Countable Versus Uncountable Nouns

Register now & get certified to teach english abroad! Noun Types in English Grammar   Nouns are naming words which make up the most common category of words in the English language. Within this category there are several different types of nouns with specific roles to play.   Nouns are the most common type of word in the English language and therefore make up a large part of EFL language lessons, particularly in lower level classes. As an EFL teacher it is recommended that you have a solid understanding of the different types of nouns so you can help your students make rapid progress in this area of grammar. Common Nouns Common nouns are used to name a GENERAL type of person, place or thing. Common nouns can be divided into smaller classes such as countable and...  [Read more]

Tue, 25 Feb 2020 Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Grammar: How to Teach Nouns Everyone and everything that exists in this world have what it is called or known by, and that automatically is the name of that person or that thing. We can then define a noun as a name given to persons, places, animals, objects, substances, qualities, actions, and measures. Table of Contents CLASSIFICATION OF NOUNS 1. COMMON NOUN: 2. PROPER NOUN: NOTE: 3. COLLECTIVE NOUN: 4. CONCRETE NOUN: 5. ABSTRACT NOUN: 6. UNCOUNTABLE NOUN: 7. COUNTABLE NOUN: Do you want to teach English abroad? Take a TEFL course! Related Articles: This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate NICODEMUS U. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. CLASSIFICATION OF...  [Read more]

English Grammar Overview - Parts of Speech - Nouns   Let's begin our examination of parts of speech with nouns. Nouns are our naming words. They name a person or people, such as Jack, Jill, brother, Prime Minister. We have a place or places such as kitchen, Tokyo. Things or the things around us: pen, light, camera. We have our concepts and ideas: beauty, democracy. These people, things, places and concepts fall into two basic subcategories. Those subcategories are countable and uncountable. As their name suggests, the differentiation here is whether or not we can count our nouns or if we cannot count them. We have our countable nouns: dogs, pens, are two examples. The very nature of the words means that we can count these nouns one dog or 5, 10. Then, we have our uncountable nouns....  [Read more]

Register now & get certified to teach english abroad! How to Use Many, Much, A lot of, and Lots of   The four expressions "many", "much", "a lot of" and "lots of" are widely used but often confused. Let's take a look at their differences and when to use which expression correctly.   How to use "many" in English The word "many" is used with countable, plural nouns in questions and negative sentences. Example Sentences   How to use "much" in English "Much" is used with uncountable nouns to indicate a large quantity. It is mostly used in negative questions or sentences. Example Sentences   How to use "a lot of" in English  A lot of means a large number of amount. It can be used for countable or uncountable nouns (negative, positive and...  [Read more]

Register now & get certified to teach english abroad! Quantifiers in English | A Lot Of, A Few, A Little, A Bit…   What are quantifiers? We use quantifiers (A Lot Of, A Few, A Little, A Bit…) when we want to give information about the number of something: how much or how many. Let's take a look at it below.   Quantifier Definition Quantifiers form a sub-category under determiners. They are adjectives or phrases that answer two possible questions: 1. How many? 2. and How much? For example: a few, a little, much, many, most, some, any, enough, etc., are quantifiers.   How to Use Quantifiers Quantifiers that Describe Quantity Quantifiers that describe quantity include a little, none, a few, etc. Some of these are used only with:   Countable nouns...  [Read more]

Wed, 11 Mar 2020 Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Typical Challenges for Japanese Native Speakers in ESL This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Daisy C. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Table of Contents Grammar Pronunciation Japanese schools Japanese culture Do you want to teach English abroad? Take a TEFL course! Related Articles: Grammar One problem facing many Japanese students learning English is differentiating between countable and uncountable nouns. In the Japanese language, the same word is often used for 'much' and 'many'. In English, 'much' is used to describe countable nouns, and 'many' is used to describe uncountable nouns. A problem facing many EFL learners, especially Japanese learners,...  [Read more]

Register now & get certified to teach english abroad! There Is vs. There Are   We use "there is" and "there are" to say that something exists. The two phrases are often confused so below we take a look at the differences between "there is" and "there are".   We use there is and there are to say that something exists.   Positive Sentences We use "there is" for singular and "there are" for plural.   We also use "there is" with uncountable nouns:   Contractions The contraction of "there is" is "there's". You cannot contract "there are".   Negative Form The negative is formed by putting not after is or are: We almost always use contractions when speaking. The Negative contractions are:   There aren't with ANY When we want to...  [Read more]

Less vs Fewer- English Grammar - Teaching Tips   Here we look at the difference between "less" and "fewer". This set of words is often used incorrectly and we decided to take a closer look at the difference to help you avoid mistakes. The key difference is that the word "less" is used to refer to uncountable things while "fewer" is used to refer to countable things. Keeping this in mind will help you figure out which word to use in all situations. Remember the '10 items or less' line at the supermarket" Well, it's actually a mistake. If you are purchasing several items then these items are countable, which means the checkout should be called the ?10 items or fewer" line. Other examples of the difference between the two words are "I have been to fewer countries than you"...  [Read more]

Tue, 11 Jul 2023 Federico Riva Destinations TEFL Information Alumni Experiences What is Grammar in English - Everything EFL Teachers Need to Know English language grammar has a whole lot of definitions that focus on sound rules, words, sentences, and the combination and interpretation of other elements to make complete sense. To achieve this, the International TEFL and TESOL Training Lessons outline several aspects of the English language, such as parts of speech, present tense, past tense, future tense, phrasal verbs, and passive voice. Table of Contents PARTS OF SPEECH Nouns Pronouns Verbs Adjectives Adverbs Prepositions Conjunctions Gerunds Articles TENSES IN SENTENCES The Present Tenses Past Tenses Future Tenses MODAL AUXILIARY VERBS METHODOLOGIES Conclusion Are you ready to...  [Read more]

Amount vs Number - English Grammar - Teaching Tips   In this video we explain the difference in using "amount" and "number". The word "amount" is used when we want to refer to uncountable commodities such as water, electricity, money etc. Whereas, "number" is used to refer to individual things that are countable such as book, cat, chair etc. In the example "a greater amount of people are going to the gym" the use of "amount" is incorrect because we can count "people". In this case "number" needs to be used. A good example of the use of "amount" is "a greater amount of rain came down in November compared to October". Here "rain" is uncountable so "amount" should be used. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course....  [Read more]

Mon, 29 Mar 2021 Elizaveta Pachina TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas The Most Challenging Aspects in English for Japanese Students Description: When teaching English in Japan, there are a few common problems all learners, young and old, face. Two main issues students face are with grammar, as well as pronouncing and hearing certain sounds. As this course was designed for teaching young learners, in this paper, I will address the issues above and possible solutions as they apply to this age group. Table of Contents Grammar Tricks Pronunciation Tricks Are you ready to teach English abroad or online? Related Articles: Check out what our course grads say in our many video testimonials! This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Rebecca E. Please note that...  [Read more]

Mon, 27 May 2019 William Noble Destinations Teaching Ideas English Speaking and Writing Errors made by Chinese Primary Students I have been an online ESL teacher to Chinese students for over 13 years, mostly with primary students but also with secondary and adult students. I am also a father and have homeschooled my daughter over her primary years. Like many teachers, I've enjoyed teaching at this level of education as it lays the foundation in English. As it set the foundation, my teaching helped students to overcome common errors in production skills, speaking and writing. Teaching both my daughter and Chinese students at the primary level also helped me also to understand the different expectations between first language and second language students. Table of Contents Speaking...  [Read more]

English Grammar Overview - Parts of Speech - Articles   And now we'll have a look at our articles. We can divide articles into these groupings: indefinite, using a or an, definite, using the, and oftentimes referred to as the zero article, is actually the absence of an article all together. With the indefinite article, we use it in a nonspecific way. "This is a pen," it's one of many pens. When using the definite article, we use it in a specific way. "This is the pen I'm using." We also use the indefinite article when mentioning something for the first time. "I have a boy and a girl." We use the definite article when mentioning that same thing an additional time or any additional times we mention it. So "I have a boy and a girl. The boy is eight and the girl is six." With the zero...  [Read more]

Organizations Recommended TEFL Check out tefl tesol about Organizations Recommended TEFL and apply today to be certified to teach English abroad. You could also be interested in: This is how our TEFL graduates feel they have gained from their course, and how they plan to put into action what they learned: Check out ITTT's Blog Posts E.B - Japan said: Problems for learners in JapanIn the present article I will offer an opinion about the origins of the difficulties that japanese learners face while studying English. The potential range of the topic is so broad that would require hundreds of pages to be discussed exhaustively. I will therefore concentrate my attention on three major issue: the impact of modern history on the japanese psychology, the introduction of English words in modern...  [Read more]

Wed, 05 Feb 2020 Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas The Struggles of Teaching Difficult English Language Patterns There are many different types of peculiarities when concerning the English language, and this essay is aimed at the difficulties in teaching those peculiarities to learners that are not fluent in the English language. It can be difficult for native English speakers to progressively learn the subtle nuances as children graduating to young adults and navigating complexities of the language as adults; deciphering whether or not these peculiarities warrant further investigation or retention based on usage and context. These oddities of the English language can be exponentially more difficult for those attempting to learn the English language as a second language, having fully...  [Read more]

Tue, 04 Dec 2018 Linda Dunsmore Teaching Ideas 4 Super Easy Tips for Teaching Vocabulary to Young Learners When students hear 'vocabulary', they may expect to hear the word 'list' next. More often than not, we associate the word 'list' with 'boring'! We think of 2 daunting columns of black letters on white paper: one with the native language and one with the target language. But it doesn't have to be that way, and for teaching young learners, it cannot be that way. Certainly, teaching vocabulary will involve lists that help learners to receive language methodically and thoroughly. But what a teacher does with the vocabulary lists can be creative and fun and, most of all, memorable! Table of Contents Using Visuals - Loads of Them! Teaching Vocabulary Using the ESA Methodology Acting...  [Read more]

Mon, 24 Jun 2019 Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Historical Reasons for The English Diversity British versus American English is a subject that encompasses a number of fields, including linguistics, history, archaeology, geography, and the study of the history of the English language. British English has a deep foundation that stretches back into time to the advent of the Indo-Europeans, and while America can claim this as well, the language was, for the most part, very close to its modern form by the age of exploration. That being said, many archaic forms of words and grammar were still in use during the age of exploration and spelling was not standardized when the great voyages and colonization of the Americas began. Table of Contents Historical Changes Spoken English...  [Read more]

Thu, 04 Apr 2019 Jon ITTT Alumni Experiences 3 Important Reasons to Complete a TEFL Course A few weeks ago, I was pondering on what was required for me to have a successful TEFL teaching career. I came to the conclusion that I needed to start from the beginning and complete a TEFL course. There were many different TEFL courses being offered on several websites. I compared several different TEFL courses and finally decided on the TEFL course offered by the International TEFL and TESOL Training (ITTT), as it appeared to provide the best overall value in terms of quality, rating, resources, and cost. For a beginner TEFL teacher, I think there are several advantages for completing the TEFL course. First, it provides me with the essential teaching tools and materials that I will need to...  [Read more]

Thu, 30 Jan 2020 Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas The Teaching Craftsmanship: My Experience Teaching English in Russia Imagine you are a teacher of English, working in Russia. Your students are a small group of preschoolers starting their educational journey for the first time. It's September and the first day of school. All the children are dressed like little dolls. Parents quietly placed flowers on your desk in the morning, a traditional act of respect. Autumn is in the air, days are getting shorter, and the native birch trees are itching to turn golden yellow. Many Russians know this is the calling, the calling of long nights and snow-filled landscapes. Table of Contents How to accumulate a prescribed theme into your teaching syllabus Using modern tools Further ideas for...  [Read more]

Dates Combined TEFL Check out tefl tesol about Dates Combined TEFL and apply today to be certified to teach English abroad. You could also be interested in: This is how our TEFL graduates feel they have gained from their course, and how they plan to put into action what they learned: Check out ITTT's Blog Posts B.W. China said: Pronunciation Problems for students in ChinaIn china there is not just one language, but a few different dialects including Mandarin (spoken by about 70% of the population) plus Cantonese, Taiwanese and Wu. English and chinese belong to two different language families and are significantly different. Firstly, unlike English, chinese doesn?t have an alphabet and uses a logographic system for its written language. These are symbols, which represent words. Because...  [Read more]