Hello colleagues, I've noticed that "if ..." clauses seem to quite confusing to a lot of English learners. What has your experience been? I'm wondering if anyone has any creative ideas for how to teach "if ..." clauses. Thanks for any and all suggestions. Resources are welcome, too!
Cheers, Susan Finn Miller
Moderator, English Language Acquisition CoP
Comments
I actually really enjoy teaching conditionals with and without "if." You do have to take it slowly and teach one type at a time, though. Make sure your students have one type down before moving on. Just to make sure we're on the same page, here are the "types" of conditional sentences.
Zero - General Truths - If I drink too much caffeine in the afternoon, I don't sleep well.
First - Future Real - If I drink coffee tonight, I'll be up all night. (But I might have some anyway.)
Second - Future Unreal - If I drank coffee tonight, I would be up all night. (But I know I'm not going to drink any.)
Third - Past Unreal - If I had drunk coffee last night, I wouldn't have slept as well as I did. (But I didn't drink coffee, so I slept pretty well.)
Then I move to the "if-less" version for the last one: Had I drunk coffee last night, I wouldn't have slept well. This Subject-Verb inversion actually causes my students more headaches than the "if-clauses."
It's such a fun thing to teach because there are endless possibilities to "what if." You might want to check out the free Fun with Grammar book on the Azar Grammar website. Unit 16 (downloadable PDF) has a lot of fun ideas for teaching conditionals.
Thanks for a great question!
Glenda
This is great, Glenda! Thanks so much. I can't wait to check out Unit 16 of Fun with Grammar. You are so right that the potential questions are endless with these grammar points and a lot of fun, too.
I totally agree that we should be sure students can produce one form correctly before moving on to the next. We had good luck today with First- Future Real -- If I stay up late watching TV tonight, I will be tired in the morning!
More ideas are welcome, friends!
Cheers, Susan Finn Miller
Moderator, English Language Acquisition CoP
And the mixed unreal conditional, where an action that happened in the past has an effect upon the present: If I had gotten a Ph.D.,I would be making a better salary now. :-)