Helping students master the relative clauses and DO multiple choice exercises WELL

Table of contents Introduction ………………………………………………… ……… … 1.1.Rationale……………………………………………………… ….…… 1.2.Aims of the study…………………………………… ………… …… 1.3 Objects of the study ……………………………… …… … …… 1.4 Methods of the study…………………………………………………… 1.5 New points of experiential initiative………………………….………………… 2.The contents of experiential initiative……………………………….…… …3 2.1 Theoretical basis of experiential initiative … ……………………… ….3 2.1.1 Defining relative clause………………………………….………… 2.1.2 Non- defining relative clause………………………………… …….8 2.1.3 Sentence relative clause…………………………….………………10 2.2 The reality of the problem before applying the experiential initiative….11 2.3 The solutions used to solve the problem ……………… ………… 11 2.4 The effectiveness of experiential initiative for educational activities, oneself, colleagues and the school…………………………………… ………15 Conclusion and suggestions….………………………………………….… 16 3.1 Conclusion ………………………………………….…………………16 3.2 Suggestions…………………………………………………… ………17 References……………………………………………………… …………….18 EXPERIENTIAL INITIATIVE The title : "Helping students master the relative clauses and DO multiple-choice exercises WELL" INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale According to the guidelines of the Ministry of Education and Training, from the academic year of 2006, implementing the form of multiple-choice tests for English subjects at the high school graduation exams and university and college exams nationwide With this form of examination , in the current high school English program, the relative clause is a very important part of knowledge in the graduation exams and university and college exams However, students often have confusion about the usage of relative pronouns and relative clauses Therefore, in order to well on multiple-choice exercises in relative clauses, students need to understand the problems Basically, related to relative pronouns, relative clauses and changing from doing self-essay exercises into multiple choice exercises Before that situation, I chose the topic "Helping students master the relative clauses and doing well the multiple-choice exercises on relative clauses" 1.2.Aims of the study -Helping students master the usage of defining relative clause and non-defining relative clause - Helping students understand the problems relating to relative clauses - Helping students types of exercises well 1.3 Objects of the study - Types of relative clauses and the problems relating to them such as relative pronouns, omission of relative pronouns , reduced form of relative clauses - Types of exercises 1.4 Methods of the study To achieve the aims of the study, the study uses : - research method of building theoretical basis - methods of statistics and data processing - methods of information collection - descriptive and comparative methods 1.5 New points of experiential initiative - Providing a specific comparison of the differences between the two types of clauses: defining relative clause and non- defining relative clause - Presenting cases of brief clauses of specific relation clauses - Explanation of expenses Exercise format from essay to experimental form THE CONTENTS OF EXPERIENTIAL INITIATIVE 2.1 The theoretical basis of experiential initiative Regarding this topic, in the theoretical section I will mention some of the following: - Types of relative clauses - Types of relative pronouns - Reduced form of relative clauses - Some basic exercises Types of relative clauses: The relative clauses in English includes the following three categories: + Defining relative clauses + Non-defining relative clause + The sentence relative clause In the high school English program, students learn all three types of these relative clauses , they are defining relative clauses, non-defining relative clauses and the sentence relative clauses In the framework of my research topic, I want to provide students with the basic knowledge of the relative clause so that students can well in the form of the relative clause 2.1.1 Defining relative clause 2.1.1.1 Definition: The defining relative clause is a relative clause whose meaning plays an important role in determining the word and expression that it supports It immediately follows the noun that it modifies Before and after this clause there is no comma Ex: The man who is standing at the door is my teacher The clause "who is standing at the door" is a defining relative clause, which defines the prefix "the man" If you remove this clause, the reader does not know who to mention 2.1.1.2 The usage Defining relative clauses are often used after: (+) The + Noun (singular) Example : I like the ruler which my friend bought from England very much (+) A / AN + Noun (singular) Example : I met a girl who wanted to see you (+)Noun plural without “the” Example : Students who are learning Maths are intelligent (+) pronouns : none, anybody, somebody ,all… Ex: : I can see a girl who is running in the park Sometimes defining relative clause is separated from the noun, the pronoun it describes by a word or a phrase EX : I saw something in the paper which would interest you 2.1.1.3 The types of relative pronouns in the defining relative clause - The defining relative clause is connected to the main clause by relative pronouns such as: who, whom, whose, which, that, of which - Relative pronouns are used to replace nouns for person or objects, things and can act as subject, object or possessive meaning in the relative clause person: thing: Subject object possessive Who That Which That Who/ Whom That Which That Whose Whose/ Of Which a) Relative pronouns for people : Who / That * Acting as the subject - Who: is a relative pronoun used to replace the noun for a subject in a relative clause Ex1: He is the man He talked to me last night =>He is the man who talked to me last night Ex2: The girl is sitting by Jack She is Mary => The girl who is sitting by Jack is Mary - Relative pronoun “who” can be repleced by “that” Ex: This is the girl who / that has won the medal * Acting as the object: Whom / Who / That - Whom: is a relative pronoun used to replace the noun for an object in a relative clause Ex: The man whom I saw yesterday is my aunt - It is common for people to use “who/that” in communicative English instead of “whom” However, it can be omitted when it plays the role of the object Ex: The boy is Tom We are looking for him => The boy (whom) we are looking for is Tom - The relative pronouns “who / whom” replace the noun refering to the person who plays as the object after the prepositions in the relative clause It is possible to reverse the preposition before the relative pronoun for formal English However, not use “that” and “who” in this case Ex: These are the people We went on holiday with them last night => These are the people with whom we went on holiday last night *Acting as possession: Whose -Whose: is a possessive relative pronoun used to refer to the noun for the preceding person It is always accompanied by a noun Ex1: The girl is lovely Her father is working in this factory  The girl whose father is working in this factory is lovely Ex2: I know a boy His father is a doctor  I know a boy whose father is a doctor b) Relative pronouns for things * Acting as the subject: which / that -Which: is a relative pronoun used to replace nouns for objects, animals and things Ex: The road leads to the village It is wide => The road which leads to the village is wide - That: can be used instead of “which” Ex: The parcel which ( that) came this afternoon is from my uncle *Acting as the object: that / which - Relative pronoun which replaces nouns that refer to objects in the clauses can be replaced : “which” by “that”, or can remove from the relationship Ex: The book is intersting I bought it yesterday => The book which (that) I bought yesterday is interesting *Acting as the possession: whose, of which -whose: used to own only the name of the first standing object or person Ex : The boy whose bicycle you borrowed yesterday is Tom Ex 2: That’s the car whose door is broken - Of which: used to own only nouns that stand before the property, not for people EX1: She doesn’t want to speak of the cause of which she divorced her husband • In the following cases, the relative pronoun "that" is used, not the pronoun “which, who” + After: all, little, much, few, none, same + Following the ordinal number: the first, the second + Following the pronouns: noone, nobody, anyone, anyone, someone, somebody, something, anything Ex: Anyone that knows about the fact must be proud + Sometimes following : it is / it was … Ex: It is my mother that loves me most It is pop music that my brother prefers + Following the highest level of adjective comparison Ex: Sai Gon is the noisiest city I have ever met + Following the mixed noun (both people and objects) Ex: Look at farmers and that cattle going to the field - Relative pronoun which replaces the noun of the object after the prepositions in the adjective clauses In the formal style, it is possible to reverse the preposition before relative pronoun,and “that” is not used in this case Ex: I found the letter for which I was looking 2.1.1.4 Reduced form of relative clauses The defining relative clauses can be shortened when the relative pronoun is a subject of this clause and is shortened by the present participle (V-ing), the past participle (V-ed) or the verb with "to" a) Defining relative clauses can be shortened by a "to" verb when it follows the phrase only: numerical order, the superlatives, the words: the only, the next, the last Ex 1: The first man who traveled to outer space was Neil Armstrong  The first man to travel to the outer space was Neil Armstrong Ex 2: This is the youngest champion that has won 15 competitions in a row => This is the youngest champion to win/ to have won 15competitions in a row b) Defining relative clauses can be shortened with the present participle (V-ing) if the verb is in simple or continuing tenses and is active Ex 1: The fence which surrounds our house is made of wood  The fence surrounding our house is made of wood Ex 2: The detective was looking at a woman who was wearing a red dress => The detective was looking at a woman wearing a red dress c) Defining relative clauses can be shortened by the past participle (V-ed) if verbs are passive Ex 1: I like reading short stories which was written by Nam Cao  I like reading short stories written by Nam Cao Ex 2: The books which were written by To Hoài are interesting => The books written by To Hoai are interesting 2.1.2 Non defining relative clauses 2.1.2.1 Definition - This is a relative clause with a support function rather than a decisive role in determining the meaning of the word or phrase it supports Therefore, the relative clause can be completely omitted but the sentence is still meaningful Between main clause and relative clause, there is always a comma Ex 1: Mr Smith, who is standing at the door, is my teacher The clause "who is standing at the door" is a non- defining relative clause because the reader already knows who Mr Smith is, it only adds information to the prefix Ex 2: I’ll be staying with Adrian, with brother is one of my closest friends 2.1.2.2.The uasge Non- defining relative clause is used in the following cases: + Using with proper nouns Ex: We all like Michael, who has a good sense of humor + Using with unique nouns such as the sun, the earth, the moon, my father, my mother Ex: My father, who is 60 years old, has just retired + Using with nouns already defined, often used with specified words such as: this, that, these, those Ex: They enjoyed that performance, which was very impressive + When relative pronouns go with number words such as all of, many of, some of, most of, none of, half of, each of Ex: I bought a lot of books, all of which are about wildlife 2.1.2.3.Types of relative pronouns are used in non defining relative clauses Subject Who Which person thing Object Whom/ Who Which Posseesive Whose Whose/ of Which a)Relative pronouns for people : Who / That * Acting as the subject Only use the relation pronoun "who" Ex1: This is Ho Chi Minh He wrote "NKTT" => This is Ho Chi Minh, who wrote "NKTT" Ex2: My father is interested in stamp collection He is a sailor => My father, who is a sailor, is interested in stamp collection * Acting as the object: Whom / Who - Usually use “whom” but “who” is sometimes used in communitive English - For non – defining relative clauses, “who, whom” are not omitted when they act as objects Ex1: Peter turned out to be innocent Everyone suspected him => Peter, whom everyone suspected, turned out to be innocent - When the relative pronoun as an object after prepositions is not omitted Preposition is commonly placed at the end of this clause ,which is commonly used in conversational English and “Who” is often replaced by “Whom” Ex: Peter was fitter than me I played tennis with him on Sunday  Peter, with whom I played tennis on Sunday, was fitter than me Or => Peter, who I played tennis with on Sunday, was fitter than me * Acting as the possession: whose -Whose: is a possessive relative pronoun used to refer to the noun for the preceding person, always accompanied by a noun Ex1: Mary is trying to get a job Her children are at school all day => Mary , whose children are at school all day , is trying to get a job b) Relative pronouns for things * Acting as the subject: which Only use the relative pronoun “which” Ex: We are moving to Mancher It is in the North-West -> We are moving to Mancher, which is in the North-West * Acting as the object: Which "That" is not used in this case and "which" cannot be removed Ex: The peace, which Oxford once knew, has been swept away * Acting as the possession :Whose / of which - “Whose”: used for both person and thing Example: My computer, whose mouse doesn can't work, can not be used now - “Of which”: can be used for objects, but not commonly excepted for formal English Notes: • For defining relative clause + Used "That" in the defining relative clause + "who, whom and which" are omitted when they play the role of objects + Do not use commas to separate relative clause with the main clause • For non – defining relative clauses + Do not use “That” in non- defining relative clause + "who, whom and which" are omitted when they play the role of objects + Use commas to separate relative clause with the main clause 2.1.3 Sentence relative clause - This relative clause does not complement the prefix noun but adds information to the entire main clause or comments, attitudes of the speaker - This relative clause must be placed after the main clause and separated from the main clause with a comma - Only using the relative pronoun“which”, not using the relative pronoun “that” Ex 1: Tom deletes the driving test, which suprised everyone 10 (Tom passes the driver's license exam and this surprised everyone) Ex 2: Paul is always throwing his dirty clothes on the floor, which makes his mother annoyed 2.2 The reality of the problem before applying the experiential initiative Relative clauses and relative pronouns are a part of the broad knowledge frequently used in national high school exams However, when teaching and reviewing for students , teachers often have difficulities : how to get students to approach and master the relative pronouns , Which relative pronoun is used for person , for thing and which relative pronouns play the role of the subject, the object For students : it is also difficult to distinguish the usage of types of relative clauses and relative pronouns 2.3 The solutions used to solve the problem - For teachers: Giving the most basic problems of relative clauses and relative pronouns and helping them to master the usage, then giving the exercises for them to apply - For students : Ask them to master the theory, discuss and exercises to help them remember their knowledge deeply Here are some basic exercises *Form 1: Filling the appropriate relative pronouns into the blank This is a popular exercise in relative clauses, it is highly effective because it recreates the usage of relative pronouns, used for people or thing , and subject or object and which clause is used In order to well in this form of exercise , students must apply the knowledge presented in Part 2.1 Exercise: Choose one answer (A, B, C or D) which best completes the sentence My uncle you met yesterday is a lawyer a which b who c whose d to whom These adults, come to my night class, are very eager to learn a who b whose c that 11 d when Do you know the driver took them to town last night? a whom b who c which d where He talked about the books and the authors interested him a who b that c when d which The boy father is in prison is my friend a who b whom c whose d which 6.The artists, painting you bought, is a classmate of mine a which b that c whose d whom I have two sisters, are very good at computer science a whom b who c both of them d both of whom Some of the boys didn not come a whom I invited them b I invited them c.I invited d when I invited She is going to sell the business, is a great shame a that b It is c which d what 10 Mexico city, is the capital of Mexico, is a cosmopolitan a what b.that c which d where Form 2: Indicating the mistake and correctin it When doing the test, students only need to choose the wrong answer, but in the classroom, when doing exercises the teacher asks ,the students have to find the wrong answer , then correct it Exercise: Choose word or phrase A, B, C or D that needs correcting Dr Harder , that is the professor for this class , will be absent this week A B C because of illness D If you need any information, see the librarian sits at the central desk on the A B C second floor D 12 On the wall, there is a colorful poster which consists of a group of young A B C people who dancing D When we walked pass the theater, there were a lot of people waited in a long A B C line outside the box office D It’s important to be polite to people who lives in the same building A B C D Form : Combine thr following the pairs of groups of sentences by means of relative pronouns This is a form of written exercise, when teaching I often give students exercise to combine sentences, then I instruct them to apply it to a multiple choice exercise This type of exercise when moving to the test is usually in the form: give two simple sentences then ask to choose the best matching option Ex: John Smith is a farmer I bought his land a John Smith, whose land I bought, is a farmer b John Smith, who is a farmer, whose land I bought c John Smith, a farmer, bought his land d John Smith, who I bought his land, is a farmer Obviously we see here that the best option must be "a" To this exercise, students need to understand how to join two or more single sentences into complex sentences using appropriate relative pronouns Specific steps are as follows: * Step 1: Find words that are related to each other in sentences * Step 2: identify main clauses, sub-clauses (or adjective clauses) * Step 3: Replace the related word by the appropriate relative pronoun * Step 4: Write an adjective clause with a relative pronoun right after the noun which is modified If the modified noun is a determined noun, then a comma must be added between the main clause and the relative clause Example : Match the following two sentences using relative pronoun The shirt is lovely Mary is wearing it - B1: Words related to each other in sentences are: “the shirt” and “it” 13 - B2: The main clause is the first sentence The relative clause is the second sentence - B3: Because the word "it" in sentence is related to the noun "the shirt" in the first sentence, we use the relative pronoun “which” - B4: Write an adjective clause with a pronoun after “the shirt” The last part of the adjective clause is at the end of the sentence The complete sentence is: The shirt which you are wearing is lovely Exercise : Combine the following pairs of sentences by means of relative pronouns He doesn't want to sell the house He was born in this house -> ……………………………………………………………………………… This man was a brave man No one trusted him -> …………………………………………………………………………… Tom’s father went swimming everyday He is 78 years old -> …………………………………………………………………………… I looked at the moon It was very bright that evening -> ……………………………………………………………………………… The man is my farther I respect this man most -> …………………………………………………………………………… The boy is my cousin You made fun of him -> ……………………………………………………………………………… Form 4: Rewrite sentences using the reduced relative clauses This is a form of exercise that requires students to have general knowledge such as relative pronouns, tenses of verbs and voice of verbs This is also a form of written exercise but I will guide students to apply it to multiple choice exercise Multiple choice exercise is usually to choose the correct answer to complete the sentence Ex: New Zealand was the first country It gave women the vote • Written form: Connect two single sentences using relative pronouns, then simplify the relative clause by using the verb "to inf" + New Zealand was the first country which gave women the vote + New Zealand was the first country to give women the vote 14 • Multiple choice form : Select the correct option to complete the following sentence New Zealand was the first country women the vote a to give b Giving c given d which to give Obviously the correct answer must be "a" Exercise : Replace the relative clauses by infinitive phrase , or present participle or past participle The last person who leaves the room must turn put the lights -> …………………………………………………………………………… The couples who live in the next door are both college professors -> …………………………………………………………………………… Our solar system is in a galaxy that is called the Milky Way -> …………………………………………………………………………… My brother is only one who realizes danger -> ………………………………………………………………… ……… The fifth man who was interviewed was completely unsuitable -> 2.4 The effectiveness of experiential initiative for educational activities , oneself , colleagues and the school 2.4.1 For educational activities In the process of teaching, I myself take the 11th grade With the sense of studying the situation of studying the subject of the students, I have learned from the experience From the beginning of the school year, I have guided myself to a specific plan and method to actively investigate the learning situation of students who directly teach Through the time of applying the initiative, I have noticed the improvement of students compared to the previous school year This is the year-end result Class Total of distintion SL TL credit SL TL 15 SL pass TL Weak SL TL 11B 11C students 42 40 2 4.8% 5% 18 17 42,8% 42.5% 17 17 40,5% 42.5% 11.9% 10% 2.4.2 For oneself After applying the solutions, I have learned valuable experiences to teach students effectively 2.4.3 For collegues After applying some teaching methods , I learned some experiences and I also discussed with colleagues in the group Everyone also applies and it brings significant results 2.4.4 For the school The experiences I have discussed with my colleagues, the entire students have been taught by teachers feel very understandable CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTIONS 3.1 Conclusion In the process of teaching English, I introduced students to the basic knowledge of the relative clauses in English For different students, the requirements of knowledge are also different For those who are weak, or only want to pass the semester exam or high school graduation exam, I only introduce the basical parts For the good students, the students in the D class, I have Introduced some additional special forms of relative clauses In the teaching process, I found that most students understand the basical knowledge and apply to multiple-choice exercises for high school graduation exam However, for the weak students, they still face some difficulties because this is a knowledge section closely related to other knowledge sections, especially tenses of verbs Therefore, when teaching this knowledge, I asked students to repeat their knowledge of tenses and other related knowledge With the initial results obtained in the past school years, I wrote this experience with the desire to contribute to improving the quality of English teaching I hope to help each English teacher have a way of seeing the problem of being active, new and more creative in his teaching career My students' 16 progressive learning results are the driving force, encouraging me to apply my own experience During the teaching process, I am constantly passionate about innovation research teaching methods to suit students, to match the general trend of education During the implementation process, how to evaluate, look at problems and solve problems, the views that I have made are inevitable, the aspects need to be discussed further 3.2 Suggestions: Derived from the theoretical basis , practice and teaching purposes as well as the successes and limitations when implementing the topic to contribute to the teaching of English ,in general, teaching grammar in particular is better and better , I have the following practical recommendations: * For the administrators: - Create conditions for teachers to have professional group meetings, exchange knowledge very often -Grasp teachers to need honesty and direct remarks thoroughly after periods of class observation , especially in experimental lessons * For the higher leaders: - Need to create conditions for teachers to have opportunities to exchange, and learn experiences through seminars I look forward to receiving all the constructive comments that make this experience perfect and effective in teaching practice, contributing to further improving the quality of English teaching in high school level Sincerely thank! References 17 Enghlish grammar in use, Thong ke publisher Ngữ pháp Tiếng Anh , Mai lan Hương , NXB Đà Nẵng Tổng ôn tập chun đề Tiếng Anh , Lưu Hồng Trí, NXB đại học quốc gia Hà Nội Sổ tay người dạy Tiếng Anh , NXB giáo dục Thanh Hoa, May 25th, 2019 I assure that this is my experiential initiative, I not copy other people's contents Teacher Cao Thị Thủy 18 ... relative clauses and doing well the multiple- choice exercises on relative clauses" 1.2.Aims of the study -Helping students master the usage of defining relative clause and non-defining relative. .. pronouns and helping them to master the usage, then giving the exercises for them to apply - For students : Ask them to master the theory, discuss and exercises to help them remember their knowledge... INITIATIVE The title : "Helping students master the relative clauses and DO multiple- choice exercises WELL" INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale According to the guidelines of the Ministry of Education and Training,