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The 1986 Study

Record Number: W4N09

Level 2: 
Add Subjects, Finite Verbs, & Complements

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      Because browsers cannot handle double underlining, subjects are in bold green; finite verbs, in bold blue. Complements are in bold dark red, with their labels after them.  The font size of words aleady analyzed has been decreased. Words which remain to be analyzed are still in black.

     Hello!  Let me (IO) tell Note #1 you {about my family.}My 

whole family was born {in Knoxville, Tn.} I have a mom (DO)

named Martha. I have a father (DO) named Phillip. I have 

sister (DO) name Missy. I have brother (DO) name Sammy.

And me {of couse} Sara. Note #6  My mother was really {from 

South Carolina.} She is used {to chickens, birds, wild life, snakes, 

kittens, bats.} She was rasied {by grandmother} Anna Bell. Now 

let me (IO) tell Note #1 you {about my father.} My father is 

handsome (PA). He knows karate (DO). He's kinda of a 

short man (PN). But my father is a macanic (PN) {at General 

Motors.} He is very handy (PA). Now here comes my sister

My sister is kinda {like my mother.} But my sister is very tall 

(PA). do you know Note #2 why she's tall (PA). My mother

and fathers grandfathers are tall (PA). My sister goes {to 

Chandler.} She is a flag person (PN). My brother. My

brother is bad (PA). He knows some karate (DO) too. You 

have met him (DO). He is {in kintergarten.} His teaches name is 

Mrs. Carter (PN). Sammy is doing well {in school.} Finally me. 

I am just another important person (PN) just {like everybody else.} 

I try to be myself all {though the day.} And try {to my best}

each and every day.  And care {for everybody else.} Thank you 

(IO)that's my family (PN)

     Hello! Let me (IO) tell Note #1 you Note #2 where I liveI 

live {at 426 Marydale Ave.} It is the second house (PN) when 

you go {down Bow St.} It is very big (PA). It is tanish brown 

(PA). It has three straight poles (DO) {in the front.} It has four 

windows (DO) {in the front.} The two Note #4 {in the front} are 

Sammys (PA) Sara's (PA). The won {on the left} is Sammy's

(PA) and the won {on the right} is Sara's (PA). Now is time 

(PN) to look insideIt is really messy (PA). When you go 

upstairs. {On the left} you see the kitchen (DO). And the Living

room. Now {on the right side} you will see the bathroom (DO)

The linen closet.  And supply closet. First Note #5 is Missy's room

(PN). Then comes Sara's room. Last is Sammy's room (PN)

Walk downstairs. {On the Left} is my Parents room. They have 

the laundry room (DO).  And another bathroom. Then {on the

right} is the basement. We have six tvs (DO) and six hbos 

(DO) {on them.} 2 vcrs (DO). a microwave (DO). We have

Toyota Camery (DO), And a Cheverle (DO).  And a 

woodshed And a swing set.
 

Notes

1. Some students will want to consider "tell" as a finite verb. But the question "Who or what tell?" results in the answer "me." Since they will not consider "Me tell you" as an acceptable sentence, "tell" cannot be a finite verb. 

2. Don't expect students to be able to identify clauses as complements. That will come in Level Three.

3. Students will realize that "to be myself" answers the question "Try what?" Thus they will know that it functions as a direct object, but they will not yet know that it is an infinitive.

4. Note that "two" here functions as the subject because the semantic subject, "windows," has been ellipsed. "Sammy's" and "Sara's" are, of course, possessive nouns, but possessive nouns function as adjectives.
     Because grammar textbooks  usually deal with isolated sentences or with specially prepared and edited passages (passages from which any complexities have been removed), they rarely, if ever deal with these phenomena. 

5. I have opted to interpret "First" in "First is Missy's room" as the subject, as in "The first." However an equally valid interpretation would be to consider "First" as an adverb and "room" as the subject.

6. I have not counted the many words in this passage that appear in short fragments. They will be considered in Level Three, on clauses. Even at this level, however, teachers might want to note that sentences generally have subjects and finite verbs, and students could be shown how to fix the punctuation in these sentences to eliminate most, if not all, of the fragments. For more on this, see the Essay on Fourth Grader's Writing.
 
 

Progress:
Total Words = 390 Words %
L1: In Prep Phrases  84  22
L1A: + Adj. & Averbs 88 44
L2: + S / V / C 167 87

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