Practical Grammar @ Your Desk

Overview

Practical Grammar @ Your Desk is an instructor-led and -supported online workshop. The workshop runs for three weeks, and each week you’ll be able to access the core content whenever is most convenient for you. You’ll learn from interactive presentations, quizzes, discussion boards, exercises, and printable support materials. Optionally, you can take part in any of the three live video sessions scheduled during the workshop. The course is delivered on a robust and secure Moodle platform, and all you need to access it is internet access and an up-to-date browser.

This online workshop is equivalent to the in-class version of Practical Grammar, delivering the same quality content and instructor support. It requires approximately 6 hours per week for three weeks to complete.

Oscar Wilde quipped that "If all the grammarians in the world were placed end to end, it would be a good thing." Grammar, traditionally presented as a set of dull, complicated, or even contradictory rules, is a subject rarely approached with any enthusiasm. Yet the most useful aspect of grammar — understanding the basic structure underlying every English sentence — is neither dull nor difficult. This workshop presents grammar as a practical tool that helps us make good choices when writing and punctuating sentences. It demystifies grammar terms, explains sentence structure and its relevance to writing, and gives plenty of practice identifying and correcting common grammatical errors in your own writing or someone else’s. It is intended for people who are already fluent in written English.

Topics

• Grammar terms explained: parts of speech, subjects and predicates, clauses and phrases
• Sentence structure: writing sound sentences, fixing fragments and agreement problems
• Joining clauses: avoiding comma-splices and run-on sentences
• Commas: using sentence structure, not guesswork, to place them correctly
• Pronouns: choosing case (who or whom, I or me), clarifying what they stand for
• Modifiers: choosing adjectives and adverbs correctly, avoiding dangling, squinting, or otherwise misplaced modifiers
• Punctuation: using punctuation marks correctly
• Individual focus: identifying and managing your own weak spots

Audience

• Anyone who writes in English and wants to write grammatically correct and properly punctuated sentences
• Anyone who struggles with or worries about things such as comma placement, pronoun choice, or verb forms
• Anyone who reviews or edits other people’s writing

Duration

Cost

• $1425 (plus tax)

Featured Instructor

Melanie Sexton, Ph.D. is a seasoned and diversely experienced writing instructor. Her workshops are informed by her practical experience as a writer and editor in both government and the private sector as well as her thirty plus years of teaching experience. She creates and delivers workshops that emphasize the writing skills people need to thrive in today’s fast-paced workplace. She offers workshops both in person and remotely in her signature “@ Your Desk” format.

She is a passionate advocate for abolishing bureaucratic, misleading, and empty writing and believes that good writing makes a difference in the world.

Sessions