Harris/English 226   SYLLABUS FALL 2010     

• Instructor: Linda R. Harris
• Office: 447A Fine Arts
• Office phone: x52022.  Department: x52384.
• Office hours: TUTH 11:30-12:30 p.m. and via e-mail.
• E-mail: lharris@umbc.edu
• Home page URL: http://umbc7.umbc.edu/~lharris/index.html Harris Home Page

Course Description

This course focuses on the primary elements of grammar and usage.

Course Objectives

By the end of the semester, students will be able to

• identify all parts of speech
• understand how all the parts fit together to create a sentence
• explain the six types of verbs and how they are used as the main verb in a sentence
• analyze the structure of sentences
• collaborate on an oral presentation
• write an essay that is free of mechanical errors
• proofread writing and correct errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation

Course Requirements

• quizzes on frequently misused words, sentence combining, agreement, and punctuation
• an essay discussing a grammar issue
• a collaborative oral presentation on a point of grammar or grammar error
• diagnostic and final exams (students with an A at the end of the semester are exempt from the final)
• sentence analysis (parsing sentences) exercises (unannounced)

Grading

All graded assignments are worth points:

• quizzes, essay, oral presentation, final exam:  100 each
<> sentence exercises:  50 each

DATE	ACTIVITIES	ONLINE ACTIVITIES	READINGS
Aug. 31 tu	Course introduction.  Diagnostic exam.		Ch. 1
Sept. 2 th	Review diagnostic.  Introduction to sentence analysis.	Verbs
7 tu	Parts of speech.	Predicates, Objects, Complements
9 th	Words and phrases.  Frequently misused words.	Frequently Misused Words Notorious Confusables	Ch. 2
14 tu	Words and phrases.
16 th	Sentence analysis. Frequently misused words exercise.	Proofreading practice.*	Ch. 3
21 tu	Quiz 1:  Frequently Misused Words.  Group grammar reports:  group selection.
23 th		Group meetings.	Ch. 4
28 tu	Compound sentences.  Essay: grammar issue.	Punctuating compound sentences
30 th	Coordination. Make-up quiz.	Sentence combining:  modifiers and coordination.	Ch. 5
Oct. 5 tu	Quiz 2:  sentence combining--coordination.
7 th		Group meetings.	Ch. 6
12 tu	Adjective and adverb clauses Make-up quiz.		200-202
14 th	Dependent clauses	Web Evaluation Exercise	Ch. 7
19 tu	Sentence combining:  subordination.	Fragments
21 th		Sentence Combining Group meetings	Ch. 8
26 tu	Quiz 3:  sentence combining—subordination
28 th		Group meetings.
Nov. 2 tu	Subject-verb agreement.  Make-up quiz.	Subject-verb agreement.
4  th		Group meetings Pronoun-antecedent agreement.
9 tu	Pronoun-antecedent agreement.		Complete the agreement practice quiz, print it, and bring it to Tuesday’s class.
11 th		Commas Semicolons Colons Apostrophes Quotation Marks Italics and Underlining Group meetings
16 tu	Verbals.  Quiz: Agreement. Ad analysis student example essay.		Send the rough draft of your essay to the Discussion Board by midnight tonight.  Check the Blackboard announcement/email for the names of your evaluation group members.
18 th		Evaluation groups: grammar essay.
23 tu	Due:   grammar essay. Punctuation review.  Make-up quiz.
25-28	THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY
30 tu	Quiz 5:  punctuation.
Dec. 2 th	Presentations. Make-up quiz.
7 tu	Presentations.
9 th	Last day of class.  Final exam.

Course Materials 

1. Morenberg, Max.  Doing Grammar, 4e. New York:  Oxford UP.
2. Two 3.5" diskettes or data CD's or flash drives (use one as back-up)

Harris Home Page

Course Contents Page

*Practice quizzes and proofreading practices are in the Course Documents section of Blackboard.