Title: Unit 5 : Tutoring Grammar
Course: STEP DEV > Section: Tutoring Grammar

OBJECTIVES

- Identify how the TIP button can be used to help the tutee discover grammar rules on their own.

- Recognize the importance of employing the Step by Step grammar lessons for assessment (STEP 1) and theory  (STEP 2) before helping the tutees with their homework.

- Critique the missing techniques in STEP 1 and 2 of a pronoun lesson.

INTRODUCTION

Tutoring grammar might seem intimidating to you if you are a first-time tutor and have limited formal knowledge of English grammar rules. However, since tutees discover grammar rules on their own  with the Step by Step method, you will not need to explain them. Instead, you will be a guide and find yourself  learning grammatical terms and rules along with your tutees.

Lessons for most grammatical structures that tutees will want help with can be found on the Step by Step site.  There is a tutee lesson and a tutor annotated copy, where the answers can be found. These lessons employ the same five steps as those used in any other lesson, as you can see below.

STEP 1 in each grammar lesson begins with the question, “What do you know about __________?”, to find out what the tutee already knows about the target grammar structure. It is important to always ask this question, as you will adapt STEP 2 according to the response of your tutee.

In STEP 2 of a grammar lesson , you will always review the form of the target structure and any rules or vocabulary that the tutee needs to know, so they will be prepared to do their homework or other exercises in the Step by Step lessons.

For example, if your tutee had modal homework, you would use the following STEP 1 & 2 activities from the Step by Step modal lesson first.

PRE-ACTIVITY

1.  How do you think you could help your tutee understand the meaning of the modal “should” in the image above without defining the word or translating it into French for them?

ACTIVITY

Read the questions that the tutor will ask the tutee in STEP 2 of a modal lesson in the following video.

Click on the video and watch the first part of STEP 2 being covered ,  and notice the technique the tutor uses to help the tutee discover the meaning of a modal on his own.

POST-ACTIVITY

Click on the button and take the post-activity quiz.

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