Read your message mainly intended for Liz.  If it is possible I would love a
sample copy of your book.  I'm putting together a research paper for Waldorf High
School Teachers across North America on teaching grammar and your approach sounds
just the sort of thing that we would be interested in - any chance? Anne Greer

"Kischner, Michael" wrote:

> This is mainly for Liz Spalding, who put out this request a couple of weeks
> ago.
>
> Edith Wollin and I have written a book titled "Writers' Choices: Grammar to
> Improve Style."  It is being published this year by Harcourt College
> Publishers.  The following excerpt from its introduction to the teacher
> describes our aims in the book, which I think may fit with your aims:
>
>                 We wrote this book partly for our fellow college writing
> teachers who have wished there were an effective and efficient way to teach
> sentence structure and style while still giving adequate time to the writing
> process, critical reading, and the other important concerns of college
> composition.  Such teachers typically find that it is impossible to teach
> grammar fast.  There are so many building blocks to put in place that we
> often give up in favor of an ad hoc approach --  a lesson on clauses to curb
> the spread of fragments, a drill on restrictive and nonrestrictive elements
> to arrest comma delinquency, and so forth.  Associated in the students'
> minds with the errors that prompted them and fitting into no whole, these
> units are seldom the memorable part of the course.
>
>                 We believe this book can help change that.  It approaches
> English syntax as something to delight in and experiment with.  Focusing not
> on what students can't do but rather on the many things they can do with
> sentence structures, it helps turn unconscious practice into conscious
> knowledge and then solidifies the knowledge by having the students put it
> into immediate conscious practice.  It does not say, "Avoid this --  it
> makes your writing bad."  It says, "Try this --  it can make your writing
> strong."
>
>         We do not pretend that it is possible to teach grammar fast.  We do
> believe that with brief, focused explanations   supported by many examples
> and followed by direct application of what they learn, students can grasp a
> thorough        overview of the phrases and clauses from which English
> sentences are built. This overview includes the construction    and
> punctuation of phrases and clauses, their proper integration into sentences,
> and, above all, their rhetorical and    stylistic effects.
>
> I am trying to get ordering information for sample copies from Harcourt.
> Let me know if  you'd like the information, and I'll pass it on when I get
> it.
> > ----------
> > From:         Sophie Johnson
> > Reply To:     Assembly for the Teaching of English Grammar
> > Sent:         Saturday, June 2, 2001 6:33 PM
> > To:   [log in to unmask]
> > Subject:      Re: Request for assistance with course development
> >
> > Liz, please have a look at my approach
> > to teaching grammar:
> >
> > http://www.englishgrammartutor.com
> >
> > I should love to hear your assessment.
> > (I can take it on the chin!)
> > Sophie
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: Liz Spalding <[log in to unmask]>
> > To: <[log in to unmask]>
> > Sent: Saturday, June 02, 2001 12:36 AM
> > Subject: Request for assistance with course development
> >
> >
> > > Hello!  I am a new subscriber to this listserv.  I am an assistant
> > > professor at the University of Kentucky and director of the Bluegrass
> > > Writing Project there.  By popular demand, I have decided to offer a
> > course
> > > this coming fall entitled "Teaching Grammar in Context."  I am not a
> > > linguist, but I am offering the course because this is a topic of great
> > > interest to teachers here in KY.  I have advertised the course as geared
> > > toward K-12 teachers.  I visited the ATEG website but found no current
> > > syllabi on line.  I would very much appreciate any suggestions any of
> > you
> > > have regarding appropriate texts, course design, etc.  I would also be
> > > deeply grateful if anyone shared a syllabus with me.  I look forward to
> > > hearing your suggestions.
> > >
> > > Sincerely,
> > > Liz Spalding
> > >
> > >
> > > Dr. Elizabeth Spalding
> > > Assistant Professor
> > > Department of Curriculum and Instruction
> > > 309 Dickey Hall
> > > University of Kentucky
> > > Lexington, KY  40506-0017
> > > Phone:(606)257-4127
> > > Fax:  (606)257-1602
> > > [log in to unmask]
> > >
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> > >
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> >
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> >
> >
>
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