Peterson+and+Weaver+Article+Responses

**// Thoughts on Teaching Grammar //**
The thought of teaching grammar gives me mixed emotions. Currently I do not feel confident in my grammatical skills (although I did very well on the little test we had in class), but at the same time I am excited to have the opportunity to make sure my students learn the proper mechanics of writing through fun, interactive activities. I hate to admit, but I never learned grammar in school…..at all. My mother was the one to teach me the very basics at home, and even at that point I wasn’t very interested since it didn’t like an important topic with my teachers. I hate to think how little I did learn about grammar, and as soon as I find the time to stop by the “Teach Me” store I will most certainly be investing in a genuinely good reference book for grammatical lessons.

Peterson’s article “Teaching Writing and Grammar in Context” follows the same thought and teaching process I would like to possess in my own classroom. The idea that writing and grammar should be taught as a whole is a wonderful was for the mechanics to become a natural technique for students. Honestly, I find that my grammar is only as developed as it is because of all the writing and reading I’ve done. Without corresponding it to my text, I would never have learned the proper techniques. Weaver discusses and emphasizes the same points in “Teaching Grammar in the Context of Writing”. When the rules and mechanics are taught in a synchronizing way with the other lessons, students gain more from it. This is, of course, a practice we discuss everyday in our classes. Don’t lecture what you preach, preach what you lecture.