Harvey's Elementary Grammar and Composition · Lesson 13 · Part 1: Part I: The elementary course
11. Elements and analysis
Goal: Your child knows what an element and analysis are, and can analyze a short sentence the way the book's model does.
You'll need
- The book, open to this lesson
- Paper and a pencil (or a slate)
What's in the book
Lesson 13 defines elements, principal elements and analysis, gives a model analysis of "Iron is heavy," and nine sentences to analyze.
The lesson, step by step
Review
Ask your child to make a sentence with a quality-word predicate and one with a noun predicate.
Parts are elements
Read:
An Element is one of the distinct parts of a sentence.
The Subject and the Predicate are called Principal Elements, because no sentence can be formed without them.
The book adds that the copula is not called an element.
What analysis is
Read:
Analysis is the separation of a sentence into its elements.
SayAnalysis means taking a sentence apart to see how it's built, like taking apart a toy.
Learn the model
Read the book's model for "Iron is heavy" aloud, for example:
Iron is the subject; it is that of which something is affirmed.
Then your child says the whole model with you, then alone.
Analyze the book's sentences
Use the model for these:
Indigo is blue.
Flies are insects.
Boys will be playful.
Your child says it aloud first, then writes two of them out in full.
Check together
Check the parts against the answers. The book also asks your child to point out the common and proper nouns in these sentences.
Use it today
Pick one short sentence from today's reading and analyze it aloud using the model.
Tip
Saying the model aloud the same way every time is the point. It builds a habit of careful thinking about sentences.
Answers to the book's problems
Subject / copula / predicate: Indigo / is / blue. Flies / are / insects. Mary / was / tardy. Boys / will be / playful. Children / should be / careful. Men / may be / imprudent. John / can be / studious. Roses / are / fragrant. Julius / should be / diligent. Proper nouns: Mary, John, Julius. Common nouns: indigo, flies, insects, boys, children, men, roses.
Worked out for this site from the scan. If a number in your copy differs, trust the book.