Grammar Safari Lesson Plan
Title:
Grade Range:
Grammar Safari
3-4
Integrated Curriculum Area:
Concepts and Competencies:
Tool:
Language Arts
Grammar, Formatting
Word Processing Software
Summary:
Student practice locating and using adjectives and action verbs in two different essays.
Warm-up
• Make sure students have completed the EasyTech lesson prerequisites for this
activity (see Activity Detail Page at www.learning.com).
•
Teacher reads to and discusses with the class pages 35-57 of Painless Writing,
which reviews the importance of using action (vivid) verbs in text.
•
As an alternative option, teacher reads to the class Kites Sail High, which
introduces and uses various verbs in sentences.
Activity
Students use their knowledge of adjectives and action verbs to format one essay and
complete another:
(Part 1)
•
Review the skills learned in the assigned EasyTech lessons and the functionality of
the specific word processing application the students will be using.
•
Students type a portion of a short essay.
•
Students select and italicize all adjectives in the first story segment.
•
Students select and bold all action verbs in the first story segment.
•
Students save and print their documents.
(Part 2)
• Students write adjectives and action verbs of their choice into the blanks provided
in the second story segment.
Wrap-up
• Students share their completed stories (Part 2) with the class.
Extension
•
Students type their own stories, leaving certain parts of speech blank (nouns,
adjectives, verbs, adverbs, etc.).
•
Students exchange their fill-in-the-blank stories with classmates to complete.
© Copyright 2002 Learning.com
#1008 Grammar Safari
Grammar Safari Student Activity Page
1. Using a word processing program, type the paragraphs below the model. Save your
document with your name and the word “Safari.” Select all the adjectives in the
short essay, and make them italic. Then, select all the action verbs and make them
bold.
Here is a model:
As we travel through the forest, I observe four elephants. They chomp branches
from the trees and munch the juicy leaves. Another nearby elephant slurps water from a
small river. As our wagon draws closer, I notice the complex, leathery creases that cover
the elephants’ bodies. The elephants turn and stomp away as we approach their area.
(Type the next three paragraphs, and then follow the directions at the top of the page.)
Our safari group spots a slim creature that looms above a treetop—it’s a giant
giraffe! When the giraffe hears the noise from our wagon, he gallops away gracefully. We
still see him, though, since his neck stretches so high.
As we journey back toward the forest, a loud rumbling startles us. With an
enormous grunt, a huge gorilla tumbles through the brush and stops short. The gorilla
glares at us for a moment, and we see a young gorilla a few feet behind her. In an instant,
we turn our wagon around and choose a different direction. The gorilla returns to the
forest. Thankfully, we escape danger.
As we drive to our camp, the sunset fades behind the mountains. As dusk settles,
the zebra blend with the tall grasses. In the distance, the impala retreat to safety as the
nocturnal predators prepare for their evening hunt. The clouds cast a smoky shadow over
the land, and the warm light of the campfire welcomes us home.
continued
© Copyright 2002 Learning.com
#1008 Grammar Safari
2. Write in the appropriate parts of speech in each blank of the following essay. (You
do not need to type this essay in a word processing program.) The first sentence
has been completed for you.
The evening sky is
crisp
. As our campfire ____________, we get ready to
(adjective)
(action verb)
go to our tents. The ____________ night breeze ____________ gently. I decide to
(adjective)
(action verb)
____________ in my journal. The stars do not provide enough light, of course,
(action verb)
so I switch on my ____________ flashlight.
(action verb)
I write about what my life would be like if I were a(n) ____________ elephant.
(adjective)
Then I draw a(n) ____________ wildebeest. I ____________ writing before ________
(adjective)
(action verb)
(action verb)
off my light.
The ____________ sunrise is unbelievable. Our safari leader ____________
(adjective)
(action verb)
breakfast, and to prepare for my final day, I ____________ and ____________. What
(action verb)
(action verb)
a(n) ____________ experience this safari has been. I am eager to ____________ my
(adjective)
(action verb)
my photographs when I ____________ home tomorrow.
(action verb)
© Copyright 2002 Learning.com
#1008 Grammar Safari
Grammar Safari Model
Note: Since this Model clearly shows the expectations for the activity, teachers might consider
giving this page to students only after students have completed the activity and assessed their
work with the Rubric.
As we travel through the forest, I observe four elephants. They chomp branches
from the trees and munch the juicy leaves. Another nearby elephant slurps water from a
small river. As our wagon draws closer, I notice the complex, leathery creases that cover
the elephants’ bodies. The elephants turn and stomp away as we approach their area.
Our safari group spots a slim creature that looms above a treetop—it’s a giant
giraffe! When the giraffe hears the noise from our wagon, he gallops away gracefully. We
still see him, though, since his neck stretches so high.
As we journey back toward the forest, a loud rumbling startles us. With an
enormous grunt, a huge gorilla tumbles through the brush and stops short. The gorilla
glares at us for a moment, and we see a young gorilla a few feet behind her. In an instant,
we turn our wagon around and choose a different direction. The gorilla returns to the
forest. Thankfully, we escape danger.
As we drive to our camp, the sunset fades behind the mountains. As dusk settles,
the zebra blend with the tall grasses. In the distance, the impala retreat to safety as the
nocturnal predators prepare for their evening hunt. The clouds cast a smoky shadow over
the land, and the warm light of the campfire welcomes us home.
© Copyright 2002 Learning.com
#1008 Grammar Safari
Grammar Safari Rubric
Student Evaluation
Part 1:
______Document is typed, saved, and printed
______All adjectives in short essay are italicized
______All action verbs in short essay are bold
Part 2:
______All adjectives in second short essay are filled in
______All action verbs in second short essay are filled in
______Completed second short essays are shared with the class
Teacher Evaluation
Part 1:
______Document is typed, saved, and printed
______All adjectives in short essay are italicized
______All action verbs in short essay are bold
Part 2:
______All adjectives in second short essay are filled in
______All action verbs in second short essay are filled in
______Completed second short essays are shared with the class
© Copyright 2002 Learning.com
#1008 Grammar Safari
Grammar Safari Resources
Heller, Ruth. Kites Sail High: A Book About Verbs. New York: The Putman & Grosset Group,
1988.
This book introduces students to various uses of verbs in sentences, with a particular
emphasis on action verbs.
Strausser, Jeffrey. Painless Writing. New York: Barron’s, 2001, pp. 35-57.
This book reviews the importance of using action (vivid) verbs in text, and how action
verbs help improve and strengthen writing.
© Copyright 2002 Learning.com
#1008 Grammar Safari