GUIDING THE 10th STUDENTS HOW TO USE ARTICLES IN ENGLISH

THANH HOA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING DANG THAI MAI HIGH SCHOOL EXPERIENCE INITIATIVE GUIDING THE 10TH STUDENTS HOW TO USE ARTICLES IN ENGLISH Author : Pham Thi Thuy Position: Teacher of English Field (Subject): English THANH HOA, 2021 TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction 1.1 Reasons for choosing the topic 1.2 Aims of the Study 1.3 Scope of the Study 1.4 Methods of the Study Contents 2.1 Theoretical background .2 2.2 The status of problem 2.3 Solutions to the problem 2.4 Result after applying the research in teaching Part A: Theory of articles The Definition of Articles The basic rules for using indefinite Articles .5 Some exceptions in using indefinite Articles - A/An The basic rules for using definite Articles The cases we not use articles ( no Articles- X) .9 Part B: Practice on articles .10 Part C: Do the test 11 2.5 Applying the research in teaching .12 2.6 Result of the research 15 2.6.1 Before applying experience .16 2.6.2 After applying experience .16 2.6.3 The effectiveness of the study in comparison with the previous methods 16 Conclusions and recommendations .16 3.1 General overview and enhancement of the study 16 3.2 Suggestions for further studies 17 Introduction 1.1 Reasons for choosing the topic Today more and more people are learning English because it is not only an international language but also widely available worldwide Like other countries in the world, many schools in Viet Nam decide to learn English as a foreign language in their school syllabus English plays an important role in the globe development Therefore, teaching English has been improved in method of communication The importance of English is acknowledged by the Vietnamese government As a result, English is introduced at the beginning of all educational levels English language programme are made compulsory of all the knowledge appearing in secondary education, articles appear in English 10th Articles are the important knowledge in English and perform many different functions at all levels These are really difficult topics, how to use articles appropriately but interestingly if we take deep investigation into them Not only students but also many teachers are challenged by the uses of articles They appear in part E of Unit 13 in the textbook in English 10 basic curriculum When teaching these points, I myself find it confusing to get students to memorize their usages The only way to keep them in our minds is to learn by heart and to practise regularly It is enthusiasm and career passion that motivate me to write this experience innovation with the aims to share some of my opinions on topics related to articles for grade10th students as well as help both my colleagues and my students practically remove the difficulties when teaching related lessons For this reason, I choose the theme:“Guiding the 10th students how to use articles in English” 1.2 Aims of the Study The main aims of the research are: - To provide teachers and students with full theory of “Articles” in English - To provide students opportunity to practise using articles efficiently - To hope to provide reference materials for teachers or students who intend to master the language of English 1.3 Scope of the Study The objective of the study is articles that are often used articles exercises, including choose the correct articles to complete sentences, fill in blanks with articles, the tests about articles These exercises are collected from a variety of kinds of material sources The study was carried on students in classes 10A3 and 10A6 at Dang Thai Mai high school 1.4 Method of the Study - Gather the information from the internet and reference books - Teach some classes based on the experience as the result of the reality of the long time process of my daily teaching at school - Asking for experiences from my colleagues - Gather students’ results and evaluate Contents 2.1 Theoretical background As mentioned, articles play a vital role in learning English Anyone who does not know them well are not considered as advanced learners Articles mainly occur around the textbook of English 10 th are the main contents of part E Language Focus in English 10 in unit 13 The only way to master them is to learn by heart the uses of articles and to practise them many times This research hopes to be a good material for both teachers and students in their teaching and learning 2.2 The status of problem Dang Thai Mai high school is one of the high schools in Thanh Hoa province People here are mainly farmers with average and low standards As a result, students have not had much good chance of studying and using English until recently Students (and even their teachers) not have an English environment to practise Learning English here has not still been really important to students and people here Like other high schools in Vietnam, the students in this school have to take English as a compulsory subject in the curriculum and study it three periods a week for 35 weeks a year Therefore, the English teachers have so many difficulties in teaching English Working as a teacher for more than ten years, I myself understand the nature of the problem and usually find it necessary to find out the ways to improve the situation I try my best to this research with a view to getting my students and other teachers to benefit from it by giving them more opportunities to practise English better 2.3 Solutions to the problem After studying the content of the textbooks in English 10 , especially in part E - Language Focus in unit 13, and taking deep investigation into this problem, I have found out some useful measures to deal with this problem Based on the reality of the issue, I would strongly suggest some solution to the problems : -For students who have not mastered grammar, school leaders or teachers need to increase more periods out of the curriculum in school -Teachers need more than an illustration which is accurate, concise and vivid for each grammar trait -For homework, besides asking students to exercises in textbooks, teachers should have available amount of tests related to language focus -Teachers should promote the use of teaching utensils combining with new teaching methods to improve the quality of learning English 2.4 Result after applying the research in teaching The following data is the result of the second term - after applying the research “Guiding the 10th students how to use articles” of the school year 2020 – 2021 Ex: Number of Excellent Class 10A3 Average (%) Weak (%) students Good (%) First term 42 25 % 50% 25% Second term 42 35% 60% 5% From the figure above, we can see that “Guiding students how to use articles” carefully got higher results These force me to try harder and harder to get higher achievements Furthermore, at the beginning of the school year, a large number of students said that they were confused when using articles in exercises But it is a big surprise, according to the survey, at the end of the school year that students feel confident when doing exercises related to articles These show that teaching articles for the 10th students complete the article exercises perfectly They feel no fear and confused when use articles Here, I would like to give my strategies to simplify the related lessons in classroom I divide the theme into three main parts: Part A: Theory of articles Part B: Practising exercises with articles Part C: Doing the tests about articles - Part A consists of the definition of articles- definite and indefinite articles, the basic rules for using indefinite articles, the basic rules for using definite articles and the cases we not use articles - Part B gives students a chance to practise some exercises with articles at all levels - Part C tests the understanding of students about articles Part A: Theory of articles The Definition of Articles 1.1 Definition of Articles An article is a word used to modify a noun, which is a person, place, object, or idea Technically, an article is an adjective, which is any word that modifies a noun Usually adjectives modify nouns through description, but articles are used instead to point out or refer to nouns There are two different types of articles that we use in writing and conversation to point out or refer to a noun or group of nouns: definite and indefinite articles 1.2 Definite Article Definite article is the word 'the,' and it refers directly to a specific noun or groups of nouns Ex:  the freckles on my face  the alligator in the pond  the breakfast burrito on my plate Each noun or group of nouns being referred to - in these cases freckles, alligator, and breakfast burrito - is direct and specific Ex: After the long day, the cup of tea tasted particularly good By using the article “the”, we’ve shown that it was one specific day that was long and one specific cup of tea that tasted good 1.3 Indefinite Articles Indefinite articles are the words 'a' and 'an.' Each of these articles is used to refer to a noun, but the noun being referred to is not a specific person, place, object, or idea It can be any noun from a group of nouns Ex:  a Mercedes from the car lot  an event in history  In each case, the noun is not specific The Mercedes could be any Mercedes car available for purchase, and the event could be any event in the history of the world Ex: After a long day, a cup of tea tastes particularly good By using the article “a”, we’ve created a general statement, implying that any cup of tea would taste good after any long day The basic rules for using indefinite Articles 2.1 We use “a/ an” with a word that is singular Never use “a” or “an” with a word that is plural (e.g books, trees) or uncountable (e.g water, advice) Ex: I have a book 2.2 Note that we use “a” in front of words that start with a consonant sound (a horse, a carrot) and “an” in front of words with a vowel sound: a, e, i, o (an apple, an elephant) Ex: I often eat an apple and a banana every day 2.3 We use “a/an” to introduce a reason or thing for the first time This shows that the listener or reader doesn’t know what we are referring to After this first reference, we use “the” Ex: He was talking to a man The man was laughing She gave him a present The present was very expensive 2.4 We often use “a/ an” before nouns of Jobs and professions Ex: There are three people in my family My mother is a teacher, my father works as an engineer and I’m a student 2.5 When we talk about things in general by using a singular now as an example with noun (meaning “any” or “every”) Ex: A baby deer can stand as soon as it is born 2.6.We use a/an in front of two nouns that are seen as a single unit Ex: a knife and fork, … 2.7 We use a/an when we mean “any one of particular type of thing” Ex: a cup of coffee, a paper clip,… 2.8 We use a/an with a unit of measurement (weight, quantity, time) or in number and quantity expressions Ex: - a little - a few - a couple of - a dozen - a great deal of - a large number - a wide variety of - a great many of, 2.9.We use a/an instead of “one” in pattern a … of … with possessive or before some number Ex: a friend of mine, a huge number of … 2.10.We use a/an when following the words “many, such,…” and in exclamations Ex: Many a man has come to an end; I don’t like such a girl; What a lovely day! 2.11 We use a/an following an adjective when is mentioned by the words “so, as, too, how” Ex: She is not so big a fool as she looks He’s as intelligent a boy as you are 2.12 We use a/an before somebody’s name to show that the speaker does not know the person Ex: There’s a Mrs Green to see you 2.13.We use a/an with a noun like house, engineer, girl, name refers to a whole class of people or things We use a/an with a noun to talk about just one member of that class.(A/an means “one”) Ex: a nice big house, an engineer, a girl,… 2.14 We use a/an in front of proper nouns (names spelt with a capital letter) for: Members of a family Ex: He’s a Forstyle (= a member of the Forstyle family) Literature and art: It’s a Dickens novel It’s a Brencht play Sometimes we can use the name on it owns We can say “It’s a Rembrandt painting” or “It’s a Rembrandt” 2.15 We use a/an with illnesses Ex: a cold, a headache, a sore throat,… Some exceptions in using indefinite Articles - A/An - a uniform - an honorable man - a university - an hour - a one- eyed man - a universal - a useful way - a unit The basic rules for using definite Articles THE DEFINITE “THE”: Used to refer nouns which are definited We use “ the” in the following cases: 4.1 Nouns which were mentioned (= this, these, that, those) or have already mentioned: Ex: A boy and a girl were sitting on a bench The boy was smiling but the girl looked angry 4.2 Nouns which are definited by the situation Ex: Please take these letters to the post office 4.3 Used when a noun before a phrase limiting the meaning of it Ex: the center of the city;… 4.4 Used to say or explain person or thing you mean Ex: You are the third person ask me 4.5 Used with adjectives to build a collective noun Ex: the rich, the poor,… 4.6 Used with adjectives to build an abstract noun Ex: the beautiful(=beauty) 4.7 Used to refer a whole family or a married couple Ex: Don’t forget to invite the Jordans 4.8 Used when we know that there is only one of a particular thing Ex: the sun, the world, the travel industry,… 4.9 Used to refer to the things in a general way Ex: the weather, the sky, the wind,… 4.10 Used to say that somebody or something is unique Ex: Sydney is the capital city of New South Wales 4.11 Used to give a person’s job title, or their unique position Ex: Dr Simons has taken on the position of Head of Department 4.12 Used before a superlative adjectives followed by a noun or defining phrase Ex: the biggest, the most expensive, 4.13 Used with a unit of measurement to mean “every” Ex: These apples are eight to the pound 4.14 Used with a singular countable noun in generalizations(but not with plural or uncountable nouns) This is common with the names of scientific instruments and inventions, and musical instruments: the violon, the piano, Ex: The telephone is a most useful invention; The horse is an animal 4.15 These common expressions have a general meaning and before parts of the day: the town, the country,……; in the evening;……… 4.16 Used to refer to things that are unique: Ex: - Organizations: the United Nations - Ships: the Titanic - Documents: the Constitution - Public bodies: the police, the Government - Titles of books and films: the Odyssey - Climates: the President - The people of the country: The French, The Dutch - Political parties: the Labour Party - Beliefs: the gods 4.17 Used in front of the names of public places Ex: The cinema, the zoo, the park, the station, the post office, the airport… 4.18 Used in front of the names of three countries: The USA, The UK, The Philippines The cases we not use Articles ( no Articles- X) 5.1 Nouns refer to subjects Ex: To me, English is much more interesting than any other subjects 5.2 Nouns refer to the name of sports Ex: The boys are playing football in the park 5.3 Before the indefinite plural nouns Ex: I not like cats 5.4 Before uncountable nouns Ex: I often drink milk in the morning 5.5 Before means of transportation, but after “by” Ex: Although my father has a car, he often goes to work by bus 5.6 Nouns refer to color Ex: Red is not my favourite color 5.7 After possessive adjectives Ex: My friend is very friendly 5.8 Before the nouns refer to meals Ex: My mother always gets up early to make sure that we have had breakfast before going to school 5.9 Before dates, months, years, seasons.( if they are indefinites) 5.10 Before the names of nations, continents, mountains, lakes, streets Ex: - China is the country which has the largest population in the world - I wish to travel around Europe for a month Part B: Practice on articles Exercise 1: Choose the best answer The Atlantic is A a canal B a sea C an ocean D a lake youngest boy has just started going _ school A the / x B a /x C x / the D an /x 3. _ eldest boy is at _ college A The / the B An / the C The / x D A / the She lives in top floor of an old house A an B any C a D the She had _ very bad night, she didn’t sleep wish A a / a B an / a C a / an D an / an _ person suffering from _ shock should not be given anything to drink A An / the B A / x C A / the D A / any You ‘ll get shock if you touch live wire with that screw driver A a/ a B an / a C an / the D the / the Mr Smith is _ old customer and honest man A the / an B an / the C an / an D the / the Do you go to _ prison to visit him ? A the B x C a D an 10 On Sundays, my father stays in bed, reading Sunday papers A the / the B a / the C x / the D the / a Answer: 10 1.C A 3.C D A B A C 10 C Exercise 2: Put a/ an, the or  in each space to complete the following sentences I’m sorry I didn’t mean to that It was _ mistake There were no chairs, so we had to sit on _ floor Lucy has just gotten _ job in _ bank in Chicago There’s _ bookstore on _ corner near my house It’s very cold in here Can you close _ window, please? If you go past _ post office, can you get me some stamps? It was _ very hot day It was _ hottest day of _ year What’s _ name of _ woman who sat beside you at the dinner? How often you go to _ movies? 10 “Can you tell me where _ Room 306 is, please?” “It’s on _ third floor.” Answer: a a/ a The a/ the/ the the 10. / the the a the the/ the Part C: Do the test There was _ piano in the corner of the room A a B an C Ø It is fun to learn English on _ computer A a B an C Ø Are they _ students? A a B an C Ø Have you ever been to _ British Museum A a B an C Ø We only have _ hour to complete the test A a B an C Ø Hyde Park is a very large park in central London A a B an C Ø I would like _ rice with my curry A a B an C Ø He is English man A a B an C Ø He is English A a B an C Ø 10 He is English A D the D the D the D the D the D the D the D the D the 11 A Ø B a C the D an Answer: 1.A 2.D 3.C 4.D 5.B 6.C 7.C 8.B 9.B 10.B 2.5 Applying the research in teaching PERIOD 86: UNIT 13: FILMS AND CINEMA PART E: LANGUAGE FOCUS I Objectives: Students know how to pronounce the sounds/f/ and /v/correctly Students know how to use: - Adjectives of attitude - Structure: It is/was not until that - Articles: a/an and the II Teaching method: Mainly communicative III Teaching aids: textbook, handouts, tape, cassette player IV Procedures: Teacher’s activities 1.Previous lesson checking - Ask two students to talk about the films they have seen - Ask another student to give remarks - Check and give a mark Pronunciation: - Aims: to introduce two sounds /f/ and /v /and help students to practise these sounds a Write two sounds on the board and pronounce them clearly twice, then ask students to repeat Students’ activities - Two students talk about the films they have seen - Give remarks - Listen to the teacher - Write down two sounds - Listen to the teacher and repeat - Look at the book , listen and repeat - Tell students how to pronounce these /f/ /v/ sounds accurately fan van / f / : a voiceless sound first vine / v/ : a voiced sound form view - Ask students to pay attention to the length 12 of two sounds - Ask them to look at the textbook, listen and repeat - Then ask students to work in pairs to read the words again so that they can check for each other - Move around to help - Ask two students to read again and give remarks b Ask students to look at sentences in page 139 in the book - Ask them to work in pairs to read the sentences and then find out the words containing sound /f / and sound /v / - Ask them to work in minutes - Move around to conduct the activity - Ask one student to report and other students to give remarks - Check and give the correct answers - Ask some students to read these sentences aloud - Listen and give remarks Grammar: a Adjectives of attitude: - Firstly ask students to read the instruction and the example in task - Ask them to exercise Exercise 1: - Ask two students to write the adjectival forms of the verbs on the board - Read these words in pairs and check for their partners - Look at the book and work in pairs - Answers: /f/ /v/ feels Stephen enough driving - Read the sentences - Listen to the teacher - Read the instruction and the example and then task Sts: Do exercise carefully Key: - Ask students to compare their answers fascinating with other students exciting - Moves round to conduct the activity terrifying irritating - Look at the board and give remarks horrifying boring surprising 13 amusing - One student tells the difference: + Tell students that there may be two + The -ing adjectives: the nature of adjectival forms of a verb One ends in something/somebody -ing and the other ends in -ed + The -ed adjectives: how somebody - Ask students to look at the example and feels (about something) tell the difference Ex: interest =>interesting and interested This book is interesting - Some pairs report - I am interested in this book I 've read it twice Exercise 2: - Ask students to Ex individually and depressing - depressed then share the answers with their friends interested - interesting - Move round to help if necessary boring – bored - Ask some students to report - Check and give remarks - Listen and correct their work if necessary b It is/was not until that - Give examples so that sts can see the use as well as the form of this structure: Ex: Mary didn't know how to make cakes until I taught her = It was not until I taught Mary that she knew how to make cakes I did not start to learn English until 1995 = It was not until 1995 that I started to learn English - Ask students to read the examples and tell the teacher which sentences are more emphatic Exercise 3: - Ask students to exercise individually and then share the answers with their friends - Read the examples - Pay attention to the underlined parts - Tell the T that the second sentences are more emphatic - Do the exercise individually 1990 that she became a teacher he was 30 that he knew how to swim 1980 that they began to learn English 14 - Move round to help if necessary - Ask two students to write their answers on the board - Check and give remarks c Articles: A/an and the - Give an example so that students can revise the use of these articles: Eg: I have a cat and a dog The cat is lazy and the dog is intelligent Read the example and the tell the use of these articles: + A/an: indefinite articles A/an + N (sing) + The: definite article The + N - Do the exercise in pairs - Some students report: - Ask students to Exercise Exercise 4: - Ask students to this exercise in pairs - Move round to help if necessary - Ask some students to report - Check and give remarks a the the an a a the the the the the the the an a a the a - Listen and correct their work if necessary Consolidation -T summarises the main points of this lesson Homework: Do exercises at home Sts: Listen attentively 2.6 Result of the research Over a year of teaching according to the previous given rules, I found that my students skills of doing the test related to the theme as mentioned above has improved This study has been used in the school year 2020- 2021 at classes : 10A3,10A6 at Dang Thai Mai high school I divided this research into four stages to carry out the assessment of experimental results: Stage1: Provide the theory and illustrative examples of articles Stage 2: Do exercises related to the theme 15 Stage 3: Do the test Stage 4: Correct the test and collect the students’ results I applied the teaching method about articles that mentioned above for some classes, results were received positively 2.6.1 Before applying experience Class 10A3 10A6 Number of students 42 40 Excellent good(%) Average (%) Weak – bad (%) 10 (23,8%) (20%) 24 (57,16%) 21 (52,5%) (19,04%) 11 (27,5%) Excellent good(%) Average (%) Weak – bad (%) 25 (59,52%) 21 (52,5%) 17 (40,48%) 19 (47,5%) (0%) (0%) 2.6.2 After applying experience Class 10A3 10A6 Number of students 42 40 2.6.3 The effectiveness of the study in comparison with the previous methods The research results above show that doing the researches not only helps the students understand the lessons well and have a good chance to practise what they have learnt but the teachers themselves benefit from it a lot To achieve this requires the teacher to invest time, effort and intelligence to discover treasures of knowledge It is also necessary for the teachers to select proper methods so that they can promote the students’ proactive ability in learning English There are different methods of teaching English, but the most important thing is that we must use the one that works in a certain situation Actually, various activities in each lesson can help with making students more dynamic and active One important thing I should is implementing task-based teaching Tasks must be varied, challenging and interesting enough to hold students’ interest in communication Tasks must also be relevant to students’ needs, such as their jobs or target situations However, not all students can achieve the desired result because articles are difficult points I myself usually adhere to the principal that it is better if I teach my students essential things and things that motivate students so that they can gain the best result from their teaching Conclusions and recommendations 3.1 General overview and enhancement of the study 16 Learning is a personal journey We are simple guides our students have to the traveling A guide can’t force a tourist to see what he or she doesn’t want to see We organize the environment, but we can not learn for them, Therefore, they have to the learning themselves So the teachers should teach the essential things and prepare interesting lesson plans that motivate students to get the best result Although this is only my private experience as a result of my teaching everyday, I hope it will be beneficial to other teachers and students Beside, it reminds me not to stop learning and studying to find out new teaching methods and interesting activities so that I can achieve the best effects This is my personal study, so some mistakes are unavoidable I hope to get any comments from kind-hearted colleagues so as that my research will be better 3.2 Suggestions for further studies To improve the school’s education requires that the School Administrators, organizations are constantly interested in investment of educational facilities such as projectors, laptops, labs, and so on so that the teachers can have opportunities to use up-to-date technologies in teaching Administrative officers of Education and Training at higher level should pay more attention to daily life of teachers, encouraging them timely in their teaching job, especially in scientific research such as teaching aids, innovative experience and higher science study Individually, I hope that in the future at Dang Thai Mai high school there will be more than one class for students who take part in group D or A1( Maths, Literature, English, Maths, physics, English) so that English teachers and students have more chances to master English With my little knowledge and study in reference books, I hope to contribute my little ideas in teaching English at senior high school In process of implementation, there should certainly be errors or omissions, so I am looking forward to receiving your comments on my topic so that I may more and more improve my teaching English Thank you so much THE CONFIRMATION OF THE HEADMASTER Quang Xuong, May 19th 2021 I assure that this innovation is written by me without any copy Written by 17 Phạm Thị Thủy 18 REFERENCE BOOKS Jeremy Hammer “how to teach English” Longman Press Practical handbook of language teaching – David Cross SGV, SGK Bộ GD-ĐT Tiếng Anh 10, Hoàng Văn Vân, Nhà xuất Giáo dục Việt Nam Understanding and using English grammar – Betty Schramperfer Azar DANH MỤC SÁNG KIẾN KINH NGHIỆM ĐÃ ĐƯỢC HỘI ĐỒNG SÁNG KIẾN KINH NGHIỆM NGÀNH GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO HUYỆN, TỈNH VÀ CÁC CẤP CAO HƠN XẾP LOẠI TỪ C TRỞ LÊN Họ tên tác giả: Phạm Thị Thủy Chức vụ đơn vị công tác: Giáo viên Trường THPT Đặng Thai Mai Cấp đánh giá xếp loại TT Tên đề tài SKKN Cách hướng dẫn học sinh lớp 10 kỹ đọc hiểu môn Tiếng Anh Skills in using phrases and clauses to improve the quality of the national exam review Practising problem solving skills in direct and indirect speech for grade 12 students in the national examination (Ngành GD cấp huyện/tỉnh; Tỉnh ) Kết đánh giá xếp loại (A, B, C) Năm học đánh giá xếp loại Cấp ngành C 2006 - 2007 Cấp ngành B 2014 - 2015 Cấp ngành C 2016 - 2017 ... choose the theme:? ?Guiding the 10th students how to use articles in English? ?? 1.2 Aims of the Study The main aims of the research are: - To provide teachers and students with full theory of ? ?Articles? ??... the dog is intelligent Read the example and the tell the use of these articles: + A/an: indefinite articles A/an + N (sing) + The: definite article The + N - Do the exercise in pairs - Some students. .. The Definition of Articles The basic rules for using indefinite Articles .5 Some exceptions in using indefinite Articles - A/An The basic rules for using definite Articles