethodology:Principles
andPractice.ShahAlam:PenerbitFajarBakti.
Craik,F.I.M.1979.Levelsofprocessing:overviewandclosingcomments.InL.S.Cermak,
&F.I.M.Craik(Eds.).LevelsofProcessinginHumanMemory.(pp.447459).New
Jersey:LawrenceErlbaumAssociates.
Ellis,N.1995.Vocabularyacquisition:psychologicalperspectivesandpedagogical
implications.TheLanguageTeacher,19(2):1216.
Fletcher,M.2001.TeachingforSuccess:TheBrainfriendlyRevolutioninAction.Great
Britain:EnglishExperience
Gordon,I.1998.CommonErrorsinWrittenEnglish.London:MacMillanEducationLtd.
Gray,R.1997.MnemonicsintheESL/EFLclassroom.TheLanguageTeacher,21(4):1821.
Jeffree,D.andSkeffington,M.1980.LetMeRead.London:SouvenirPress(Educationaland
Academic)Ltd.
Kyriacou,C.1986.EffectiveTeachinginSchools.HemelHempstead:SimonandSchuster.
Lewis,P.1990.SpellIt.Oxford:BasilBlackwoodLtd.
MacAndrew,R.1985.Pictureaword.PracticalEnglishTeacher,December:1314.

Page 9
Mastropieri,M.A.&Scruggs,T.E.1989.Constructingmoremeaningfulrelationships:
Mnemonicinstructionsforspecialpopulations.EducationalPsychologyReview,1:88

111.
Ney,J.W.1996.Imagery,verbalprocesses,andsecondlanguagelearning.JALTJournal,18
(1):132144.
Ormond,J.1995.HumanLearning(2nded.).EnglewoodCliffs,NJ:PrenticeHall.
Paul,K.1996.StudySmarter,NotHarder.PetalingJaya:AdvantageQuestPublications.
Pressley,M.,Levin,J.R.&Delaney,H.D.1982.Themnemonickeywordmethod.Reviewof
EducationalResearch,52:6191.
Richards,ReginaG.MemoryFoundationsforReading:VisualMnemonicsforSound/Symbol
Relationships
(http://www.ldonline.org/ld_indepth/teachers/www.amazon.com
or
http://www.retctrpress.com/).
Richardson,J.T.E.1980.MentalImageryandHumanMemory.NewYork.St.Martins
Press.
Schmitt,N.&Schmitt,D.1995.Vocabularynotebooks:Theoreticalunderpinningsand
practicalsuggestions.
ELTJournal,49,133143.
Searleman,A.&Herrman,D.1994.MemoryfromaBroaderPerspective.NewYork:
McGrawHill,Inc.
Solso,R.L.1995.CognitivePsychology(4thed.).Boston:AllynandBacon.
Stevick,E.J.1976.Memory,Meaning,&Method:SomePsychologicalPerspectiveson
LanguageLearning.Rowley,Massachusetts:NewburyHouse.
Tice,J.1997.TheMixedAbilityClass.London:RichmondPublishing.
Wallace,M.J.1987.TeachingVocabulary.London:HeinemannEducationalBooks.
Wingfield,A.1979.HumanLearningandMemory:AnIntroduction.NewYork:Harperand
Row.
Wright,A.1984.1000PicturesforTeacherstoCopy.London:CollinsELT.

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Appendix1
SubjectPronouns

Page 11
Page 12
Page 13
Appendix2
Page 14
Appendix3
Page 15
Appendix4
Page 16
Page 17
Appendix5
Page 18

Page 19
Appendix5
Page 20
Appendix6
Page 21
Page 22
Appendix7
SPELLINGandPRONUNCIATION
Frommyexperience,Ihavefoundthatifstudentsassociatewordswiththeirown
background(examplenamesofclassmates,singers,filmstars,buildingsetctheywill
remembereasilyhowtospellandpronouncethetroublesomeword.Forexample,
oncewhileteachingthesixteenthclassinForm1,Iwroteseveralwordsonthe
blackboardincludingthewordsmall.Iwasreallysurprisedtohearstudents
mispronouncingthiswordwhichtomewasaverysimpleword.Idecidedthereand
thentotakeachanceandtrysomethingunconventional.MyrationalewasthatifI
failed,IstillhadthesatisfactionofknowingthatIhadtried.Thereisashopping
complexnearbywhichallmystudentsarefamiliarwith,thatisSelayangMall.Itold
thestudentstorepeataftermeSelayangmallsmallseveraltimes.Afewdays
later,IwrotethesamewordsthatIhadtaughtthemduringthepreviouslesson.Itold
thestudentsthatsomeofthemwouldtakeontheroleofteacherandtheothers
wouldbethestudents.Asfacilitator,Iwouldhelpiftheteachersfacedany
difficulties.Oneofthestudentshadproblemswhenhecametothefourthword.His
teacherimmediatelypromptedhimSelayangMallandwithouthesitating,he
blurtedoutsmall.Tome,thatwasindeedabreakthrough!
Anotherwordthatthestudentsinthisclasshadproblemswithwasstraight.My
studentswereHindimoviefansandwerefamiliarwiththeformerMissUniverseand
actressAiswaryaRai.First,Itoldthemtorememberthatthelettertcameafterthe
lettersandtheletterhcameaftertheletterg.Thewordstraightalso
containedthelettersrai.Toboostthestudentsmemory,Ialsoshoweda
photographofAiswaryaRaiwithlong,straighthair.
Manyofmystudentshadproblemspronouncingthewordsstomachache,headache
andtoothache.Tohelpthemrememberthepronunciationofstomachache,Idividedit
into3parts(stomachache).FirstIaskedstudentstocompletethissentence:
Twinkle,twinkle,littlestar.ThenItoldthemthattheywouldshoutoutfortheir
mak(theMalaywordformother)whentheyhadaterriblestomachache.To
rememberthepronunciationofache,Itoldthemtoassociatethewordwiththe
ChinesenameEik(pronouncedasAche)Choon.
EikChoonhada
stomachachewhilesingingTwinkle,Twinklelittlestarsoheshoutedforhismak.

Page 23
AnotherinstancewhenIusedtheconceptofassociationwasinteachingthe
pronunciationandmeaningofthewordseligibleandillegible.Tohelpstudents
rememberthepronunciationandmeaningofeligible,ItellthemthattheAlleycats(a
popularlocalband)orAllyMcBealareeligibletoenterthedramacompetition.On
theotherhand,toteachthepronunciationandmeaningofthewordillegibleI

usuallyscribblesomethingontheboard.ThenIaskstudentsthefollowingquestion:
DoyouunderstandwhatIhavewritten?TheexpectedresponseisNo.ThenItell
studentstolookcloselyatthefirstfourlettersoftheword(ille)whichinTamil
meansno.ThisisawordthatmostMalaysianswhethertheyareChinese,Malayor
Indiansknowforsure.Studentsareaskedtocheckupthemeaninginthedictionary
andIhelpthemrelatethewordtothelettersille.Infact,wheneverIusedtohave
quizzesorgames,thestudentswouldpurposelystressthefirstfourlettersintheword
illegiblealthoughtheyknewthecorrectpronunciation.Tome,thestressoflearning
wasreducedbyusingmnemonics!

Page 24
Appendix8

Page 25
Appendix9
TheNarrativeChainmnemonicStrategy
IhaveadaptedthisstrategytohelpForm4and5studentsremembersingularnouns.I
relateastoryinwhichthestudentisthemaincharacter.Iaskstudentstolistenand
writedownthemissingword.
BeforeIgetreadyforschool,Imakesuremyshirtandtrousersareironed.Ialways
wearcleanclothingtoschool.Igotoschooltogainknowledge.Myteachersalways
tellmetostudyhard.Theygivemegoodadvice.EveryMondayandThursday,Igo
totheScienceLab.Wedoexperimentsandmyteacherasksustohandlethetest
tubesandbeakerscarefully.Wemusttakecareoftheequipmentinthelab.My
teacheralsogivesussomeexercisestodoathome.Inotherwords,shegivesus
homework.Shealsotellsusnottothrowlitteronthefloor.Wealsomakesurethat
wedonotdamagethechairsanddesks.Wetakecareofthefurniture.
WhenIgohome,mymothertellsmetosweepthefloorandwashtheplates.Idothe
houseworkbeforewatchingtelevision.Ialsoreadthenewspapersinordertogetthe
latestinformationaboutfootball.
Intheevening,Igowithmymothertobuyapairofearringsandachainformyelder
sister.Iamsuremysisterwouldlovethejewellery.Onthewayback,wepassthe
padifieldwheretherearelotsofcows.Thesceneryisreallybeautiful.Unfortunately,
therearelotsofcars,busesandlorriesontheroad.Wereachhomelatebecausethere
isalotoftrafficontheroad.

EXERCISE: BASIC SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT

For each pair of sentences below, write out the correct form of the verb in parentheses.
Keep to the present tense, and be guided by the four tips above. When you're done,
compare your responses with the answers at the end of the exercise.
1. This convenience store closes at midnight. The other stores (close) at 9:00.
2. Gus complains about everything. He even (complain) about the color of the sky.
3. My sisters play musical instruments. My brother and his friend (play) with their iPods.

4. I care about her very much. She (care) about no one but herself.
5. This coffee tastes like gasoline. You (taste) it and tell me what you think.
6. Our refrigerator leaks. Water (leak) onto the floor and loosens the vinyl.
7. Every afternoon, they hurry down to the station to meet their mother. She (hurry) home
from work.
8. Merdine carries a leather pouch filled with quarters. The police officers (carry) clubs.
9. We raise okra and peanuts on our farm. My brother (raise) the gate before the sun rises.
10. Felicity criticizes everyone she works with. She never (criticize) herself.
ANSWERS: (1) close; (2) complains; (3) play; (4) cares; (5) taste; (6) leaks; (7) hurries;
(8) carry; (9) raises; (10) criticizes.
http://grammar.about.com/od/correctingerrors/a/ASagreement.htm

AGREEMENT EXERCISE A
For each pair of sentences below, write out the correct form of the verb in parentheses.
Keep to the present tense, and be guided by our four tips for agreement and our three
special cases.
1. Do you know how to play bocce? The game (do) not require any special athletic
abilities.
2. There is a new bocce league at the recreational center. There (be) several teams in the
league.
3.

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I have a new set of bocce balls. My friend (have) a new pallino ball.
4. Bocce is a game for people of all ages. I (be) going to show you how to play.
5. The players take turns rolling a ball down the court. Each of the players [take] one ball
and aims for the pallino.
6. We try to get our balls as close to the pallino as possible. Rick often (try) to bounce his
ball off the side of the court.
7. Nobody enjoys playing bocce more than I do. Everybody who plays bocce (enjoy) the
game.

8. There are four players on each team. There (be) a tournament at the end of the season.
9. The winners of the tournament carry home a trophy. Everyone (carry) home good
memories.
10. I am ready to play a game now. You and your friends (be) welcome to join us.

AGREEMENT EXERCISE B
For each pair of sentences below, write out the correct form of the verb in parentheses.
Keep to the present tense, and be guided by our four tips for agreement and our three
special cases.
1. Both candidates oppose increased defense spending. Neither of the two candidates
(oppose) the war in Iraq.
2. Not one of these cell phones belongs to me. One of the phones (belong) to Merdine.
3. Most students take all of their classes in the morning. Nobody (take) classes after 2:00.
4. One of my hobbies is collecting shopping bags. My hobbies (be) unusual.
5. Gus and Merdine want a trial separation. Neither one (want) to move out of the
apartment.
6. Neither of the players admits that he made an error. Both players (admit) that
somebody made a mistake.
7. Both the manager and her assistant have been fired. Neither the manager nor her
assistant (have) been notified.
8. Where is your little brother? Several pages from my journal (be) missing.
9. Professor Legree often goes for long walks in the rain. The lights in his house (go) on
at midnight.
10. The students in the back of the room play poker during breaks. The student who sits
next to the refreshments (play) solitaire.

AGREEMENT EXERCISE C
The following paragraph contains six errors in subject-verb agreement. Find and correct
each of the six verb errors. Remember to stay in the present tense, and be guided by our
four tips for agreement and our three special cases.
According to legend, Santa Claus is a fat old man who visits every house on our planet in
about eight hours on one of the coldest nights of the year. Santa, as everybody knows,
stop for a glass of milk and a cookie at each house along the route. He prefer to work
unnoticed, so he wears luminous red suit and travels with a pack of bell-jangling reindeer.
For reasons that most people does not understand, this jolly old man enters each house
not by the front door but through the chimney (whether you has a chimney or not). He
customarily gives generously to children in wealthy families, and he usually remind
poorer children that it's the thought that counts. Santa Claus is one of the earliest beliefs
that parents try to instill in their children. After this absurdity, it's a wonder that any child
ever believe in anything again.
_________________________

Answers to EXERCISE A: (1) does; (2) are; (3) has; (4) am; (5) takes; (6) tries; (7)
enjoys; (8) is; (9) carries; (10) are.
Answers to EXERCISE B: (1) oppose; (2) belongs; (3) takes; (4) are; (5) wants; (7) has;
(8) are; (9) go; (10) plays.
Answers to EXERCISE C: (1) Change "stop for a glass" to "stops for a glass"; (2)
change "prefer to work" to "prefers to work"; (3) change "people does not understand" to
"people do not understand"; (4) change "you has a chimney" to "you have a chimney";
(5) change "remind poorer children" to "reminds poorer children"; (6) change "child ever
believe" to "child ever believes."
http://grammar.about.com/od/correctingerrors/a/SVAexercises.htm

EXERCISE: BASIC SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT

For each pair of sentences below, write out the correct form of the verb in parentheses.
Keep to the present tense, and be guided by the four tips above. When you're done,
compare your responses with the answers at the end of the exercise.
1. This convenience store closes at midnight. The other stores (close) at 9:00.
2. Gus complains about everything. He even (complain) about the color of the sky.
3. My sisters play musical instruments. My brother and his friend (play) with their iPods.
4. I care about her very much. She (care) about no one but herself.
5. This coffee tastes like gasoline. You (taste) it and tell me what you think.
6. Our refrigerator leaks. Water (leak) onto the floor and loosens the vinyl.
7. Every afternoon, they hurry down to the station to meet their mother. She (hurry) home
from work.
8. Merdine carries a leather pouch filled with quarters. The police officers (carry) clubs.
9. We raise okra and peanuts on our farm. My brother (raise) the gate before the sun rises.
10. Felicity criticizes everyone she works with. She never (criticize) herself.
ANSWERS: (1) close; (2) complains; (3) play; (4) cares; (5) taste; (6) leaks; (7) hurries;
(8) carry; (9) raises; (10) criticizes.
http://grammar.about.com/od/correctingerrors/a/ASagreement.htm