这个技能的训练持续了相当一段时间，可以看到孩子们很大的进步，目前已经过渡到写标准的 one level outline。但是，有一个问题，如果是一个长叙事作品，或纽约时报的一篇长文，孩子们一般不能用十个句子概括出来，所以我容许他们开始用20个句子或者更多句子概括，但最终稿必须是在十个句子以内。这样的话，他们除了要学会取舍，另一个法子就是合并句子，这是我们炼句训练很重要的一部分。另外，我还要求他们将一句话意思不变，换另外两种方式写出来。问题就出在这里了。
有一天我看一本英文语法书的时候，突然想明白了，这是因为孩子们对英文句子各部分的结构没有top-down的大局观。虽然他们学过不少语法，但是他们学的语法是从细节出发，bottom up 的一种知识构架，看到了每一棵树：时态，各类词法，五大基本句型，非谓语动词，从句。。。。，但错过了一片森林：从一个句子的角度，主谓宾，定状补这些东西是怎么排列组合到一起的，怎么在不违背语法规则的前提下使句子变化多样。。。。
Eureka!
重新开始。
从文章中挑出英文句子开始，第一步圈出所有的介词短语，看它们是做adjective还是做adverb？凡是做副词的介词短语在句子里换个地方，顿时，一句话不变意思就有了几种表达方法，可以非常生动的放在句首，
With manes and tails flying, the wild ponies dispersed for thenight....
主语之后（主谓分割）
The dancer, with a bouquet of flowers in her arms, stood on thestage and took a bow.
(顺便就把逗号的用法也搞明白了。。。。)
。。。。。。
总之，我教他们学会了，面对每个句子
找出所有phrases (prepositional, verbal and appositive)
找出所有Clause （independent and subordinate), 找出每个的主谓语
找出所有修饰词（除了Prep短语）
判断句子结构（simple, compound, complex, or compound-complex)
先放在这儿，也许以后再说了。grammar land 还没读完，关于语法的学习，下一步想用的方法正是这个。
[ 本帖最后由 瑜珈 于 2012-5-31 23:24 编辑 ]作者: 榴琏 时间: 2012-5-31 23:11
您也是老师吗? 我过来听课, 目前水平还不到您说的这一部.作者: 瑜珈 时间: 2012-5-31 23:15
The KISS Approach -- A Better Way
When most people think of studying grammar, they think of rules (hundreds of), and exceptions (thousands of), and "drill-and-kill" exercises. That is, after all, the way that grammar is currently taught. But it need not be. Currently, too many terms and exceptions are taught, and the concepts for which they stand are not related to each other. The typical textbook, for example, explains subjects and verbs and then gives students twenty numbered sentences (which do not form a coherent text) in which the students are expected to identify the subjects and verbs. Then, in another section, the text explains clauses and gives students an exercise with twenty sentences in which the students are supposed to identify the clauses. Students are NOT expected to apply what they learned about subjects and verbs to their work on clauses.
Imagine working on a jigsaw puzzle. All the pieces with flat edges (probably border pieces) go into one pile. Light blue pieces (probably sky) go into another. The dark green (grass?) become another pile. Pieces that don't go into any of the above remain in a pile by themselves. In terms of the current teaching of grammar, we have now finished the puzzle. If that were how jigsaw puzzles actually worked, few people would find them either enjoyable or sensible, but the comparison accurately describes current instruction in English grammar. It doesn't make sense.
The purpose of the KISS Approach is to put the puzzle together. Instead of focussing on grammatical constructions, the KISS Approach focuses on texts. It uses grammatical concepts to explain how words in a sentence work together to create meaning. The students' objective is to understand how every piece (every word) fits. Suppose, for example, that a text consists of 100 words. In the average adult's writing, approximately 1/3 rd of the words are in prepositional phrases. Once students can identify and understand the functions of prepositional phrases, they have mastered 1/3 rd of the text -- they are 1/3 rd of the way to their goal. Adjectives and adverbs account for approximately an additional 20%. The words that function as subjects, verbs, and complements (predicate nouns, predicate adjectives, direct and indirect objects) 40%. The student who has mastered these constructions has thus mastered approximately 93% of the structure of ANY English sentence. Subordinate conjunctions account for another 1%, verbals (gerunds, gerundives, and infinitives) for 5%, and eight additional constructions are sufficient to explain the remaining 1%.
The problem with current instruction is not that students cannot remember the rules, but rather that they cannot apply the rules for the simple reason that instruction is so fragmented. The vast majority of current college graduates cannot IDENTIFY basic subjects and verbs, even though subjects and verbs are the core of English sentence structure. The KISS Approach, on the other hand, because it is text-based and cumulative, constantly reviews and builds on what was previously studied. The KISS Approach is also built on a model of how the human brain processes language -- a model that explains why many errors are errors, thereby providing students with solid reasons for avoiding those errors. Finally, as students progress through the levels of the KISS Approach, they can learn how to use their knowledge of grammar to improve the clarity and style of their writing, as well as to avoid errors.
