Project 1

UNED

[GRAMMATICAL STRUCTURE ANALYSIS]

Proyect 1.2. Relative clauses.

María Ambrona de la Lastra

09/02/2012

658 709 659

[email protected]

Ceuta

2

INDEX

1. EXPLANATION OF A GRAMMATICAL ITEM………………………………………………………………….3-14

GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS BEFORE LEARNING WHAT A RELATIVE CLAUSE IS………………………..3

• INTRODUCTION TO ADJECTIVES…………………………………………………………………………….3

• POSITION OF ADJECTIVES…………………………………………………………………………………..3-4

• INTRODUCTION TO CLAUSES………………………………………………………………………………..4

• TYPES OF CLAUSES………………………………………………………………………………………………..4

ADJECTIVAL CLAUSES. RELATIVE CLAUSES……………………………………………………………………….……..5

• THE STRUCTURE OF RELATIVE CLAUSES…………………………………………………………….5-6

• CHOOSING THE PROPER RELATIVE PRONOUN………………………………………………..…6-9

• TYPES OF RELATIVE CLAUSE……………………………………………………………………………..9-11

• OTHER KINDS OF RELATIVE CLAUSES. …………………………………………………………….11-13

• COMUN ERRORS…………………………………………………………………………………………….13-14

• L1 INTERFERENCE………………………………………………………………………………………….…….14

2. HOW TO TEACH THE STRUCTURE………………………………………………………………………………….15-18

3. CONCLUSION………………………………………………………………………………………………………….………….19

APPENDIX A. Power Point Presentation………………………………………………………………SEND BY MAIL

APPENDIX B. Exercises to do in class…………………………………………………..………………………………….20

APPENDIX C. Song……………………….……………………………………………………………………………………….…21

APPENDIX D. Homework.…………………………………………………………………………………………..…..… 22-23

APPENDIX E. Relative clauses test………………………………………………………………………..……………..24-25

4. BIBLIOGRAPHY……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………26

3

1. EXPLANATION OF A GRAMMATICAL ITEM

GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS BEFORE LEARNING WHAT A RELATIVE CLAUSE IS

From my own experience, one of the main problems that appears while studying a second

language is the lack of language knowledge itself, that is, how a language structure is

constructed. They seem to not be aware about the grammar pattern of their mother language.

Every language has its own grammatical patterns; however, every language shares some parts

of speech such as adjective, adverbs, verbs, nouns, conjunctions, determiners, prepositions, or

pronouns. Almost every student confuses those sentence parts. Then, my explanation will

cover the general structure and the specific structure of relative clauses.

INTRODUCTION TO ADJECTIVES

Adjectives are words that describe or modify NOUNS (person or thing) in the

sentence.

The tall professor.

Adjective Phrase. An adjective phrase is a group of words that does the work of an

adjective.

He is the man who is keeping my family in the poorhouse.

Adjective Clause. It’s a group of words that contains a subject and verb and acts as

an adjective.

My sister, who is much older than I am, is an engineer.

Some people get clauses and phrases confused. To review, a phrase is a group of words that

does not have a subject or predicate. A phrase may have a noun or a verb, but they do not

function as a subject and predicate team like in a clause. Phrases modify, describe, and give

information.

POSITION OF ADJECTIVES

Unlike Adverbs, which often seem capable of popping up almost anywhere in a sentence,

adjectives nearly always appear immediately before the noun or noun phrase that they modify

and moreover they have a fixed position depending its nature.

Adjectives that do not appear before the noun it modifies are the examples below:

When indefinite pronouns — such as something, someone, anybody — are modified

by an adjective, the adjective comes after the pronoun:

Anyone capable of doing something horrible to someone nice should be

punished.

4

Certain adjectives that, in combination with certain words, are always “postpositive”

(coming after the thing they modify):

The president elect, heir apparent to the Glitzy fortune, lives in New

York proper.

Adjective clauses are situated after the noun it modifies (antecedent.)

John, who is a writer, is known all over the world

INTRODUCTION TO CLAUSES

A clause is a group of words that have a subject and a verb (predicate.) There are two main

kinds of clauses: independent and dependent.

1. Independent clauses can stand alone and make a complete thought. They are also called

sentences.

2. Dependent clauses cannot stand alone. They are an incomplete thought and are

dependent on something else to complete their thought. They are called subordinate clauses

because they have a subordinate conjunction that links the clause to the other clause. They

have subject and verb.

“When the game started, he was still at home.” Dependent clause is “When the game

started.”

Subordinate conjunction is “When.”

TYPES OF CLAUSES

There are three types of dependent clauses: nominal, adverbial, and adjectival. They

function as nouns, adverbs, and adjectives. Dependent clauses usually start with a subordinate

conjunction, like: as if, because, before, while, now that, until, since, how, where, when, why,

unless, and after. Following are explanations and examples.

Nominal clauses act like a noun and can be the subject, appositive, complement, or

object. An example is:

She didn’t know who would be at the party.

Adverbial clauses act like an adverb and modify verbs and verb phrases. They answer

the questions: why, when, where, what, how much, and under what condition. An

example is:

Now that I have finished the class, I will get a raise.

Adjectival clauses are also called relative clauses and adjective clauses. They function

as adjectives and modify nouns (antecedent) and an example is:

“Students who are smart get good grades.”

5

ADJECTIVAL CLAUSES. RELATIVE CLAUSES

Now that we understand what a clause is, we need specific information on relative clauses

and their verbs.

To review, a relative clause acts as an adjective and has a subject and verb, but does not

make a complete thought. It is a dependent clause which needs something else to make it

complete.

A Relative Clause, also called an adjective clause, is a dependent clause that modifies a noun

by making it more specific or adding additional information about it. A relative clause always

contains a relative pronoun (who, whom, which, whose), a relative adverb (when, where, why)

or a zero pronoun which refers back to the noun it modifies.

Relative clauses are extremely useful because they enable writers to be more specific and

they make writing more sophisticated. The most common difficulties occur in understanding

the different types of relative clauses, punctuating relatives, choosing the right pronoun, and

agreement.

- I remember the day when I bought my first car.

Cars which are built in Germany are expensive.

Ice cream, that I crave, is not very healthy.

I have an aunt whose son lives in Rome.

“Never go to a doctor whose office plants have died.”

THE STRUCTURE OF RELATIVE CLAUSES

Relative clauses are one kind of dependent clause, introduced by a relative pronoun that

refers to the main noun the clause depends upon. A relative clause, as seen above, always

immediately follows the noun it modifies. Like all clauses, relative clauses have a subject and a

verb.

Since a relative clause always follows the noun it modifies, it can appear almost anywhere in

a sentence that a noun can appear--in the subject, in the object, or in a prepositional phrase.

This means that a relative clause often appears within a main clause, not separate from the

main clause.

The relative pronoun may be the subject of the clause, but it isn’t always. When the relative

pronoun or the relative pronoun is the subject, the relative cannot be omitted. It’s easy to

recognize a relative that is function as a subject since there’s no other pronoun that follows

the relative. Moreover, if the relative functions as subject it can be replace for the antecedent

and the relative clause will become a real sentence.

I ate the ice cream that was in the freezer. (The ice cream was in the freezer)

6

*I ate the ice cream was in the freezer.

Additionally, when the relative pronoun is not the subject of the relative clause (when there’s

a pronoun after the relative)but the object, it may be omitted entirely (especially in spoken

English) in defining relative clauses.

I didn’t eat the pie that you were saving for tonight.

I didn’t eat the pie you were saving for tonight.

A relative pronoun is usually the first word of a relative clause; however, in some cases the

pronoun follows a preposition, when this occurs it can usually be replaced (preposition +

relative pronoun) for an adverbial pronoun.

We have many blessings for which we are deeply grateful.

We have many blessings why we are deeply grateful.

Relative adverb Meaning Use Examples

when in/on which refers to a time expression the day when we met him

where in/at which refers to a place the place where we met him

why for which refers to a reason the reason why we met him

CHOOSING THE PROPER RELATIVE PRONOUN

The choice of pronoun depends upon the noun the clause refers to and on what type of

relative clause is used.

RELATIVE PRONOUNS

Who

- It refers to a person or people.

- It functions as a subject.

- It may be used with a clause that makes a noun specific (defining relative

clauses)

- It may be used with a clause that adds information.(non-defining relative

clauses)

- It can be replaced by “that” only in informal contexts.

People who live in New York lead very busy lives.

My sister, who works for the YMCA, leads a very active life.

7

Which

It refers to a thing or concept.

It can be used as subject or object relative.

It is sometimes used in a clause that makes a noun specific (defining relative

clauses). It is usually used when a speaker or writer wants to sound more formal.)

It is most often used in clauses that add information (non-defining relative

clauses.)

It can be replaced by “that.”

The Empire State Building, which used to be the tallest building in the world, is

still a popular tourist attraction.

The lessons which we have learned are no more important than the lessons

which we have yet to learn.

That

It most often refers to a thing or concept. It can refer to a person

It can be used for subject or object.

It is used only in clauses that make a noun more specific (defining relative

clauses.)

It is sometimes used to refer to a person or people, (usually only in informal

writing or in speaking.) Some people consider that inappropriate when referring to

people although most writers and speakers use it quite naturally. If you wish to be

formal, always use who for a person or people.

The child who threw your book away was only three years old.

The book that you gave me is lost

The kid that I babysit threw your book in the trash.

Some people consider that inappropriate when referring to people although most

writers .

8

Who, Whom, and Whose

Like most pronouns in English,

ex. I

he

we

me

him

us

my

his

our

the relative pronoun who has more than one form. The form of who in a relative clause

must change depending on whether it’s the subject, object, or possessive.

Who for the subject of a clause

Whom for the object of a verb or preposition

Whose for a possessive noun

(They’re used for both defining and non-defining relative clauses.)

Who. As a Subject

I know a woman who has two children.

In this sentence, who replaces woman as the subject of the verb has (A woman has two

children)

Whose. As a Possessive

The older one is a boy, whose name is Jonathan

In this sentence whose replaces the noun boy as a possessive noun (the boy’s name is

Jonathan.)

Whom. As an Object

My friend has two children, whom she loves very much.

In this sentence, whom replaces children as the object of the verb loves (She loves the

children)

Whom. As an Object of a Preposition

Jonathan has a little sister, with whom he plays all the time.

In this sentence, whom replaces the noun sister as the object of the preposition with (he

plays with his sister.)

In a standard sentence, the preposition and its object normally come after the verb, but

because the relative pronoun always comes at the beginning of a relative clause, it is a

convention to place the preposition at the beginning of a relative clause in formal

writing, as in the example above. Often, however, when speaking or in informal writing,

the preposition comes after the verb of a relative clause.

Jonathan has a little sister, whom he plays with all the time.

9

RELATIVE ADVERBS

Where and When

They are used for a clause that refers to a place or time respectively.

They have spatial and temporal notions respectively.

It may be used for clauses that make a noun more specific

It may be used for clauses that add information

New York is a place where people of many different cultures live and work together.

New York City, where millions of immigrants live, is sometimes called a Melting Pot.

In the 1970's, when many new rights and freedoms had been gained, people began to

lead quieter, more private lives.

ZERO RELATIVE PRONOUN

It is the relative pronoun is only implied and is not explicitly present. It is an alternative

to that, which, who or whom in a defining relative clause:

The boy whom/who/that/Ø you saw yesterday has bought my car.

I can't remember the last holiday which/that/ Ø I had.

We cannot use zero relative pronoun in non-defining clauses.

RELATIVE PRONOUNS ACROSS REGISTERS

- That and zero are the preferred choices in conversation, although relative

clauses are generally rare in that register.

- Fiction is similar to conversation in its preference for that.

- In contrast, news shows a much stronger preference for which and who, and

academic prose strongly prefers which.

In general, the relative pronouns that begin with the letters wh- are considered to be

more literate. In contrast the pronoun that and the zero relative pronoun has a

more colloquial flavor and are preferred in conversation.

TYPES OF RELATIVE CLAUSE

There are two types of relative clause. Both types modify nouns, but one makes a noun more

specific, while the other adds extra facts or information about a noun.

It’s important to understand these two types of relative clause because they not only differ in

meaning, but they are punctuated differently and often use different relative pronouns.

10

1. DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSE. CLAUSES THAT MAKE NOUNS SPECIFIC

People who have children have more free-times than people who haven’t.

- Relative clauses are used to make the noun more specific.

In the above sentence, the relative clauses ”who have children” and “who haven’t”

changes the meaning of the noun it modifies.

It can be called Restrictive Relative Clause because it restricts or limits the meaning of

a more general noun. ”who have children” is more restricted than the general

noun people. “Who have children” and “who haven’t” imply two different groups of

people. Without the appropriate relative clauses, this meaning would not be clear.

People have more free-times than people.

- In the defining clauses, the relative pronoun can be omitted if it functions as an object

(only in informal English.)

That’s the book (that / which) I bought at the book fair.

- In this type of clause, we can use prepositions before which and whom.

That’s the town in which/where he was born.

The people with whom I stayed were very kind.

However, in spoken English is normally situated at the end of the relative clause and,

also, in informal situations who is acceptable in place of whom.

Here are some additional examples of sentences that show how a relative clause can change

the meaning of a noun.

Students learn a lot.

Students who ask questions learn a lot.

Teachers are unpopular

Teachers who give a lot of assignments are unpopular.

2. NON-DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSE. CLAUSES THAT ADD INFORMATION

Going to the diving, which I love to do, can be very expensive.

- Non-defining Relative Clause does not change the meaning of that phrase. If this

clause were removed, the basic meaning of the sentence would be unchanged:

Going to the diving can be very expensive.

This type of clause is sometimes called an Unrestricted Relative Clause since the

meaning of the noun it modifies is not restricted or limited by the clause.

11

- Although similar in use, relative pronouns that introduce a non-restrictive relative

clauses are separated from the main clause by a comma

- We cannot omit the relative pronoun.

- In formal English, a preposition can be situated before whom and which in a non-

defining clause. However, in spoken English is normally situated at the end of the

relative clause. Also, in informal situations who is acceptable in place of whom.

Formal Mr Morris, with whom we went on holiday, lives in Bristol.

In formal Mr Morris, who we went on holiday with, lives in Bristol.

- Non-defining relative clauses can use most relative pronouns (which, whose etc,) but

they can't use that. Typically, which is the preferred relative pronoun for indicating

that a relative clause is non-restrictive.

- In non-defining clauses, the pronoun which can be used to refer a complete sentence:

He offered to help me, which was very kind of him.

Here are some more examples of relative clauses that add information. Although these

clauses don’t change the basic meaning of the sentences, they do make the sentences more

detailed.

Ceuta, which is located in the north of Africa, is a city of Spain.

Ceuta is a city of Spain.

Creativity, which may take many forms, is a quality all human beings have.

Creativity is a quality all human beings have.

OTHER KINDS OF RELATIVE CLAUSES

1. NOMINAL RELATIVE CLAUSES

What he did is clearly impossible, but I saw him do it.

Here, what he did has the sense of that which he did, i.e. the thing that he did, and functions as

the subject of the verb is. Nominal relative clauses are inherently restrictive.

English allows what is called a fused or nominal relative clause — a relative clause that does

not modify an external noun phrase, and instead has a nominal function fused into it.

- A Nominal Relative Clause is a subordinate clause beginning with WHAT, WHATEVER,

etc. and acts as subjects or objects.

- It has no antecedent. These clauses usually function as a noun clause, since they are

naming the thing(s) that was/were mentioned in the ordinate clause.

12

- They are used only with linking verbs. It is mainly used with the verb “To be.”

- In this type of relatives clauses, “what” can be replaced with “that which”

Here are a few examples

I know what is best for me.

I know what seems wrong here.

It was never known what became of him.

English has a number of fused relative pronouns, such as what, whatever, and whoever, but all

can introduce other kinds of clauses as well; what can also introduce interrogative content

clauses (“I do not know what he did”), for example, and both whatever and whoever can

introduce adverbials (“Whatever he did, he does not deserve this.”)

2. PARTICIPLE RELATIVE CLAUSES

Do you know the boy talking to Thomas?

The participle relative clause underlined in the example has the same meaning as a defining

relative clause with the relative pronoun who: Do you know the boy who is talking to Thomas?

- Participle relative clauses can be used participle relative clauses as non-defining

relative clauses or as defining relative clauses. Like other non-defining relative clauses,

these participle clauses are surrounded by commas.

His first novel, published in 1965, was an immediate success.

His first novel, which was published in 1965, was an immediate success.

Do you know the boy talking to Thomas?

Do you know the boy who is talking to Thomas?

- This kind of relative clauses are formed by a present or past participle forms, (e.g:

talking, made) can be used without a pronoun or auxiliary to form a participle relative

clause.

- A participle relative clause with an –ing (present participle) form can be used like a

defining relative clause to identify which person or thing you are referring to:

The bedroom overlooking the garden is wide.

The bedroom which overlooks the garden is wide.

- Present participle clauses (-ing) also often show what someone or something is, or

was, doing at a particular time.

Who were those children waiting outside?

Who were those children who were waiting outside?

13

Police investigating the robbery are asking people to come forward.

Police who are investigating the robbery are asking people to come forward.

- Participle relative clauses with an –ed (past participle) form are also used like defining

relative clauses to identify a particular person or thing. They have a passive meaning.

The woman injured in the accident was expecting a baby.

The woman who was injured in the accident was expecting a baby.

All cakes sold in the café are made on the premises.

All cakes which are sold in the café are made on the premises.

COMUN ERRORS

1. PUNCTUATING RELATIVE CLAUSES

Many people find it difficult to decide when to use a comma before a relative clause and when

this is unnecessary, but the rule is really rather simple.

- If a relative clause defines or identifies the noun it modifies, no comma is required

and the relative if it functions as an object it can be omitted, such as the example

below:

The desk which you are working on is made of solid pine.

In this sentence, the clause which you are working on identifies a particular desk (the

one you are working on.)

- If the relative clause adds additional information or facts about the noun, then the

clause must be set off from the rest of the sentence by commas and moreover the

relative cannot be omitted:

George Washington, who was the first president of the United States, is a

symbol of honesty, bravery, and patriotism.

In this sentence, the noun George Washington is already identified (because it’s a

name.) The relative clause who was the first president of the United States adds an

additional piece of information about him, so it is set off with commas.

2. SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT IN RELATIVE CLAUSES

Relative pronouns do not have different forms for singular or plural, but they replace both

singular and plural nouns. The verb in a relative clause must agree with the subject. If the

relative pronoun is the subject of the clause, then verb must agree with the noun that the

pronoun replaces.

I met a man who works for the FBI.

14

In this sentence who replaces the singular noun man, so the verb works has an -s ending.

I have several friends who work at the United Nations.

In this sentence who replaces the plural noun friends so the verb work is in simple present

tense.

3. RELATIVE CLAUSES AND SENTENCE STRUCTURE

Since a relative clause is a dependent clause, the sentence in which it appears must still have

a main subject and a main verb besides the ones in the relative clause.

Maintaining correct and consistent sentence structure in sentences with relative clauses is

particularly tricky for several reasons. Since a relative clause always follows the noun it

modifies, it can appear almost anywhere in a sentence that a noun can appear--in the subject,

in the object, or in a prepositional phrase. This means that a relative clause often

appears within a main clause, not separate from the main clause.

- When the relative clause comes in the subject is easy to forget to finish the main

clause by adding a main verb after using a relative clause. This results in a sentence

fragment.

* My parents who live in Minneapolis.

There are two ways to correct this kind of fragment. By adding a main verb (My

parents, who live in Minneapolis, come to visit twice a year) or removing the relative pronoun

(My parents live in Minneapoli.)

- Another common mistake is to repeat the subject after the relative clause:

*My sister, who went to school in Albany, she is a nurse.

This kind of sentence error can be corrected by omitting the second subject (My sister, who

went to school in Albany, is a nurse.)

4. /hu:z/

The word /hu:z/ can be tricky for students as it can mean who is (contracted), who has

(contracted) or whose.

L1 INTERFERENCE

For ESL learners whose mother tongue is Spanish, this structure should not have errors due to

L1 interference since Spanish shares this structure with L2. Both obey to the same relative

clause formation. However, as I said in the beginning, most English are not aware of its own

mother tongue rules and they just produce them unconsciously. That is the reason why we

should teach the rules and make them be aware about grammar.

15

2. HOW TO TEACH THE STRUCTURE

With the aim of teaching this part of English grammar, I’ll use a power point (TIC) which will

help them to understand the main concepts of this tricky structure.

There are multiple lesson plans depending on the age of the L2 learners and their English

background. I will focus on students of 16 years-old student, who are supposed to be exposed

to some inputs about some aspects of this grammatical form, such as adjectives, relative

pronouns or dependent clauses.

I think learning grammatical rules only through tasks or communicative activities can be very

difficult for adolescent students. As they are not exposed to English in this EFL situation, we

may first have to provide them with explicit explanations about grammatical rules. After they

have acquired what we call declarative knowledge we had better use tasks to develop their

declarative knowledge into procedural knowledge.

I’ll try to do a class teacher-student centered and vice versa. Also, although it is important to

have a plan lesson for every unit, the reality of the class is not static but dynamic. If changes

are necessary in order to make them understand the grammar structure, I will modify my plan

lesson and I’ll focus on my student’s needs.

PRESENT

To warm up. Three sentences written on the board will call their attentions. This part of

teaching will be teacher-centered (letting student to ask or answer a question.) I’ll raise the

question: “Where are the subjects, verbs and objects t in these sentences?” These sentences

could be:

My car which is at the garage is a Ford. (relative as a subject)

The latest book Haruki Murakami wrote is 1Q84. (zero relative pronoun)

The teacher (whose car is a Ford) is from France. (relative as an object)

Some students should be confused about having two verbs in the complete sentence. I’ll

explain then what a clause is by using these words:

- A dependent clause is a clause that has its own subject and verb but it’s depended on

meaning to an independent one. They do not have a complete meaning standing

alone.

16

I’ll request to try to separate the independent and the dependent clause in the examples

written on the board such as the examples above. The examples with relative pronouns should

be easier to delimitate. Answers must be the follow:

1. My car (which is at the garage) is a Ford.

2. The latest book (Murakami wrote) is 1Q84.

3. The teacher (whose car is a Ford) is from France.

In this surface, I’ll ask them what the dependent clause is modifying. At least one should find

the right answer: the noun before them. Then, I’ll highlight the word and I will explain what an

antecedent is with the following words:

- An antecedent is the noun situated in the main clause and to which the relative

pronoun is referred by giving more information about it.

I’ll then explain what a relative clause is, they should be at least aware that it modifies a noun

and it is a dependent clause belonging to a main one.

- A relative clause is a dependent clause that modifies a noun by making it more specific

or adding additional information about it. A relative clause always contains a relative

pronoun (who, whom, which, whose) or a relative adverb (when, where, why) or a

zero pronoun which refers back to the noun it modifies.

This first contact with the subject may not take more than 5 minutes.

Explanation. After being in contact with the first concepts, I’ll put the introductory Power

point (Appendix A.) If a virtual platform would be available for the course, I could upload the

document. In case of non-existence of TIC help, I’ll demand my students to take notes during

the presentation (Although, I prefer them to pay attention to the explanation.)

This part should not take more than 5 minutes.

PRACTICE

Grammar practice. After this, I’ll distribute a photocopy to everybody. They should write their

names on them. Everyone will do four exercises (suggested exercises on Appendix B.)We all

correct them in the class. Feedback on errors from students is strongly welcomed. We will

focus on the doubts and the right sentence formation according to my students’ answer. After

this, I will pick every sheet up and I will study my student’s faults at home in order to try to

make next class better. It’s an exercise of self-evaluation.

17

This should not take more than 15 minutes.

Recognizing patterns. I’ll then give other photocopies; this time I will distribute the lyrics of a

song “Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood” by The Animals (Appendix C.) The Animals were an

English music group of the 1960s formed in Newcastle upon Tyne during the early part of the

decade, and later relocated to London.

The song will be listened to twice. The first time, they will listen to the song without the

worksheet and the second with it. They have to find relative clauses in the text. I’ll instruct

class to find relative pronouns and to try to detect their function. This exercise is used as a

listening practice also. We will focus on the comprehension of the song too. Questions are

welcomed.

This part should not take more than 15 minutes.

PRODUCE

Memory exercise. I’ll ask the class to make sentences using relative clauses to define their

classmates. Errors are welcome and I’ll supervise them. If an error or mistake occur relating to

relative clauses, I’ll ask others to correct the sentence and if necessary, I’ll explain why it is

used one rather than another. My intention is repeating concepts for helping them to

memorize rules about relative pronouns .When reading the main sentences out loud; we can

emphasize the pausing and intonation of the non-defining relative clause.

Example:

* Maria whose is wearing a black shirt is sitting in front of me.

We can fix the sentences in two different ways:

- By using whose in its normal context, it cannot have a verb after it since whose is used

for denoting possession and replaces a noun (Maria’s shirt is black.)

Maria, whose shirt is black, is sitting in front of me.

- By using who because the relative is acting as a subject.

Maria, who is wearing a black shirt, is sitting in front of me.

- Also, this kind of relative is always non-defining since Maria is a name.

This exercise should not take more than 15 minutes.

CONCLUSION

I have programmed an hour class; the last five minutes are centered to questions and doubts

that can emerge after having the class. Moreover, we will review the lesson as conclusion. Not

18

only does this reinforce students' understanding of the language, but they leave with a clear

idea of what they learned. At the end of the class, I’ll give them some homework (Appendix D)

which reinforces the material. Students need to be exposed to new words multiple times

before the meaning is remembered.

In addition to this, I enclose a possible final test about relative clause in Appendix E.

19

3. CONCLUSION

The aim of this class is helping my students to know relative conjunction and be able to

produce more complex sentences by adding new information about the noun, in this case.

From now on, I will try to use as many sentences containing this grammatical form as my

students need. Even though new sentences may be related to other topic, it will help them to

acquire relative clauses through references, repetitions and inputs to this form. If I perceive

that my students don’t have learnt these rules properly, we will focus on this part again in

other class.

20

Appendix B

Exercise class

1) Fill in the gap either who, that or which in the following sentences:

1. The man who bought the car complained about the gearbox.

2. The horse that won the race was very fast.

3. Richard Kelly, who works at Siemens, has a company car.

4. Our dog Rover, who is a Labrador, goes for a walk twice a day.

5. My grandma, who broke her hip last year, can’t walk very well.

6. The house that we have bought needs to be repaired and decorated.

2) Combine the following pairs of sentences using a relative clause.

1. The man was very nice. We met the man on holiday.

2. The Smiths have a very large family. The Smiths have a big house.

3. I saw the dog. I decide to buy the dog in the pet shop.

4. I like James. James is very intelligent and agreeable.

5. London was on our way home. We visited London.

6. Sandra was travelling by bus. Sandra has a long way to go.

3) Decide whether the following sentences are defining or non-defining relative clauses and

include commas where necessary.

1. The man who is a doctor is sitting over there.

2. My father who is a doctor is very professional.

3. Jane who is never on time arrived late for our appointment.

4. The boy who isn’t very organised planned the party.

5. The huge house at the end of our street which is derelict is quite spooky and

interesting.

6. His house which is very luxurious was once featured in a magazine article.

4) The word /hu:z/ can be tricky for students as it can mean who is (contracted), who has

(contracted) or whose. Here is a sample restricted practice exercise to differentiate between

the three. The sentences in this exercise are all based around the topic of hotels – teachers

could make their own sentences.

1. The receptionist is the person /hu:z/ responsible for reservations.

2. Do you know anybody /hu:z/ worked in a hotel?

3. There is a 10% discount for guests /hu:z/ reservations are made on the Internet.

4. Is there anybody in the class /hu:z/ stayed in a luxury hotel?

5. /hu:z/ luggage is this?

6. That’s the guest /hu:z/ plane arrived late.

7. The hotel manager, /hu:z/ not here today, is the person you need to talk to.

21

Appendix C

Song.

Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood by The Animals : Baby, do you understand me now? Sometimes I feel a little mad But don't you know that no one alive can always be an angel When things go wrong I feel real bad. I'm just a soul whose intentions are good Oh Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood You know, sometimes, baby, I'm so carefree With a joy that's hard to hide And sometimes it seems that, all I have to do is worry And then you're bound to see my other side I'm just a soul whose intentions are good Oh Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood If I seem edgy, I want you to know, That I never mean to take it out on you Life has its problems, and I get my share, And that's one thing I never mean to do Cause I love you, Oh, Oh, oh, oh, baby - don't you know I'm human I have thoughts like any other one Sometimes I find myself, Lord, regretting Some foolish thing, some little simple thing I've done I'm just a soul whose intentions are good Oh Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood Yes, I'm just a soul whose intentions are good Oh Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood Yes, I'm just a soul whose intentions are good Oh Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood Yes, I'm just a soul whose intentions are good

Mad (adj). Mentally ill;

insane.

Misunderstand (v.) Fail to

understand correctly.

Carefree (adj.) Free from

anxiety or responsibility.

Bound (adj.) Certain to be or

to do or have something.

(obliged)

Edgy (adj.) Tense, nervous,

or irritable.

Take sth out on (idiom.) To

direct one's anger or fear

onto someone or something

Mean (v.) Intend to occur or

be the case.

Regret (v.) feel or express

sorrow, repentance, or

disappointment over.

Foolish (adj.) Lacking good

sense or judgement; silly or

unwise.

22

Appendix D.

Homework.

1) Expand the following notes about Titanic into single sentences. Use defining/non-defining

relative clauses as necessary.

1. Titanic / story / about/ famous liner / sank / 1912

Titanic is…

2. film / released / 1997 / instant box-office success

The film…

3. it / star / Leonardo DiCaprio / play / leading role of Jack/ Kate Winslet / play / Rose - a

young woman / fall in love

It stars…

4. Jack / young man / wants / make /a new life in America

Jack is…

5. Rose / young woman / mother / want / her / marry / rich American

Rose is…

2) Say if the next sentences are correct or incorrect, and if incorrect, correct it.

1. It’s the place in which I feel most comfortable.

2. Christmas which celebrated around the world, falls at the end of December.

3. It was the church we got married in.

4. I have a friend who lives on the Isle of Egg that I knew at school.

5. She brought a camera, which she had bought earlier in the day.

6. We stayed in the same hotel which we stayed twenty years earlier.

7. We met a guy lives in a house that was once owned by the Sultan of Brunei.

8. The Day of the Dead in Mexico is the day when people dress up as skeletons and eat

chocolate coffins.

9. What have you done with the books which I gave them to you yesterday?

10. She forgot to bring her camera, which was a pity as the scenery was so spectacular.

11. We went to visit the town where my mother was born.

12. They always celebrate the day on which the country achieved independence.

23

13. I have a friend who lives on the Isle of Mugg where is in Scotland.

14. Chow Yun Fat was born on Lamma Island, who starred in Anna and the King.

15. Microsoft withdrew their bid for Yahoo which resulted in a fall in Yahoo's share price.

16. The Michael Jackson I knew at school bore no resemblance to his famous namesake.

17. Bill Gates who founded Microsoft has now retired from the company.

18. The Eiffel Tower that was originally built as a temporary structure is still standing over

100 years later.

3) Defining or non-defining? Underline the relative clauses and add commas where necessary. Microsoft which was founded by Bill Gates in the 1970s is one of the world’s best-known software companies. Electronic equipment which is made in China is often cheaper than similar products made in Japan. Electronic equipment which these days is increasingly made in China has fallen dramatically in price over the last few years. Production costs in Hong Kong have risen sharply over the past twenty years which has resulted in much of Hong Kong’s manufacturing business moving over the border into China.

24

Appendix E

Relative clauses test

1) Use the information given to make sentences using extra information clauses.

1. Michael Jones, doctor, works nights.

2. Our house, large garden, outside Prague.

3. My mother, sitting in the corner, is a teacher.

4. The Astronomical Clock, tourist attraction, very old.

5. Paris, capital of France, beautiful city.

6. The pyramids, wonder of the world, mysterious

7. The book I have just read, interesting, written by Simon Disraeli.

8. My best friend, I don’t see very often, always very busy.

9. Coventry Cathedral, was very beautiful, bombed during the war.

10.Cows, gentle animals, mainly eat grass.

2) Omit the relative clauses where possible. Include commas where necessary and say if

relative clause are defining or non-defining.

1. The parrot which I bought is very talkative.

2. Winnie the Pooh which written by AA Milne is a very famous children’s story.

3. Alison Clark who is getting married in the summer lives in Bristol.

4. Have you been in touch with the man who you met at the party?

5. The common sparrow who is usually brown has a good survival instinct.

6. Dogs who are trained properly can make wonderful pets.

7. The dog who I own isn’t very well trained.

8. The Nile which is Egypt‘s main river floods every year.

9. Prague which is the capital of the Czech Republic is very beautiful.

25

10. The man who is sitting on your right is a famous Australian actor.

11. The car which was a rare sports coupe was built in 1966.

12. We invited the boy who Tom had met the week before to the party.

13. Our friends who we met at university are coming to visit next week.

14. That is the building where they shot the film ''Vanilla Sky''.

15. Mr. Jackson whose son also goes to this school will be attending the party next

weekend.

16. The author's latest book which has become a bestseller is about two children in

Jamaica.

3) Look at the sentences below:

I quite like the story that we read in the text book.

He wanted his mother to buy a pair of training shoes that cost seventy pounds.

Nike trainers, which tend to be rather expensive, are produced at low cost in developing countries.

1. Circle the relative pronouns and underline the relative clauses. 2. Identify what the relative clause relates to in each example 3. Which of the relative clauses contain essential information about the subject of the

clause?

4) Make sentences using every relative pronouns (who, whom, whose, which, that), relative

adverbs (where, when) and zero pronoun.

26

4. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Lightbown, Patsy and Spada, Nina. How Languages are Learned. Oxford University

Press 3nd Ed., 2006

Webgraphy

A Role-play Using Relative Clauses and Appositives

http://bogglesworldesl.com/lessons/archive.htm

Web about learning English as a second language.

http://esl.about.com/od/grammarintermediate/a/reported_speech.htm

English department. I.E.S La Arboleda.

http://ingles.laarboleda.es/BACHILLERATO/bachillerato-4

Relative clauses exercises.

http://www.miguelmllop.com/practice/intermediate/grammar/indextogrammar.htm

English tests.

http://www.isabelperez.com/select.htm

Alfonso López’s virtual platform.

http://www.myteacherpages.com/webpages/alfonsolopez/

NORRIS, ROBERT W. “Teaching Relative Clauses to Japanese University Students: Practical Lesson Plans.” In Bulletin of Fukuoka International University. 2001. No. 6: 35-45 (http://www2.gol.com/users/norris/articles/rc2.txt.html)

JUSTINE B. WELLS, MORTEN H. CHRISTIANSEN, DAVID S. RACE, DANIEL J. ACHESON, AND MARYELLEN C. MACDONALD “Experience and Sentence Processing: Statistical Learning and Relative Clause Comprehension.”Published online 2008 October 14. doi: 10.1016/j.cogpsych.2008.08.002 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2621112/

ANDREW FARMER, JAMES. “Warm Downs: Effectively Ending ESL/EFL Lessons” http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Farmer-WarmDowns.html