今天我真诚地给大家推荐一套适合中国成年人自学的美国英语教材:语境中的语法,英文书名叫:Grammar in Context。它封面是这样子的:
全套书分为初级、中级、高级三册,每册开本889×1194 1/16。
虽然中文名为《美国英语语法》,但其英语书名更体现它有内涵:语境中的语法,这也是我推荐它的原因。针对每一个语法项目,课本用一篇含相应语法内容的文章入手,展开语言点和配套练习。
如第一课“一般现在时的Be”,先是呈现一幅美州地图,认识美国在美洲的位置。
再引入一篇介绍美国的文章。
The United States
The United States is a big country. There are 50 states in the U.S. Forty-eight states are on the mainland. Two states are far from the mainland Alaska and Hawaii. Alaska is the largest state. It is northwest of Canada. Hawaii is in the Pacific Ocean. This state is a group of small islands.
Washington is a state. It is in the northwest. Washington, D.C., is not a state. It is a special government district. It is on the east coast. It is the capital of the U.S. The White House is in Washington, D. C. The White House is the home of the President. Most states in the eastern part of the U.S. are small. Most states in the West and Southwest are large. The biggest city in the U.S. is New York. Other big cities are Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, and Boston.
Puerto Rico is not a state. It is a territory of the U.S. It is an island in the Caribbean Sea. Puerto Ricans are citizens of the U.S. The languages of Puerto Rico are Spanish and English.
文中每课的语法重点都用粗体字标明,随后的讲解与练习也根据文章内容展开,再配套一幅美国行政区域图帮助加深理解课文。
接下来的语法要点有:
1.1 Forms of Be: is, am, are的用法及同步练习;
1.2 Uses of Be: 接形容词起描绘性作用、接名词起分类和定义的作用、接介词+方位词表地点、接地点名词表产地或出处。A is B句型还可表年龄、天气、时间等等。
1.3 Word order of B: Be句型的句子结构。
1.4 The subject (of Be): Be句型的主语。
每个语法要点讲解后的练习在此省略。
后面还有另外两篇课文引出“一般现在时be"用法的其它语言知识点。
本书作者Sandra N. Elbaum 致力于ESL语言教学,也就是把英语当作第二语言学习、大多数是青少年和成年人的教学。虽然中国大多数英语学习者没有第二语言学习者那么多的口语运用环境,本书的编制模式符合我对外语学习的认知思路:没读过的不听、没听过的不说、没说过的不写。
《语境中的语法》说是语法,它对语言知识的引入也是从语言运用实际的篇章入手,而不是初学阶段只是:This is a pen. That is a pencil.等简单句型,这样学以致用,更适应二语和外语学习者的需求。
它置身于美国语言文化这个大环境的语篇之中;也有很多口语练习,但都是安排在读懂文章、弄懂语法的基础上进行的,这就是我极力推崇这套教材的原因。
强烈建议有志自学英语的朋友关注这套教材。如果不涉及知识产权,我将陆续发布相关内容的讲解和练习。