Everyday Grammar TV: Grammar and Trees, Part 1

JR: Hi Faith! Is that picture new?

FP: Hi John! Yes, my friend sent me this photograph. I love trees.

JR: You know, sometimes when I teach grammar I like to make comparisons to trees.

FP: Really? How does a trunk, branches, and leaves compare to a sentence?

JR:Here’s how I think about it. English sentences consist of a subject and a predicate. The subject is generally a noun phrase, and the predicate – the part of the sentence that says something about the subject - generally begins with some kind of verb phrase.

FP: So are the subject and predicate like the roots and trunk of the sentence?

JR: Yes, they provide stability and strength. They are the basis for the sentence.

FP: I see! Then we move out to branches and leaves. These are like different kinds of modifiers – adjectives, adverbs, and so on.

JR: Let’s take an example. Consider this sentence:

The students consider the class a challenge.

FP: We can start by identifying the subject and predicate of the sentence.

JR: We have the subject, the noun phrase, “the students.” Then we have the predicate, which begins with the verb “consider.”

FP:English grammar books sometimes use special drawings to break apart sentences into their individual parts. These drawings, known as sentence diagrams, often look like trees that are turned on their sides.

JR: Future lessons will explore more about grammar and trees.

And that’s Everyday Grammar TV!

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