On Teaching Grammar

We prioritize usage and pragmatic application of grammatical structures and tools over form-based, decontextualized understanding of grammatical rules. We make an important distinction: stating a grammar rule is entirely different to using a grammar rule as we know that explicit knowledge (rule memorization) does not necessarily translate into implicit, or operational, knowledge.

The aims of cultivating a working knowledge of grammatical features should be directly linked to full participation in various complex communicative tasks. Successful teaching of grammar is varied. In some situations using an inductive approach may be more effective and efficient (ie. 10 rules of capitalization; in other instances, a deductive approach that uses mentor texts before naming a rule, may be more effective (ie.demarking sentence boundaries).

We prioritize the study of global (meaning based) errors that interfere with meaning, rather than local errors because we recognize that errors are part of learning and students will make them frequently when learning. We want to celebrate successful communication and avoid overcorrection.

Errors embedded in authentic student writing are used as mentor texts to help students evaluate and analyze errors. This process involves identifying, naming, and correcting errors.