grammar help for students (and adults)

Take a look at these helpful resources for helping your student (or yourself!) with grammar and language mechanics.

Mignon Fogarty, better known as Grammar Girl, has just released a follow-up to her successful book Grammar Girl’s Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing. The Grammar Devotional: Daily Tips for Successful Writing from Grammar Girl features 365 language lessons, including quizzes, writing tips, memory tricks, and puzzles. I haven’t read it yet, but it looks like a great addition to my collection of style guides and writing books. Read a week’s worth of sample lessons from The Grammar Devotional here, download the first 4 weeks of lessons here, and check out 10 Common Grammar Girl Questions.

~~~

If signs and online forum posts are any indication, apostrophes confuse many people. They aren’t difficult to use correctly if you’re familiar with the rules for their use, but some people seem genuinely afraid of simply adding an S to form a plural! How to Use an Apostrophe playfully explains when to use an apostrophe and when not to use one.

~~~

The OWL (Online Writing Lab) at Purdue provides an excellent collection of writing instruction materials, including tips on mechanics and grammar. You can also find exercises to help students apply what they’ve learned.