How to Teach an Adult English Grammar
Through preparation and repetition, you successfully can teach an adult English grammar. Many adults who speak other languages often pick up English conversational skills quickly, especially upon being immersed in the American culture. However, proper grammar sometimes is elusive.
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Instructions
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Establish a consistent schedule--daily, weekly and monthly--with at least one class per week. Also set a tentative end date so that you can gauge how much time you have to teach (e.g., 45 minutes twice a week for eight weeks provide more time than 30 minutes each week whenever convenient for the student).
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Assess your student's current skills in order to understand areas that need improvement. Ideally conduct the formal or informal assessment during the first class. A student really might need help with irregular verbs or forming proper sentence structures. Your student might not understand how to form adverbs. For instance, you should develop at least one written and verbal exam that contains questions at different levels--such as about comparatives, superlatives, conjunctions, gerunds and infinitives.
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Inquire about your student's desire to learn English grammar. Some students study English grammar to be successful on a standardized test. Other students might have a personal goal to achieve fluency in English.
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Prepare appropriate lessons that are organized logically and address your student's personal goals and weak areas. You can begin lessons by highlighting past topics, such as by completing a warm-up activity. Separately introduce topics. For instance, you might discuss the present perfect tense after the past simple tense. One great way to improve grammar is through writing. Ask your student to write a one-page report, perhaps each week, that discusses topics such as current events, hobbies or politics. Review your student's report and address mistakes that are made repeatedly.
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Challenge your student. Pose questions that include irregular verbs. Discuss proverbs and idioms, which might contain odd grammar (e.g., waiter refers to a drink and states that 'it's on the house'). Provide speaking opportunities throughout the lesson and ask your student to avoid using simple sentences.
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Tips & Warnings
Select a English language book for your student to use as a reference.
Like children, adults can develop short attention spans, so be creative with your lessons.
