GrammarTrainer I Lessons

Lesson 1: Shapes

Your child sees pictures of a basic shape (a square, a circle, etc.) and is asked what it is. Here he starts working on

  1. understanding "what" questions
  2. recognizing and spelling the names of basic shapes
  3. using "a" before a singular noun
[4 multiple-choice exercises; 4 open-choice exercises.]

Lesson 2: More Shapes

Your child sees pictures of one or several of the same basic shape, and is asked what they are. Here he reviews topics from lesson 1, and starts working on

  1. using "s" for plural
  2. differentiating between singular and plural nouns
[4 multiple-choice exercises; 8 open-choice exercises.]

Lesson 3: Even More Shapes

Your child sees pictures of basic shapes which now include shapes whose names start with vowels (an arrow, an oval) and is asked what they are. Here he reviews topics from lessons 1-2, and starts working on

  1. using "an" before nouns that start with vowels
  2. differentiating between nouns that require "a" vs. "an"
[2 multiple-choice exercises; 10 open-choice exercises.]

Lesson 4: Colored Shapes

Your child sees pictures of single colored shapes and is asked what they are. Here he reviews topics from lesson 1, and starts working on

  1. recognizing and spelling the names of basic colors
  2. putting an adjective in the right place, i.e. between the article and the noun ("a red square" rather than "a square red")
  • using "an" in front of adjectives that start with vowels ("an orange triangle") [5 multiple-choice exercises; 11 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 5: More Colored Shapes

    Your child sees pictures of one or several colored shapes and is asked what they are. Here he applies in new ways all the topics from lessons 1-4. [4 multiple-choice exercises; 15 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 6: What color is the shape?

    Your child sees pictures of single colored shapes and is asked what color they are. Here he reviews topics from lesson 1, and starts working on

    1. understanding questions of the form "What color is the X?"
    2. using short complete sentences with the verb "is"
    3. starting sentences with capital (upper case) letters and ending them with periods
    [5 multiple-choice exercises; 5 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 7: What colors are the shapes?

    Your child sees pictures of one or more colored shapes and is asked what color they are. Here he reviews topics from lessons 1-2 and 6, and starts working on

    1. using "are" when the subject is plural vs. "is" when it is singular
    [4 multiple-choice exercises; 14 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 8: Where is the shape?

    Your child sees pictures of various basic shapes in different configurations (e.g., a circle on a square) and is asked where a particular shape or shapes are (e.g., "Where is the circle?"). Here he reviews topics from lesson 1-2 and 6-7, and starts working on

    1. understanding "where"-questions, and which of the shapes they are asking the location of
    2. understanding and using basic location words ("in", "on", "over", "under", "behind", "in front of", "next to" and "between")
    [14 multiple-choice exercises; 29 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 9: Which one?

    Your child sees pictures of pairs of single shapes or groups of shapes, each shape or group of shapes having a different color, and one a larger shape, or a group of larger shapes, than the other. He is asked which shape(s) are bigger or smaller, or which shape(s) have a particular color. Here he reviews topics from lessons 1-5, and begins working on

    1. understanding "which" questions
    2. using the article "the"
    3. understanding and using comparatives ("bigger", "smaller")
    4. discriminating between different questions that apply to the same picture (e.g. "Which shape is larger?" vs. "Which shape is red?"
    [5 multiple-choice exercises; 20 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 10: Many-colored Shapes

    Your child sees pictures of single shapes or groups of shapes that have more than one color, and is asked either what they are or what color they are. Unlike in lessons 1-5 he is required to answer in a complete sentence. Here he reviews topics from lessons 1-7, and begins working on

    1. discriminating between different questions that apply to the same picture ("Where is/are this/these?" questions vs. "What color is the shape?" questions
    2. using "and" to join together adjectives
    3. using "it"/"this" or "they"/"these"/"those"
    [8 multiple-choice exercises; 16 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 11: Which circle, which square?

    Your child sees pictures of circles and squares of different sizes. He is either asked the location of the circle, or the squares, that are the biggest, the smallest, or medium on size, or is asked the relative size of a circle, or of some squares, in a particular location. Here he reviews topics from lessons 1-9, and begins working on

    1. discriminating between questions about size versus questions about location
    2. understanding "top", "bottom", "middle", "right", and "left"
    3. using superlative adjectives (biggest, smallest)
    4. using prepositional phrases to modify nouns ("the circle on the top", "the squares in the middle")
    [8 multiple-choice exercises; 24 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 12: Different Numbers of Different Shapes

    Your child sees pictures of different numbers of different shapes and is asked to identify them by color and by number. Here he reviews topics from lessons 1-5 and 10, and begins working on

  • joining noun phrases and sentences together with "and" ("a green triangle and a red circle"; "The triangle is green and the circle is red")
    1. using numbers where appropriate ("two green triangles")
    [4 multiple-choice exercises; 10 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 13: Which is NOT?

    Your child sees pictures of different shapes of different sizes and colors and is asked which one does NOT have a certain size or color (e.g. "Which triangle is not blue?", "Which squares not big?"). Here he reviews topics from lessons 1-6, and starts working on

    1. understanding and using "not" in complete sentences
    [4 multiple-choice exercises; 8 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 14: How big, tall, wide, high?

    Your child sees pictures of shapes in different configurations and sizes, and is asked to compare their size or positions ("How big is the circle on the left compared with the circle on the right?"). Here he reviews topics from lessons 1-6, 11, and 13, and starts working on

    1. understanding questions of the form "how big/tall/wide/high ….compared with…".
    2. using "as X as" (e.g. "as big as"), "Xer than" ("bigger than"), and "not as X as" ("not as big as"), as appropriate, in complete sentences.
    [5 multiple-choice exercises; 17 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 15: Which and Where?

    Your child sees pictures of shapes in different configurations, and is asked about two shapes at once—either where they are, or which ones are the biggest and the smallest. Here your child reviews topics from lessons 1-9, and 11-12, and produces long complex sentences of the form: "The rectangle is in front of the triangle and the circles are over the oval" and "The circle on the right is the biggest and the circle on the left is the smallest". [4 multiple-choice exercises; 8 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 16: Stripes and Dots

    Your child sees pictures of a striped or dotted shape and is asked what color stripes or dots the shape has. Here he starts working on

    1. using the word "has" in describing how things look.
    2. using the pronoun "it" in place of a singular noun.
    [8 multiple-choice exercises; 16 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 17: More Stripes and Dots

    Your child sees pictures of one or more stripes or dotted shapes and is asked what color stripes or dots the shape(s) have. Here he continues working on using "have" to describe things, and starts working on

  • using "has" when the subject is singular and "have" when it is plural.
  • using the pronoun "they" in place of a plural noun.
  • [8 multiple-choice exercises; 20 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 18: Comparing Stripes and Dots

    Your child sees pictures of shapes with stripes or dots of different sizes, hues or relative heights and is asked to compare them ("E.g., which shape’s dots are bigger/higher/darker?"). Here he resumes work on the comparative form of adjectives (bigger/higher/darker) and starts working on

    1. using the ‘s ending for the possessive form of nouns (as in "The triangle’s dots are bigger").
    [8 multiple-choice exercises; 16 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 19: Which shape has more/fewer stripes or dots?

    Your child sees pictures of shapes with different quantities of stripes or dots of different colors and is asked to say which shape has more or fewer of them. Here he continues working on "has" versus "have" and starts working on

    1. using the "more X than Y" structure (as in "The triangle has more stripes than the square does").
    2. leaving out irrelevant details (i.e., the color of the stripes or dots).
    [4 multiple-choice exercises; 8 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 20: About how many shapes are there?

    Your child sees pictures of different quantities of a particular shape and is asked to say about how many there are, using the words "many"/"lot(s)", "some", "few", or "no". Here your child starts working on

    1. the meaning and use of the quantity words "many"/"lot(s)", "some", "few", or "no".
    2. using "there is" and "there are" as appropriate.
    [4 multiple-choice exercises; 8 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 21: Which shape is there more of?

    Your child sees pictures of different quantities of different shapes and is asked which shapes there is more of. Here he continues working on "there is"/"there are" and the "more X than Y" construction. [4 multiple-choice exercises; 8 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 22: About how many of this shape are this color?

    Your child sees pictures of large quantities of a particular shape with different portions having a particular color, and is asked to say about how many of this shape are of this color, using the words "all", "most", "some", "few", "both", "neither" or "none". Here he starts working on

    1. the meaning and syntax of "all of the X", "most of the X", "some of the X", "(a) few of the X", "both of the X", "none of the X", and "neither of the X".
    2. which of these phrases to use "is" with ("neither of the X") and which to use "are" with (all the rest).
    [7 multiple-choice exercises; 14 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 23: Many Questions

    A comprehensive review of all the previous lessons. Your child sees a shape or shapes of different colors, sizes, positions and patterns, and is asked a question about the shape. Here your child reviews all the topics from the previous lessons, and works on

  • discriminating among a large number of questions, and answering specifically what is being asked of him. [77 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 24: Questions and Answers

    Your child sees pictures of different shapes and shapes of different colors and designs. Accompanying these pictures are a filled-out question line and a blank answer line, or a blank question line and a filled-out answer line. Your child must either determine the yes-no answer that goes with a yes-no question, or the yes-no question that goes with a yes-no answer. Here he starts to learn:

    1. the concept of questions and answers.
    2. how to ask and answer yes-no questions involving the verb "to be" ("Is that a triangle?", "Yes, it is.").
    [16 multiple-choice exercises; 32 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 25: More Questions and Answers

    Same set-up as lesson 24, but now with yes-no questions with "has", or "have." Here your child continues to learn the concept of yes-no questions and learns

    1. how to ask and answer yes-no questions involving the verbs "has"/"have" and "do"/"does". ("Does the triangle have green stripes?", "Yes, it does.").
    [8 multiple-choice exercises; 26 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 26: WHAT Questions

    Your child sees pictures of different shapes and shapes of different colors and designs. Accompanying these pictures are a blank question line and a filled-out answer line. Here your child must determine the what-question that goes with a particular answer. Here he continues learning about how to ask questions using the verbs "to be", "to have", and "do/does", and starts to learn:

    1. the concept of wh-questions.
    2. how to ask a large variety what-questions tailored to a variety of pre-determined answers. ("What is that?", "What color is the triangle?", "What color stripes does the rectangle have?").
    [16 multiple-choice exercises; 40 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 27: WHERE Questions

    Your child sees pictures of different shapes in different configurations. Accompanying these pictures are a blank question line and a filled-out answer line. Here your child must determine the where-question that goes with a particular answer. Here he continues to learn the concept of wh-questions, and starts to learn:

    1. how to ask a variety where-questions tailored to a variety of pre-determined answers. ("What is the circle?" "Where are the triangles?").
    [5 multiple-choice exercises; 17 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 28: WHICH Questions

    Same set-up as in Lesson 26. Here your child must determine the what-question that goes with a particular answer. Here he continues to learn the concept of wh-questions, and how to ask questions using the verbs "to be", "to have", and "do/does". And he starts to learn:

    1. how to ask a large variety which-questions tailored to a variety of pre- determined answers. ("Which shapes are bigger?" "Which shape has the darkest stripes?").
    [10 multiple-choice exercises; 51 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 29: HOW MANY Questions

    Same set-up as in Lesson 26. Here your child must determine the how many-question that goes with a particular answer. Here he continues to learn the concept of wh-questions, and how to ask questions using the verbs "to be", "to have", and "do/does". And he starts to learn:

    1. how to ask how many-questions tailored to a variety of pre-determined answers.
    2. ("How many stripes does the square have?" "How many of the circles are blue?").
    [6 multiple-choice exercises; 18 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 30: YOUR turn to ask many questions

    A comprehensive review of all the previous lessons. Same set-up as in Lesson 26-29. Here your child continues to learn which questions elicit which sorts of responses, and how to express these questions grammatically, and starts working on:

    1. discriminating among a huge number and variety of questions and answers.
    [50 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 31: Only, Just, Except

    Here your child sees pictures in which all but a few shapes have a particular property, and is asked to answer questions about these shapes using the words "only/just", or "except." Here he starts to learn the meanings of these extremely useful but subtle function words. [8 multiple-choice exercises; 12 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 32: Every, Each, All

    Here your child sees pictures of shapes that all share a particular property and is asked to answer questions about them using the words "each", "every", or "all." Here he starts to learn subtle but important differences among these very common terms. [12 multiple-choice exercises; 16 open-choice exercises.]

    Lesson 33: Which is closer or farther

    Here your child sees pictures of shapes at various distances from one another and is asked to compare how close or far away they are. Here he starts to learn to use complex relational adjectives in phrases like "closer to/farther from the square." [6 multiple-choice exercises; 32 open-choice exercises.]