Tutor profile: Nicholas A.

I am having trouble with my thesis statement for my narrative essay. Where do I start?

As a thesis statement shows the reader not only WHAT but also the WHAT FOR (purpose) of your essay, the best option is to finish your essay and then go to your thesis statement. You can then begin to summarise your essay in one sentence. Write out 5 different one-sentence summaries, and choose the option that best covers everything in your essay. If you need to write your thesis statement without finishing your narrative essay, a good technique is to write 3 keywords that form the idea of your essay. Each keyword will correspond to a paragraph in your essay, so they should be different (not just synonyms for the same thing). Then ask yourself: "what is the single overarching plot / theme / story of my narrative essay?" Form your 3 keywords into a sentence beginning with your theme / story / plot. Always have somebody else read your thesis statement and try to guess what happens in your story. If they can make a good story, or a story that is similar to yours only from the thesis statement, you've done a good job!

What is the PPP approach to teaching a language lesson?

Present, practice, perform. Three stages of a single lesson that describe how the instructor organises activities for students to carry out. The PRESENT stage shows the student(s) the language point (or skill). Usually introduced through an enjoyable activity that motivates the students and/or connects to them personally in some way. The language point is taught explicitly. The PRACTICE stage is usually divided into controlled and semi-controlled practice activities, depending on the time available. Controlled activities may be gap-fill exercises, or other single answer tasks. Semi-controlled may be short answers or single sentence production tasks. The PERFORM stage provides an activity where students must produce the language point in a context that resembles a common or natural communicative event. This is commonly speaking, but may include a mix of writing, reading, presentations, etc.

When do I use an object pronoun, and when do I use a reflexive pronoun?

If the verb involves some kind of action or thought process like hit, dream of, think about, help, then we can use a reflexive pronoun. Remember, the object pronoun RECEIVES the action / thought of the verb. If the object and subject are the same, use a reflexive pronoun. Examples: - He thinks about him (the subject HE is the same as the object HIM - so we can use a reflexive pronoun) --> He thinks about himself - He thinks about his mother (the subject HE is not the same as the object HIS MOTHER - so we cannot use a reflexive pronoun) --> He thinks about his mother