Steve Elliott appealed to teachers' inner desire for structure and consistency when he described what the AP Stylebook has to offer. He offered practical tips for teaching the Stylebook and suggestions for making grammar fun.
With 480 pages of information, the Stylebook can be daunting, anxiety-inducing, and downright scary. As much as I desperately wanted to teach my students AP style, I had no idea where to begin. I simply resorted to throwing – well, handing – the book to students and asking them to find the rule. This is not recommended, and is not effective in the least.
Elliott’s approach to teaching the AP style is incredibly simple. There are 2 pages in the book – the Quick Reference Guide – that act as a checklist as must-know items for students. The gem of this presentation was Elliott’s advice that the best way to teach style and grammar is to have fun pointing out errors. Look at errors in a way that students will never forget the rule.
I no longer fear teaching the AP style and grammar. The Mr. Rewrite blog and videos make grammar and style fun. I’ve even been inspired to create a FAIL bulletin board where students can post gaffes, be it their own or something from another publication or source. By teaching students to look for errors, I believe that they are less likely to create them.
There is no way, however, that one will catch me using a red pen. I have principals. principles.
Lynsie Brenner
Putnam City North High School
Oklahoma City, Okla.
I was eager to see how Steve would make grammar 'come alive' and he did. The point he made about making the mistakes and the instruction memorable really stood out to me. Sometimes we have to go over the top to get the point across.
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