Lesson 7: Education
Activities
Activity 1: Verbals
Verbals are words that are forms of verbs, but they function as other parts of speech. There are three main kinds of verbals — gerunds, participles, and infinitives.
Gerunds are verbals ending in "-ing" that function as nouns.
For example:
Gerunds are verbals ending in "-ing" that function as nouns.
For example:
- Nobody loved Fred's awkward dancing.
In this sentence, "dancing" is the direct object of the verb "loved." - Running is a great fitness activity.
Here, "running" is the subject of the sentence.
Participles are verbals that function as adjectives. As the name "participle" suggests, they are either the present participle form of a verb (the "-ing" form) or the past participle form of the verb (typically ending in "-ed," although the participles of irregular verbs have other endings).
For example:
The cracked, broken glass allowed leaking water to damage my table.
In this sentence, "cracked" and "broken" are adjectives describing the glass, and "leaking" is an adjective describing the water.
Note that a participle can come before or after the noun it modifies:
Terrified, she ran away from the shrieking bat.
"Terrified" modifies "she" and "shrieking" modifies "bat.
For example:
The cracked, broken glass allowed leaking water to damage my table.
In this sentence, "cracked" and "broken" are adjectives describing the glass, and "leaking" is an adjective describing the water.
Note that a participle can come before or after the noun it modifies:
Terrified, she ran away from the shrieking bat.
"Terrified" modifies "she" and "shrieking" modifies "bat.
Infinitives are verbals that use "to" and the basic or simple form of a verb (such as "to eat" or "to see"). Infinitives can function as several different parts of speech — noun, adjective, or adverb. For example:
- As a noun:
To sleep when one has a big test the next day can be difficult.
Here, the infinitive is the subject of the sentence. - As an adjective:
He has charm to spare.
The infinitive "to spare" describes what kind of charm he has. - As an adverb:
She dresses to succeed.The infinitive modifies "dresses" and describes how she dresses.
It can be tricky to determine how an infinitive functions in a sentence, but here are a few tips:
- Infinitives that function as direct object nouns answer the question "what" after the verb. Example: I want to eat. I want what? (to eat)
- Infinitives that function as adjectives always follow the nouns they modify.
- Infinitives that function as adverbs usually occur at the very beginning or end of the sentence and may not be near the verbs they modify. Also, if you can insert the words "in order" before the infinitive and it makes sense, then it functions as an adverb.
In this activity, you'll learn more about verbals and how to use them in your own writing. Complete the "Verbals" activity page. Some sentences on the activity page may include more than one example of the verbals you are looking for! After your answers have been checked (and if needed, corrected), be sure to save this page. It will provide examples that may be helpful later when you study for the unit test.
Student Activity Page
In this activity, your child learned about verbals, verb forms that function in sentences as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs.
Answer Key
Part I
1. knitting
2. clapping, shouting
3. Gardening, cutting
Part II
1. pouting —> fans; surprising —> loss
2. Embarrassed —> student; misspelled —> word
3. limited —> post
Part III
NOTE: Determining how infinitives function in a sentence can be challenging. Don't worry if your child struggles with the last two sentences of this section. It is more important right now that he understand the concept (that infinitives can function as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs in a sentence).
1. to leave
2. to exercise —> time
3. To win —> practice
4. To relax —> imagine ("To relax" functions as an adverb)
5. to economize (functions as a noun)
Answer Key
Part I
1. knitting
2. clapping, shouting
3. Gardening, cutting
Part II
1. pouting —> fans; surprising —> loss
2. Embarrassed —> student; misspelled —> word
3. limited —> post
Part III
NOTE: Determining how infinitives function in a sentence can be challenging. Don't worry if your child struggles with the last two sentences of this section. It is more important right now that he understand the concept (that infinitives can function as nouns, adjectives, or adverbs in a sentence).
1. to leave
2. to exercise —> time
3. To win —> practice
4. To relax —> imagine ("To relax" functions as an adverb)
5. to economize (functions as a noun)
Activity 2: The Education of Women
In the reading for today, you learned more about the education of women in the time of Abigail Adams. In this lesson, you'll explore education for girls in the modern world. Work with a parent to identify a news article about girls' education anywhere in the world and read it.
To find news articles about girls' education, you can go to Google and enter the search term "girls' education" and then select NEWS to do a search of news sites. As with any Internet-based activity, you should consult a parent before searching for news articles. You may also find the following websites helpful:
To find news articles about girls' education, you can go to Google and enter the search term "girls' education" and then select NEWS to do a search of news sites. As with any Internet-based activity, you should consult a parent before searching for news articles. You may also find the following websites helpful:
Web Link
Web Link
Web Link
When you have completed the reading, select one paragraph from the article to analyze, much as you did in the paragraph analysis activity in Lesson 2. Choose a paragraph with 4-6 sentences and use the "Paragraph Analysis" page to determine the role of each sentence and the connections between sentences.
Student Activity Page
In this activity, your child will read about education for girls in the modern world and analyze a paragraph in that article to show how the sentences work together. Answers will depend on the paragraph your child chose, but his answers should be specific and make sense. If needed, refer to Lesson 2, which provides more details about how sentences work together in a paragraph.