Tests and terminology

Daunted by determiners and perplexed by prepositions? The new age of primary grammar might be more fun than you think, says Pearson’s Ros Letellier...

There’s no law that grammar has to be taught with textbooks and worksheets

The government’s decision to increase the focus on formal teaching of grammar and spelling in the new primary curriculum may have been a controversial one – but since the curriculum came into effect in September, it is also one which we cannot afford to ignore.

Current Year 1s and Year 5s will be the first cohort to sit SATs based on the new curriculum when they replace the old tests in 2016. And yes, they are likely to be significantly different. (Take a look at some sample questions released by the DfE earlier this year.)

The concepts are harder, and taught sooner. For example, subordination and co-ordination are taught in Year 2 as opposed to Year 4, and prepositions in Year 3 as opposed to Year 5. Plus there are a number of concepts that weren’t previously covered, such as modal verbs, subject and object and the subjunctive (shudder).

Even if you have increased your focus on grammar, beware of the changes in terminology. A lot of the more child-friendly terms we’ve become used to are out, and the proper, formal terminology is in: the lovely catch-all term of ‘connectives’ has been split out into ‘adverbials’, ‘conjunctions’ and ‘prepositions’. It’s ‘determiners’ instead of ‘articles’, and ‘multi-clause’ sentences instead of ‘compound’ sentences.

As a result, there’s a risk that the ability to use grammar well will not be enough in itself to ensure success. You may need to adapt your teaching of grammar to make sure that children won’t be stymied in the tests by terminology they haven’t encountered before.

Good intentions

There’s a kind of stigma attached to grammar, we admit. It is seen as the stuff of pedants; a dry, dusty, soul-sucking subject that should be relegated to the pre-50s classroom. However, the intention behind the increased emphasis on grammar in the new curriculum is a good one. We all know how important good language skills are when it comes to the world of work; a nation of confident, fluent communicators is a noble aim.

Is it necessary to teach grammar explicitly in order to achieve this? Professor Debra Myhill, arguably Britain’s foremost expert on this exact subject, and a consultant on Pearson’s Primary English programme, Wordsmith, believes so. She is very supportive of teaching children the terminology to talk about their language choices, as long as the concepts are reinforced in an embedded way, (i.e., as part of comprehension and writing work). It is learning about grammar in situ that produces the most improvement in children’s writing – but it is also crucial to be able to give and receive clear and actionable feedback on writing, which requires children to have the appropriate technical vocabulary.

We know that, on the whole, the way we have been teaching English in recent years hasn’t worked for everyone – particularly those children who might be lacking in good examples of English in their environment. Yes, we know that good grammar can be absorbed by reading for pleasure, and through quality formative assessment. But what about those with little access to reading materials; struggling or reluctant readers; or those with English as a second language? There is evidence (both academic and anecdotal) that an understanding of grammar can improve results across the board – helping even the good writers to become excellent ones.

Making grammar fun

While the National Association of Teachers claimed that a focus on grammar will ‘impoverish’ English teaching, we don’t believe that has to be true. As with any subject, it is as dry or as engaging as you make it. There’s no law that grammar has to be taught with textbooks and worksheets. With the right resources, grammar can be fun. Yes, fun! I’m constantly amazed by my Year 1 child’s enjoyment of learning; there’s none of the cynicism that comes with age. He isn’t bothered about looking cool – or not cool. There’s no stigma in learning grammar for him. As long as it’s presented as fun, he will enjoy and absorb it.

That’s where resources such as Pearson’s Wordsmith and Grammar and Spelling Bug come in. Written and evaluated by experts in Literacy such as Sue Palmer, Michaela Morgan, Debra Myhill, Lyndsay Pickton and Christine Chen, they offer a huge store of resources for teaching and consolidating grammar – including online games. To learn more about either of these programmes, visit www.pearsonprimary.co.uk