English Year 6

Study Notes 2018/9

English Notes
week 1
 Plural
• Most nouns add –s
Examples: girl – girls, boy – boys, animal – animals
• Nouns ending with a hissing sound add –es
Examples: church – churches, box – boxes, dish – dishes
• Nouns ending in o add –es
Examples: hero – heroes, tomato – tomatoes, potato – potatoes
• Nouns ending with a consonant + y drop the y and add -ies
Examples: fairy – fairies, baby – babies, story – stories
• Most nouns ending in f or fe drop the f/fe and add -ves
Examples: shelf – shelves, thief – thieves, life – lives
• When writing in the plural a becomes some, is becomes are, was
becomes were
English Notes
week 2
 Verbs – The Simple Present Tense
Verbs are words that show action. Actions can happen in the present,
in the past or in the future. We use the simple present tense for
actions that occur regularly, often, occasionally or all the time
(routine).
The simple present tense is often used with words like: usually,
generally, everyday, sometimes, always, etc.
Important: Verbs in the 3rd person singular (he, she, it) in the
present simple tense always end with –s, -es, or -ies
Examples: He plays He watches He tries
She reads She brushes She cries
It barks It goes It fries
Remember: he/she/it has he/she/it is
 Verbs – The Present Continuous Tense
We use the present continuous tense for an action that is occurring
NOW. It shows us an action that is happening at or around the time of
speaking. The action is not finished.
I am + -ing ‘m + -ing I am doing my science project.
He is + -ing ‘s + -ing He is reading a book about planets.
She is + -ing ‘s + -ing She is flying her kite in the garden
It is + -ing ‘s + -ing It is barking his head off.
We are + -ing ‘re + -ing We are having lunch at Pizza Hut.
You are + -ing ‘re + -ing You are running really fast.
They are + -ing ‘re + -ing They are swimming in the pool.
 Verbs – The Present Continuous Tense

Remember:
Verbs ending in e drop come – coming write – writing
the e to take -ing dance – dancing ride – riding

One syllable verbs ending run – running sit - sitting

with (cvc), double the swim – swimming put – putting
last consonant

But y, x and w are never say – saying sew - sewing

doubled fax - faxing

Verbs ending in ie change lie – lying die - dying

the ie to y tie - tying
English Notes
week 3
 Verbs – The Past Tense
We use the past tense when we are talking about something that
happened in the past. For regular verbs we add –ed or –d.
• Yesterday, he played football with his friends.
• Last month, my family moved to Mellieħa.
Present Past Present Past
walk walked race raced
jump jumped smile smiled
call called dance danced
rain rained save saved
push pushed live lived
cook cooked chase chased
Remember: In the past tense, verbs do not add s with he, she and it.
 Verbs – The Past Tense
For irregular verbs, there is a special past tense form.
Present Past Present Past
have had fall fell
swim swam put put
think thought come came
see saw go went
sing sang run ran
eat ate grow grew
drink drank sit sat
begin began feel felt
Remember: In the past tense, am/is become was, are becomes were.
 Verbs – The Past Continuous Tense
We use the past continuous tense to say that somebody was in the
middle of doing something at a certain time. The action or situation
had already started before this time but had not finished.

I was + -ing While I was eating, mum baked a cake.

He was + -ing He was walking home when he met Tom.
She was + -ing She was running when it started raining.
It was + -ing It was drinking when I entered the room.
We were + -ing We were not working when the bell rang.
You were + -ing Were you sleeping?
They were + -ing They were waiting for me when I arrived.
English Notes
week 4
 Verbs – The Future Tense
The future tense indicates that an action is in the future relative to
the speaker or writer. It is a form of the verb that refers to an
action or event that has not yet begun. This can happen this evening,
tomorrow, the day after, next year or even in a matter of minutes.
The future tense employs the helping verbs will or shall followed by
the action word.

I / we / you / they will (‘ll) or shall be

play
He / she / it sing
read
eat
drink
 Verbs – The Future Tense
Remember: When to use shall
 Shall can be used instead of will, with the pronouns I / we
I shall be late tomorrow. OR I will (I`ll) be late tomorrow.

I think we shall win the next OR I think we will (we’ll) win the
league. next league.
 Shall cannot be used with the pronouns you / they / he / she / it
The children (they) will go The children (they) shall go
out and the dog (it) will NOT out and the dog (it) shall
follow. follow.
NOT
 You will collect your ticket  You shall collect your ticket
this evening. this evening.
 Verbs – The Future Tense with “going to”
Going to future expresses a conclusion regarding the immediate
future or an action in the near future that has already been planned
or prepared.
positive negative question

I am going to I am not going Am I going to

I
sing. to sing. sing?

You are going to You are not Are you going to

you / we / they
read. going to read. read?

He is going to He is not going Is he going to

he / she / it
clean. to clean. clean?
English Notes
week 5
 Verbs – The Present Tense Negative
The negative is formed by using the word NOT with the verb.
The present tense negative is :
I / you / we / they do not
(don’t)
verb
He / she / it does not
(doesn’t)
Examples: I play soccer. I do not play soccer.
You have a pet. You do not have a pet.
We read a book. We do not read a book.
They sing a song. They do not sing a song.
He/She/It runs. He/She/It does not run.
 Verbs – The Present Tense Negative
Positive Negative
I like washing the car. I do not (don’t) like washing the car.
You drive very fast. You do not (don’t) drive very fast.
We go abroad every year. We do not (don’t) go abroad every year.
They visit Mellieħa. They do not (don’t) visit Mellieħa.
Peter paints landscapes. Peter does not (doesn’t) paint landscapes.
Sarah speaks French. Sarah does not (doesn’t) speak French.
The cat drinks milk. The cat does not (doesn’t) drink milk.

Remember: In the present tense negative, we drop the –s of the

action word with he/she/it.
English Notes
week 6

Mr. Duncan Mallia

 Verbs – The Past Tense Negative
The negative is formed by using the word NOT with the verb. In the
past tense negative, all pronouns take did not. After did not, write
the verb in the present tense without the s for he/she/it.
The past tense negative is :
I / you / we / they did not verb
he / she / it (didn’t)

Examples: I played tennis. I did not play tennis.

You had a party. You did not have a party.
We bought a car. We did not buy a car.
They saw a kite. They did not see a kite.
He/She/It ate. He/She/It did not eat.
 Verbs – The Past Tense Negative
Positive Negative
I bought a new computer. I did not (didn’t) buy a new computer.
You rode your bicycle. You did not (didn’t) ride your bicycle.
We went to New York. We did not (didn’t) go to New York.
They cleaned their room. They did not (didn’t) clean their room.
Tom drank a cup of tea. Tom did not (didn’t) drink a cup of tea.
Maria spoke to her friend. Maria did not (didn’t) speak to her friend.
The dog barked loudly. The dog did not (didn’t) bark loudly.
Remember: In the past tense negative, was/were become was not
(wasn’t) / were not (weren’t), could becomes could not (couldn’t),
would becomes would not (wouldn’t).
English Notes
week 7

Mr. Duncan Mallia

 Verbs – to be, to have, to do

To be To have To do
Pronouns
present past present past present past
I am was have had do did
you are were have had do did
he is was has had does did
she is was has had does did
it is was has had does did
we are were have had do did
you are were have had do did
they are were have had do did
English Notes
week 8

Mr. Duncan Mallia

 Possessive Adjectives
Subject Pronoun Possessive Adjective
I I have a shirt. My My shirt is green.
You You have a book Your Your book is new.
He He has a pillow. His His pillow is soft.
She She has a dog. Her Her dog is small.
It It has a kennel. Its Its kennel is big.
We We have a bird. Our Our bird is noisy.
You You have a house. Your Your house is old.
They They have a car. Their Their car is slow.
Your = Possessive Adjective E.g. You need to bring your pen.
You’re = You are (contraction) E.g. You’re an excellent student.
Its = Possessive Adjective E.g. The dog played with its ball.
It’s = It is (contraction) E.g. It’s very hot today.
 Possessive Pronouns
A Possessive Pronoun replaces a possessive adjective + noun to avoid
repeating information that is already clear.
E.g. This book is my book, not your book. – This book is mine, not yours.
Possessive Adjective Possessive Pronoun
My My shirt is green. Mine The shirt is mine.
Your Your book is new. Yours The book is yours.
His His pillow is soft. His The pillow is his.
Her Her dog is small. Hers The dog is hers.
Its Its kennel is big. --- We do not use its as a possessive
pronoun.

Our Our bird is noisy. Ours The bird is ours.

Your Your house is old. Yours The house is yours.
Their Their car is slow. Theirs The car is theirs.
Possessive Adjectives and Possessive Pronouns
English Notes
week 9

Mr. Duncan Mallia

 Adverbs
An adverb adds to a verb; it tells us how, how often, when, or where
something was done. In other words, an adverb describes, modifies or
provides more information about a verb in a sentence.
Example:
Ms. Jones is walking cheerfully.

The word ‘cheerfully’ tells us how Ms. Jones was walking.

She could have walked in several ways, such as:

slowly hurriedly happily quickly

All these words describe how she is walking (describe a verb).

So all these words are adverbs.
 Adverbs
Remember:
Most adverbs are formed by adding -ly to the adjectives:

slow - slowly wide - widely brisk - briskly polite - politely

Some adjectives ending in –y change it to -i, before adding –ly to form

the adverb:

easy - easily heavy - heavily lucky - luckily hasty - hastily

Some adjectives drop the -e, before adding -ly to form the adverb:

gentle - gently true - truly humble - humbly wise - wisely

Watch these:

https://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=Zz6B4vmDrsE

https://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=NviAzQfMX2w&t=144s
English Notes
week 10

Mr. Duncan Mallia

 Interrogative Adjectives
The interrogative adjectives are whose, what, and which.
Interrogative adjectives modify nouns and are used in interrogative
sentences (questions).
Examples of Interrogative Adjectives:
Whose car will they give us?
What car will they give us?
Which car will they give us?
The difference between what and which as interrogative adjectives is very
subtle.
What car will they give us? (In this example, the speaker does not know the
choice of cars available. So, you can use what when the options are
unknown.)
Which car will they give us? (In this example, the speaker does know the
choice of cars available.)
 Interrogative Adjectives
Used for persons
who • Who won the game yesterday?
whom • To whom did you give the book?
Used for persons to show possession
whose • Whose car was parked there just now?
• Whose mother works as a nurse in the hospital?
Used for animals and things
what • What animal has horns?
• What is the colour of her hair?
Used for persons, animals and things
which • Which boy took my book just now?
• Which cat stole the fish from the basket?
• Which is the biggest building in the area?
 Demonstrative Adjectives
Demonstrative adjectives are adjectives that are used to modify a noun so
that we know which specific person, place, or thing is mentioned. We use
the words this, that, these and those to point out specific people or things.

This and that - This and that modify singular nouns.

• This is used to point out something that is near by:
"This book I'm holding is very old."
• That is used to point out something that is farther away:
"That mountain looks small because it is so far away."

These and Those - These and those are used for plural nouns.
• These is similar to this, but it is used for nearby plurals:
"These keys are all the wrong size for this door."
• Those is similar to that, but it is used for far away plurals:
"Those taxi drivers we had on holiday were dangerous drivers."
Watch these:

https://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=gI_ygAB10SE

https://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=jVy1HnIwCrc
English Notes
week 11

Mr. Duncan Mallia

 Prepositions
Prepositions are words which link nouns, pronouns and phrases to other
words in a sentence. Prepositions usually describe the position of something,
the time when something happens and the way in which something is done.
The table below shows some examples of how prepositions are used:
Function Sentence
The cat is under the table.
Position He is sitting on the chair.
The pencil is in the box.
The class starts at 8 am.
Time
I am going to Spain on Wednesday.
How Something is Done We travelled by car.
The book belongs to Colin.
Possession
The door of the house is red.
Prepositional Phrases
Watch these:

https://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=_VK-kXkXTBc

https://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=xyMrLQ4ZI-4
English Notes
week 12

Mr. Duncan Mallia

 Conjunctions
A conjunction is a word that joins together words, phrases, or parts
of sentences.

The three most-used conjunctions are and, or, and but.

Conjunctions can join words together, like in this sentence:

I'd like five peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, please.

Conjunctions can also join phrases together, like in this sentence:

Do you want to go down the hill or up the mountain?

Conjunctions also join parts of sentences together, as shown here:

I ran, but the ice cream melted before I got home.
 Conjunctions
There are many conjunctions. Here are some that we use every day:

although because if
since though unless
when where however
therefore whenever while

Sometimes conjunctions are used in pairs, like the ones shown in this
chart:

either / or neither / nor not only / but also

both / and whether / or just as / so
 Conjunctions
Imagine you're at a party. Look around. Conjunctions came to the
party with you!

A couple dancing boy and girl

A girl coming in from the rain soaked but happy
A waiter offering drinks soda or punch?
At the dessert table both cookies and ice cream
The disk jockey offers either fast or slow music
Dress styles you see not only plain but also wild
A guard stopping people at the neither pets nor monsters
door allowed
Watch these:

https://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=k2ug9xr0Ias

https://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=ULew-IgW5sw
English Notes
week 13

Mr. Duncan Mallia

English Notes
week 14

Mr. Duncan Mallia

English Notes
week 15

Mr. Duncan Mallia

English Notes
week 16 - 18

Mr. Duncan Mallia

English Notes
week 19

Mr. Duncan Mallia

English Notes
week 20

Mr. Duncan Mallia

 Adjectives
An adjective is a word that describes or clarifies a noun. Adjectives
describe nouns by giving some information about an object's size,
shape, age, colour, origin or material. Simple words like tall and small
are adjectives commonly used in writing.

You use adjectives to give your nouns a little attitude or to

communicate clearly. The purpose is to give more information so that
the author's meaning is clear to the reader. If you want to add a little
spice and flair to your writing, adjectives can make a dull sentence
come alive.

One can make adverbs from some adjectives by adding the suffix ly
(slides 28-34). For example, take the adjective beautiful, the adverb is
beautifully.
Watch these:

https://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=94cdAyyPj3Q

https://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=PVyNi_DGJ5g
English Notes
week 21

Mr. Duncan Mallia

 Comparative and Superlative of Adjectives
We use the comparative and superlative forms of adjectives to
compare things, people, actions and states in our writing.
• Usually we add the suffixes -er and -est: warm/warmer/warmest
• When the adjective ends in -e we drop it and add -er and -est:
large/larger/largest
• Adjectives that end in one consonant double it before adding -er
and -est: red/redder/reddest
• Adjectives ending in -y change it to i and add -er and -est:
juicy/juicier/juiciest
• Some adjectives use 'more' for the comparative form and 'most'
or the superlative: famous/more famous/most famous
• Some comparative and superlative forms of adjectives are
irregular: bad/worse/worst; much/more/most; well/better/best
A. Add –er and -est
adjective comparative superlative
quick quicker quickest
deep deeper deepest
strong stronger strongest
weak weaker weakest
large larger largest
cheap cheaper cheapest
wide wider widest
B. Double the last letter and add –er and -est

adjective comparative superlative

big bigger biggest
hot hotter hottest
thin thinner thinnest
fat fatter fattest
slim slimmer slimmest
flat flatter flattest
wet wetter wettest
C. Drop the ‘y’ and add –ier and -iest
adjective comparative superlative
noisy noisier noisiest
early earlier earliest
happy happier happiest
dirty dirtier dirtiest
easy easier easiest
funny funnier funniest
heavy heavier heaviest
D. The use of ‘more’ and ‘most’
adjective comparative superlative
active more active most active
charming more charming most charming
cheerful more cheerful most cheerful
delicious more delicious most delicious
beautiful more beautiful most beautiful
famous more famous most famous
intelligent more intelligent most intelligent
Watch this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=jEKV5TBeLfo
English Notes
week 22

Mr. Duncan Mallia

 Punctuation Marks
Punctuation is the name for marks used in writing. These marks help
with understanding. The most common punctuation marks in English
are: capital letters and full stops, question marks, commas, colons and
semi-colons, exclamation marks and quotation marks.
A B C capital letters
. period / full stop
? question mark
! exclamation mark
, comma
: colon
; semi-colon
‘ ’ or “ ” quotation / speech marks
 Capital Letters (ABC) and full stops (.)
We use capital letters to mark the beginning of a sentence and we
use full stops to mark the end of a sentence:
• We went to France last summer. We were really surprised that it was so
easy to travel on the motorways.
• The Football World Cup takes place every four years. The next World
Cup will be held in Russia. In 2014 it was held in Brazil.
• Malta is an archipelago in the central Mediterranean between Sicily and
the North African coast. It has two official languages which are
Maltese and English. The capital city of Malta is Valletta.

We also use capital letters at the beginning of proper nouns. Proper

nouns include personal names (including titles before names),
nationalities and languages, days of the week and months of the year,
public holidays as well as geographical places:
• Dr. David James is an Irish consultant at Leeds City Hospital.
• They are planning a long holiday in New Zealand.
• Can she speak Italian?
• The next meeting of the group will take place on Thursday 15th May.
• What plans do you have for Chinese New Year?

We use capital letters for the titles of books, magazines and

newspapers, plays and music:
• ‘Oliver’ is a musical based on the novel ‘Oliver Twist’ by Charles Dickens.
• The Straits Times is a daily English language newspaper in Singapore.
• They are performing Beethoven’s Sixth Symphony.

In addition to closing sentences, we also use full stops in initials for

personal names and after abbreviations (etc.):
• Prof. G. W. Dwyer
• Dr. David A. Johnston
 Question marks (?) and exclamation marks (!)
We use question marks to make clear that what is said is a question.
When we use a question mark, we do not use a full stop:
• Why do they make so many mistakes?
• So you’re Harry’s cousin?
• How old are you?
• What’s your favourite colour?

We use exclamation marks to indicate an exclamative clause or

expression in informal writing. When we want to emphasise something
in informal writing, we sometimes use more than one exclamation
mark:
• Hi! Hey! Hello!
• Oops! Listen! Hooray!
• Oh no!!! Please don’t ask me to phone her. She’ll talk for hours!!! Lol!
 Commas (,)
We use commas to separate a list of similar words or phrases:
• It’s important to write in clear, simple, accurate words.
• They were more friendly, more talkative, more open than last time
we met them.
We do not normally use a comma before and at the end of a list of
single words:
• They travelled through Bulgaria, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and
Poland.
We use commas to separate words or phrases that mark where the
voice would pause slightly:
• I can’t tell you now. However, all will be revealed tomorrow.
• James, our guide, will accompany you on the boat.
We commonly separate tags and yes-no responses with commas:
• They are going to the party, aren’t they?
• No, thank you. I’ve already eaten too much.

We also usually separate vocatives, discourse markers and

interjections with commas:
• Open the door for them, Kayleigh, can you? Thanks.
• Well, what do you think we should do about it?
• Wow, that sounds really exciting.

We use commas to show that direct speech is following or has just

occurred. When the direct speech is first, we use a comma before the
closing of the quotation/speech marks:
• He said in his opening speech, “Now is the time to plan for the future.”
• “We don’t want to go on holiday to the same place every year,” he said
impatiently.
 Colons (:) and Semi-colons (;)
We use colons to introduce lists:
• There are three main reasons for the success of the government:
economic, social and political.
We also use colons to indicate a subdivision of a topic:
• Life in Provence: A Personal View
We often use colons to introduce direct speech:
• Then he said: “I really cannot help you in any way.”
We use semi-colons instead of full stops to separate two main
clauses. The clauses are related in meaning but are separated
grammatically:
• Spanish is spoken throughout South America; in Brazil the main language
is Portuguese. Semi-colons are not commonly used. Full stops and commas are more common.
 Quotation marks (‘ ’) or (“ ”)
Quotation marks in English are ‘…’ or “…”. In direct speech, we enclose
what is said within a pair of single or double quotation marks. Direct
speech begins with a capital letter and can be preceded by a comma or
a colon:
• She said, “Where can we find a nice Indian restaurant?” or She said:
‘Where can we find a nice Indian restaurant?’
We can put the reporting clause in three different positions. Note
the position of commas and full stops here:
• The fitness trainer said, ‘Don’t try to do too much when you begin.’
(quotation mark after comma introducing speech and after full stop)
• ‘Don’t try to do too much when you begin,’ the fitness trainer said. (comma
before closing quotation mark)
• ‘Don’t try to do too much,’ the fitness trainer said, ‘when you begin.’
(commas separating the reporting clause)
When we use direct speech inside direct speech, we use either single
quotation marks inside double quotation marks, or double quotation
marks inside single quotation marks:
• “It was getting really cold,” he said, “and they were saying ‘When can we
go back home?’”
• Jaya said, ‘They were getting really excited and were shouting “Come
on!”’.
We commonly use question marks inside the quotation marks unless
the question is part of the reporting clause:
• ‘Why don’t they know who is responsible?’ they asked.
• So did they really say ‘We will win every match for the next three
weeks’?
We also use single quotation marks to draw attention to a word:
• I am very disappointed by his ‘apology’. I don’t think he meant it at all.
We sometimes use quotation marks to refer to the titles of books,
newspapers, magazines, films, songs, poems, videos, CDs, etc:
• There’s a special report all about it in ‘The Daily Mail’.

Articles or chapters within books, or titles of short stories, are

normally punctuated by single quotation marks:
• The longest chapter in the book is the last one called ‘The Future of
Africa’.

Watch this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=BgcokHqAXUk
English Notes
week 23

Mr. Duncan Mallia

 Sentence Structure and Types of Sentences
A simple sentence has only one clause:
• The children were laughing.
• John wanted a new bicycle.
• All the girls are learning English.

A compound sentence has two or more clauses:

• (We stayed behind) and (finished the job).
• (We stayed behind) and (finished the job), then (we went home).

The clauses in a compound sentence are joined by co-ordinating

conjunctions:
• John shouted and everybody waved.
• We looked everywhere but we couldn’t find him.
• They are coming by car so they should be here soon.
The common coordinating conjunctions are: and, but, or, so, then, yet
A complex sentence has a main clause and one or more adverbial
clauses.

Adverbial clauses usually come after the main clause:

Her father died when she was very young.
• Her father died (main clause)
• when (subordinating conjunction)
• she was very young (adverbial clause)

She had a difficult childhood because her father died when she was very
young.
• She had a difficult childhood (main clause)
• because (subordinating conjunction)
• her father died (adverbial clause)
• when (subordinating conjunction)
• she was very young (adverbial clause)
Some subordinate clauses can come in front of the main clause:
Although a few snakes are dangerous most of them are quite harmless.
• Although (subordinating conjunction)
• some snakes are dangerous (adverbial clause)
• most of them are harmless (main clause)

A sentence can contain both subordinate and coordinate clauses:

Although she has always lived in France, she speaks fluent English
because her mother was American and her father was Nigerian.
• Although (subordinating conjunction)
• she has always lived in France (adverbial clause)
• she speaks fluent English (main clause)
• because (subordinating conjunction)
• her mother was American (adverbial clause)
• and (coordinating conjunction)
• her father was Nigerian (adverbial clause)
English Notes
week 24

Mr. Duncan Mallia

 Pronouns
Pronouns are words that can be used to take the place of a noun.
Personal pronouns are words that take the place of nouns. They are
used instead of the names of people, places, or things. Think of it like
a football game. When the players on the pitch get tired, the coach
puts in new players and gives the tired players a break. Personal
pronouns are just like the substitute players the coach puts in. They
are giving a noun a break from being constantly used in a person's
writing.
Not only do personal pronouns help a writer to keep their writing
interesting, but they also give information about the noun they are
replacing to include how many, whether a person is male or female, and
who is writing the sentence.
 Pronouns
Person Gender Subject Object
Singular
1st person male/female I me
2nd person male/female you you
3rd person male he him
3rd person female she her
3rd person neutral it it
Plural
1st person male/female we us
2nd person male/female you you
3rd person male/female/neutral they them
 Possessive Adjectives
Subject Pronoun Possessive Adjective
I I have a shirt. My My shirt is green.
You You have a book Your Your book is new.
He He has a pillow. His His pillow is soft.
She She has a dog. Her Her dog is small.
It It has a kennel. Its Its kennel is big.
We We have a bird. Our Our bird is noisy.
You You have a house. Your Your house is old.
They They have a car. Their Their car is slow.
Your = Possessive Adjective E.g. You need to bring your pen.
You’re = You are (contraction) E.g. You’re an excellent student.
Its = Possessive Adjective E.g. The dog played with its ball.
It’s = It is (contraction) E.g. It’s very hot today.
 Possessive Pronouns
A Possessive Pronoun replaces a possessive adjective + noun to avoid
repeating information that is already clear.
E.g. This book is my book, not your book. – This book is mine, not yours.
Possessive Adjective Possessive Pronoun
My My shirt is green. Mine The shirt is mine.
Your Your book is new. Yours The book is yours.
His His pillow is soft. His The pillow is his.
Her Her dog is small. Hers The dog is hers.
Its Its kennel is big. --- We do not use its as a possessive
pronoun.

Our Our bird is noisy. Ours The bird is ours.

Your Your house is old. Yours The house is yours.
Their Their car is slow. Theirs The car is theirs.
Watch these:

https://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=udK8N-ZqSxM

https://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=tHTyYYzQ8qQ
English Notes
week 25

Mr. Duncan Mallia

 Direct and Indirect Speech
We often have to give information about what people say or think. In
order to do this you can use direct or quoted speech, or indirect or
reported speech.
You can answer the question What did he say? in two ways:
• by repeating the words spoken (direct speech)
• by reporting the words spoken (indirect speech).
Direct Speech / Quoted Speech
Direct speech repeats, or quotes, the exact words spoken. When we
use direct speech in writing, we place the words spoken between
quotation marks (“……") and there is no change in these words.
For example:
• She said, "Today's lesson is on presentations."
• "Today's lesson is on presentations", she said.
Indirect Speech / Reported Speech
Indirect speech (sometimes called reported speech), doesn't use
quotation marks to enclose what the person said and it doesn't have
to be word for word.
When reporting speech the tense usually changes. This is because
when we use reported speech, we are usually talking about a time in
the past (because obviously the person who spoke originally spoke in
the past). The verbs therefore usually have to be in the past too.
For example:
Direct Speech: "I'm going to the cinema", he said.
Indirect Speech: He said that he was going to the cinema.
Direct Speech: Lisa said, “I want to meet your parents.”
Indirect Speech: Lisa said that she wanted to meet my parents.
 Basic Rules for Indirect Speech
Rule 1:
Words of the speaker (reported speech) are not enclosed in inverted
commas or quotation marks in indirect speech.

Rule 2:
Usage of the word that: The conjunction that is always used between
reporting verb and reported speech in indirect speech.
For example:
Direct Speech: He said, “I write a letter.”
Indirect Speech: He said that he wrote a letter.
Direct Speech: Ben and Tom said, “We love football.”
Indirect Speech: Ben and Tom said that they loved football.
Rule 3:
Change in tense of the reported speech: A change is made in tense
of reported speech for changing a direct speech into indirect speech.
If the reporting verb (or first sentence) of direct speech is either
Present tense or Future tense, no changes will be made in the
reported speech for making indirect speech. Only if the reporting
verb (or first sentence) of direct speech belongs to the Past tense,
changes will be made in tense reported speech for making indirect
speech.
For example:
Direct Speech: She said, “I am watching a movie.”
Indirect Speech: She said that she was watching a movie.
Direct Speech: He says, “I am playing tennis.”
Indirect Speech: He says that he is playing tennis.
Rule 4:
Changes in Pronoun: The pronoun (or subject) of reported speech is
sometimes changed according to the pronoun (or subject) or object of
the reported verb (first sentence of direct speech). The possessive
pronouns (his, her, my, their, your, etc.) may also change according to
the subject or object of the first sentence.
For example:
Direct Speech: He said, “I eat two apples.”
Indirect Speech: He said that he ate two apples.
Direct Speech: She said to me, “I like your book.”
Indirect Speech: She said to me that she liked my book.
Direct Speech: They said to Maria, “We can see you.”
Indirect Speech: They said to Maria that they could see her.
Rule 5:
Change in Time: If there is time mentioned in the sentence of direct
speech, the time will be changed in indirect speech. There are certain
rules when changing the time.
• yesterday – the previous day
• today – that day
• tomorrow – the next day
For example:
Direct Speech: They said, “We had a party yesterday.”
Indirect Speech: They said that they had party the previous day.
Direct Speech: She said, “I am buying a laptop today.”
Indirect Speech: She said that she was buying a laptop that day.
Direct Speech: He said, “I have a Maths test tomorrow.”
Indirect Speech: He said that he had a Maths test the next day.
Watch this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rcxytsa8CbI
English Notes
week 26

Mr. Duncan Mallia

English idioms and
expressions
 English Idioms and Expressions
Idiom Meaning
I’m green with envy. I’m very jealous.
I’m feeling under the weather. I’m feeling sick.
He’s catching some z’s. He’s sleeping.
He’s a couch potato. He watches too much TV.
She laughed her head off. She laughed and laughed.
Get off your high horse. Stop acting conceited.
Put on your thinking cap. Try to solve a problem.
He has butterflies in his stomach. He’s nervous.
We see eye to eye. We agree.
Don’t cry over spilled milk. Don’t cry over what it can’t be undone.
 English Idioms and Expressions
Idiom Meaning
They’re going bananas. They’re behaving in a crazy way.
She’s down in the dumps. She’s very sad.
She has egg on her face. She’s embarrassed.
She gave me the cold shoulder. She ignored me.
They’re in hot water. They’re in trouble.
It’s raining cats and dogs. It’s raining very hard.
It’s a piece of cake. It’s easy to do.
She’s afraid of her own shadow. She is easily frightened.
His head is in the clouds. He’s daydreaming.
I’m on top of the world. I’m very happy.
 English Idioms and Expressions
Idiom Meaning
He’s all tied up. He’s very busy.
I’m all ears. I’m listening carefully.
The cat’s got her tongue. She’s so shy she can’t speak.
She got cold feet. She lost the courage to act.
Stop pulling my leg. Stop teasing me.
Hold your horses. Be patient.
She’s been hitting the books. She’s been studying hard.
I put my foot in my mouth. I said something I shouldn’t have.
Don’t burry your head in the sand. Don’t ignore things.
Don’t open a can of worms. Don’t start trouble.
 English Idioms and Expressions
Idiom Meaning
Stay on your toes. Pay close attention.
She has a heart of gold. She is a kind, generous person.
Don’t let the cat out of the bag. Don’t tell the secret.
It goes in one ear and out the other. He doesn’t pay attention.
She has ants in her pants. She can’t sit still.
He’s a barrel of laughs. He’s funny.
That knocked my socks off. That was really amazing.
He’s a big cheese. He’s a very important person.
It costs an arm and a leg. It’s expensive.
I had to eat my words. I had to take back what I said.
 Idioms
Some useful links:
https://www.eslbuzz.com/30-english-idioms-commonly-
used-in-daily-conversations/

http://www.smart-words.org/quotes-sayings/idioms-
meaning.html

http://www.idiomsite.com/
English Notes
week 27 - 30

Mr. Duncan Mallia