As I continue to work with my new student, I’m challenged to provide meaningful speaking activities that make use of her limited amount of English. However, by talking about people we both know or are at least familiar with, we’ve been able to have simple conversations. The activity Who’s Who is based on a recent lesson. You’ll see possibilities for using this in a one-on-one setting as well as in the classroom.

Click here to view my Who’s Who_handout.

A reader questioned the media’s use of “if it weren’t for” and “if it hadn’t been for” in the same context.  Are they really synonymous in meaning? If we turn to our grammar books, we know that if + were (not) expresses a present counterfactual situation and if + had (not) been expresses a past counterfactual situation. Examples: If you weren’t so stubborn, you’d take my advice. (Present fact = You are stubborn, so you won’t take my advice.) If you hadn’t been so stubborn, you would have followed my advice and everything would have turned out fine. (Past fact = You were stubborn and didn’t follow my advice, and that’s why nothing worked out.)

If the above examples are correct and logical, then shouldn’t there also be a difference in the reference to time with the structures “if it weren’t for (somebody/ something)” and “if it hadn’t been for (somebody/ something)”? Perhaps in informal English we don’t necessarily perceive a difference if there’s enough context around the “if” structure to make the time reference clear. However, I’d teach students to associate one structure with the present and the other with the past.

Because my grammar books failed to take discussion in the direction I wanted to go, I decided to turn to an unusual source - song lyrics. Sometimes a look at a few popular songs can shed some light on current usage of grammar. On a side note, I’ll admit that I wasn’t familiar with any of the songs I found listed in the search results, but that’s not an indicator of popularity because I really don’t listen too much to current music!

First, I studied the lyrics to “Songs Like This” by Carrie Underwood. I found multiple instances of non-standard grammar and spelling. Well, that’s not too much of a surprise since it’s a song inspired by hurt and anger. We all know that strong emotions can rob us of our ability to string words together! In any case, Carrie sings, “If it wasn’t for guys like you, there wouldn’t be songs like this” and “If you hadn’t gone and done me wrong, I wouldn’t go off like this.” All right, so Ms. Underwood believes that the number of hurtful men in the world have created an equally high number of songs about hurt. = Present fact. If it wasn’t is not standard, but we recognize it as the equivalent of if it weren’t, correct? Also, in the second excerpt  we learn that she’s singing a song full of complaint (now) because of what the man did (in the past). In other words, she’s going off like this (now) because he went and did her wrong (past). Her lyrics express a mixed counterfactual conditional. With the exception of the wasn’t for weren’t, Carrie’s grammar is accurate. Agreed?

To be fair, there are also songs sung by heartbroken men. Vince Gill sings “If It Weren’t For Him.” His reference to a hypothetical situation is clear. He longs to make a wish a present reality: “Why can’t she see my heart is breaking/ She’d be mine if it weren’t for him.” In other words, she isn’t his (present fact), but she would be without the other guy in the picture (counterfactual statement). The structure if it weren’t clearly refers to the present.

Finally, in an effort to find an example of a past counterfactual situation, I read through the lyrics to a number of songs and settled on an uplifting one called “If It Hadn’t Been for You.” Dusty Springfield, the artist, would have given up on love, but luckily she met the right guy to change her mind and her heart:  “I would be through with love/ Have nothing to do with love/ If it hadn’t been for you…” The conclusion? Dusty would not be happy and loved (now) if she hadn’t met her man (in the past). If it hadn’t been makes a clear reference to a counterfactual past. Lucky for Ms. Springfielf, past events created happiness in the present.

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All lyrics retrieved from AZLyrics.

On the one hand, some things are easy. We already have a relationship of openness and trust. I feel it’s key to make a personal connection with a student because she or he must have minimal anxiety in order to learn well.  My friend has accepted my role as her teacher, and I have the freedom to correct and direct her, which is not usually part of our friend-to-friend relationship.

What surprisingly proved to be a challenge was getting through some of the basics. So far we’ve covered greetings, introductions, the alphabet, and some useful expressions. Although we completed what I had planned to, I thought our pace would be faster at times. As a false beginner, my friend wasn’t unfamiliar with much of the content, but more questions than I expected came up, so it was a good review for her and a chance to correct misunderstandings.

I’m going to share just a few of the points I had to clarify either because my friend asked me to or because her production prompted me to.

• Which greetings are appropriate for which people? I had to get the idea across that hello is widely used, but hi is more limited to informal greetings. Also, how are you? is really part of the greeting, and the response is invariably a positive one. In America (on the surface at least), everyone is happy. Everyone is fine, good, all right, or perhaps not bad.
• How does intonation and reduction change a greeting? The follow-up how are you? stresses the pronoun. It often sounds different from the initial How are you? in an exchange of greetings.  And you? could sound polite if said carefully, but when reduced to ‘n you? it becomes a casual reply to a friend’s request about our well-being.
• Should students learn to print and/ or write cursive? I had my friend practice both upper and lower case letters, and I asked her to print. I promised we’d cover cursive writing later. I also took care to make her printed letters follow American standards. She had learned in other language studies to make the lower-case “r” with an s-like squiggle rather than the u-like hook, and her lower-case “q” looked more like an upside-down check mark rather than a backward “p” with a tail.

One final thing I’ll share is one of the homework tasks I’ve assigned to my student. After each lesson, I’m sending Voice Memos from my iPhone to her email account. I record the key expressions that we practiced during our lesson. She’s to listen and repeat each day. This is in addition to using online resources I selected for her. Click to hear my Voice Memo_Lesson 1 greetings and useful expressions.

Our YouTube debut will be soon!

An interesting opportunity has presented itself. A friend has asked me to teach her English. As a busy mother of three, she hasn’t had the opportunity to take formal classes since her arrival in this country. Now that her children are a bit older, she can manage a few hours of weekly study. Her desire is strong, and that’s good because her present knowledge of the language is very limited. If you’re going to undertake a big task, intrinsic motivation is key. Don’t you agree?

Now I must reassure myself that I can help my friend reach her language goals. Can I rise to the challenge of helping someone climb that first set of stairs and possibly go beyond? It’s been quite some time since I’ve worked one-on-one with someone at this level. I’d label my friend as a false beginner. My private students over the past three years have ranged from low intermediate to advanced. As I gather my thoughts and my materials, I welcome your input. Where do we begin when we teach beginners?

One tool at my disposal is the student’s native language. My friend is from Moscow, so up until now we’ve communicated in Russian. However, since moving from EFL to ESL back in 2001, I’ve gained confidence in teaching students whose first languages I don’t know. Of course, it’s useful to have a common language in order to handle questions and concerns voiced by beginners, but I know from experience that it’s possible to teach only in English starting from Lesson 1. (Actually, in the first school I taught at, I was asked by the director not to use my Russian, but it was handy to understand the whispered comments of my students!)

One of the first things I’ll have to establish is a working relationship with my friend. When I wear the hat of a teacher, I won’t allow too much use of Russian. I do intend to allow some Russian during our lessons when a simple translation will clarify a point. However, I’ll have to help my friend develop a new mindset that embraces English immersion. I suppose one benchmark of success will be my own feeling that I’ve lost a Russian conversation partner!

I plan to create some videos based on our lessons, so you’ll get to observe my efforts. I’m ready to start this month. Her goals have been established, our materials have been identified, and we’re now working on a schedule to accommodate our busy lives as parents. Wish us luck!

Related post: The Language Dilemma

ANSWER: This was a question posed by a YouTube viewer. I responded by acknowledging that both forms were possible in the given example. I speculated about differences in context, but I didn’t explore them. I think my initial answer needs to be expanded on.  I’ll first turn to a trusted source for insight.

In their discussion of gerund and infinitives, Azar and Hagen note the phrase be used for and tie it to the purpose of an object (331). For example, a butter knife is not used for slicing. It’s only used for spreading butter on bread. However, they note that an infitive of purpose is also possible to express a general purpose: A butter knife is only used to spread butter, not slice things. A good distinction Azar and Hagen make is that only an infintive of purpose is used in a specific context: I had no knife, so I used a spoon to spread the butter on my bread. (“For spreading” cannot substitute.)

I’d like to go beyond structure and consider semantics. I think we can further define purpose. Do we mean reason  or intention? To explain why something happened (reason), we can use for + noun/pronoun object: He received a medal for his bravery. / He gained recognition for his heroic acts. To explain what someone hoped to gain from doing an action (intention), we can use an infinitive: He put his own life in danger (in order) to save his comrades. I find it difficult to paraphrase this last example so that it includes for + a noun object. Would we say “for the safety and survival of his comrades”? It’s possible, but it sounds wordy to my ears. I prefer the simplicity of the infinitive “to save his comrades.”  I think then we might be able to conclude that there are more frequent or preferred patterns when it comes to expressing reason or intention.

A final definition of purpose could be a goal, that is, what a person wishes to obtain. In such a situation, I think either an infinitive or for + noun object could be used: I returned to school for a degree in marketing. / I returned to school (in order) to receive a degree in marketing.

What are your thoughts? Do you think the difference between an infinitive of purpose and for + gerund/ noun object goes beyond form?

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Learning changes us for the better. We become better communicators, better community members, better workers, and better people. If someone fails to understand how a not-so-glamorous teacher of not-so-exciting topics (well, exciting to us ELTs, of course), such as prepositions and the IPA, could earn so many votes in a social media contest, then the person sadly lacks good memories of his or her school experience. Personally, I can remember most of my grade school and high school teachers. I remember them, and I thank them for helping me grow as a person. I remember the professors who also touched my life in college and graduate school. They cared for me beyond the classroom walls.

A language lesson (especially one filmed by an amateur video maker!) does not have the wow-factor that mainstream audiences can readily see, but there is a hidden wow-factor that the learner experiences over time.

To all of you teachers reading this, I look at you and your work and say, “WOW!”

Enjoy my It vs This_handout.

I’m very excited to tell you that I was selected as a “featured rising partner” on YouTube for December. A number of small channels (each with fewer than 100 thousand subscribers) have shown enough growth to receive this kind of recognition. Our channels are being highlighted in the monthly YouTube blog post On the Rise. The video/ channel with the most votes wins a one-day featured spot on the YouTube homepage. The voting period starts today and lasts for one week only.  Monday, December 12 is the last day of voting.

Would you please take the time to vote for my channel? I’m truly grateful for the support you have all given me over the years, and I can only reach this new goal with your help. A spot on the YouTube homepage would increase my reach as a teacher and raise awareness of the amazing work all the English language teachers are doing on YouTube. I am one of many online ELTs, and I am proud to represent this group in this contest.

To vote, please visit the YouTube blog.

Thank you!

Best regards,

Jennifer