KISS Grammar

in One Year:
An Instructional Design
for Working
with Middle School Students

The Magic Circle

c.1886
Tate Gallery at London
by
John W. Waterhouse
(1849-1917)

Free, from the KISS Grammar Web Site

http://www.kissgrammar.org/kiss/wb/LPlans/One_Year_Middle_School.htm
Edward A. Vavra
2013

Table of Contents
Section 1 - KISS Level 1.1 - Identifying Subjects and Verbs
Section 2 - KISS Level 1. 2 - Adding Nouns, Pronouns, Adjectives, Adverbs, and Phrases
Section 3 - KISS Level 1. 3 - Adding Complements (PA, PN, IO, DO)

Section 1

KISS Level 1.1

Identifying Subjects and Verbs

Education is
Everything
(Detail)
1780

What Is a Sentence?

Jean-Honore
Fragonard
(1732-1806)

A simple sentence is a group of words that names something and then says
something about what it has named. Because the thing that is named is what the sentence
is about, grammarians call it the subject. The most important words that say
something about the subject are called verbs. In the following sentence, the subject is
in green and is underlined once. The verb is in blue and is underlined twice.
Birds fly.
Note that some sentences say something by asking a question about the subject.
Do birds fly?
In longer sentences, we speak of subject and verb phrases. In
The little words are the most difficult.
words is the subject, but because the words The and little go with words, we

can call The little words the subject phrase. Similarly, the most difficult go with
are, so we can call are the most difficult a verb phrase. A phrase, in other words, is a
group of words that does not contain both a subject and a verb that says something about
the subject.
The following are examples of sentences:
April is the cruelest month.
Is April the cruelest month?
Bert likes baseball.
Does Bert like baseball?

Sarah was going to the museum.

Swimming can be good exercise.
Jane will have to work on Friday
The book was written by a child.

The following are examples of phrases:

around the house
the bright, beautiful sun
going to the store

swimming in the pond.

were lonely and sad
on the table

There are thousands of verbs in English, and learning to recognize them is probably
the hardest part of understanding grammar. The next few exercises will help you. You
4

will be expected to make some mistakes, but the next lessons will introduce you to some
verbs that you will be expected to always recognize correctly.
Note that many sentences will have more than one subject/verb pattern:
At supper, the food was passed around, and the glasses clashedtogether
till they rang again; while before the town-gate the mail-coachstopped with
twelve strange passengers.
Simply find a verb or verb phrase, find its subject, and then check for another verb and
its subject until there are no more verbs in the sentence. Then go to the next sentence.

Is It a Sentence?
Adapted from Voyages

in English - Fifth Year

by Rev. Paul E. Campbell and Sister Mary Donatus MacNickle

Directions: Which of the following are sentences? Draw a line through each of the following that is
NOT a sentence. In the sentences:
1. complete the punctuation with a period for a statement or a question mark for a question;
2. underline the subject once, and the verb twice.

1. Tom lives in the mountains

2. The squirrel up the tree
3. The boat down the river
4. I saw the elephant
5. Rose studied her lesson
6. Food everywhere
7. I hear sweet music
8. The Scouts built a fire
9. Flying a kite
10. The poems of Joyce Kilmer
11. The book in the library
12. Several boys helped him
13. They keep the streets clean
14. Along the muddy road
15. The fire engines whizzed by
16. To write a book
17. James good manners
18. George did the work
19. Mary caught a fish
20. Tom playing baseball

Fillette au
Grand Chapeau
1908
by

Single-Word Verbs

Mary Cassatt
(1844-1926)

Many verbs express action that is performed by the subject. There are thousands
of such verbs in English. The following are examples.
Ginger wrote a story.
Bill argued with his friend.
They went on a trip.
Paula kept a diary.

Lance flew an airplane.

Anthony rode in one.
We built a snowman.
My father paints houses.

Some common words do not express action, but they always function as verbs
and therefore should always be underlined twice. The most common of these describe
a "state of being." Most of these verbs are forms of the verb "to be" -- "am," "is," "are,"
"was," and "were." When used alone, these verbs state what the subject is, what kind of
thing it is, or where it is:
Mysha was our cat.
Their neighbor is nice
I am in the garden.
Other words that are always verbs and that express "state of being" are "seem,"
"resemble," and "become."
The baby seems hungry.
That store resembles a barn.
The weather became nasty.
If you remember not just these words, but what the words mean, you should be able to
recognize many other verbs. For example, "The weather turned nasty" means that the
weather became nasty. Because "turned" means "became," it functions as a verb and
should be underlined twice.
The words "has" and "had" are always verbs, as is "have" (unless it follows the word
"to" -- you'll learn more about that later).
Margaret has Ted's book.
The walls have pictures on them.
There are more words that function only as verbs. You'll learn about many of them in
later lessons. For now, you need to remember that:
"Am," "is," "are," "was," "were," and "has," "had," and "have" (unless it
follows "to") are always verbs that you should underline twice.

Single-Word Verbs
from

Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities

Directions: Underline every verb twice, and its subject(s) once.

1. Charles Darnay was a free traveller and French citizen.

2. "Business seems bad?"
3. He is not worthy of such a daughter.
4. Its little heaps of poor grass were undistinguishable from one another.
5. So we are not much alike in that particular.
6. The Doctor looked desolately round the room.
7. "Detestation of the high is the involuntary homage of the low."
8. Saint Antoine wrote his crimes on flaring sheets of paper.
9. "I am a mere dull man of business, and you are a woman of business."
10. In the village, taxers and taxed were fast asleep.
11. That's an excellent card.
12. I am a disappointed drudge, sir.
13. "Mr. Jarvis Lorry, are you a clerk in Tellson's bank?"
14. The prison of La Force was a gloomy prison.
15. Six tumbrils carry the day's wine to La Guillotine.

Eight Verbs to Remember

Without checking back, list the eight words that are always verbs:
1.______________________________

5.______________________________

2.______________________________

6.______________________________

3.______________________________

7.______________________________

4.______________________________

8.______________________________

Helping

Verbs

Illustration by Kate Greenaway

Some verbs help other verbs express differences in time or emphasis.

The results are "verb phrases." For examples:
Past
They were playing.
Bobby was playing.
Bobby had been
playing.
Bobby did play.
Bobby has played.
Bobby was going to
play.

Present
I am playing.
We are playing.
You are playing.
Bobby is playing.
Bobby does play.

Future
I will have to play.
You will play.
Bobby will play.
Bobby will be playing.
Bobby will have been playing.

These helpers are usually forms of the verbs:

be:

is, are, was, were, am, be, being, been

have:

have, has, had

do:
do, does, did, done
Note that "will," "going to," and "used to" are also used as parts of a verb
phrase:
Sam will play tomorrow.
They were going to play baseball.
Toni also used to play baseball.
When you underline verbs, be sure to underline all the helping verbs in the
verb phrase.

Identifying Verb Phrases - (Tenses)

from

Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities

Directions: Underline every verb twice, and its subject(s) once.

Note that some of these include more than one S/V pattern.
1. Why did you come to France?
2. The fallen and unfortunate King of France had been upon his
throne in all his glory.
3. He will be judged at Paris.
4. I should have to pass the night at Tellson's.
5. Jerry has been my bodyguard on Sunday nights for a long time
past and I am used to him.
6. "What have YOU got to do with it, then, if a person may inquire?"
7. I am going to send you on to Paris, under an escort.
8. Charles had had to pay heavily for his bad food, and for his guard.
9. He should have been declared a good citizen at Paris.
10. Mr. Attorney-General had to inform the jury, that the prisoner
before them was old in the treasonable practices.

10

"Helping" Verbs (Modal)

Illustration by Blanche Fisher Wright

As you try to identify verb phrases, remember that the following words often function
as "helping" verbs and are thus part of the verb phrase.
Can and Could

They can see the parade from here.

But Samantha could see it from there.

Dare

Do they dare go to the cemetery?

May and Must

Charlie Brown may have seen the Great Pumpkin.

Charlie, you must not kick that football.

Might

You might see Venus on a clear night.

Need

They need only ask for help.

Ought

Bobby ought to practice more if he wants to be a better player.

Shall and Should

Cinderella shall not go to the ball.

You should read more fairy tales.

Will and Would

Cinderella, you will go to the ball.

A fairy Godmother would be a big help.

Note that "had better" means the same as "should":

They should weed the garden.
They had better weed the garden.
Thus "better" is considered part of the verb phrase.

11

Identifying Verb Phrases - (Modal)

from

Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities

Directions: Underline every verb twice, and its subject(s) once.

Note that some of these include more than one S/V pattern.
1. "I can buy pen, ink, and paper?"
2. No man could have said, that night, any more than Mr. Jarvis Lorry
could.
3. I dare not confide to him the details of my projects.
4. "He may not have known of it beforehand," said Mr. Lorry.
5. She must have told his brother.
6. Their escape might depend on the saving of only a few seconds
here and there.
7. Why need you tell me what I have not asked?
8. We ought to have six score a day.
9. Your suspense is nearly ended, my darling; he shall be restored to
you within a few hours; I have encompassed him with every
protection. I must see Lorry.
10. "If I should prowl about the streets a long time, don't be uneasy;
I shall reappear in the morning."
11. I had better not see her.
12. Some of us will have a secret attraction to the disease.
13. It would seem to be always the same question.

12

Other Helping Verbs

Illustration by Blanche Fisher Wright

Some helping verbs show the beginning, continuation, or ending of an action.

For example:
begin

He will begin to swim in the morning.

They began playing the game (C).
start
Bobby is starting to draw a picture (C).
Sandi started reading a story (C).
continue
The rabbit continued to run away.
Blackie Crow will continue to fly high in the sky.
keep (on)
Bobtail kept on eating nuts (C).
Bobby will keep climbing into the trees.
stop
Mrs. Duck stopped swimming in the pond.
They will stop playing soon.
Other helping verbs show an attitude toward an action. For example:
like
love
hate
want
try

Sammy Squirrel likes eating nuts (C).

Would you like to go to the park?
The ducks love to swim.
Bobtail does not love flying.
Children hate to go to bed early.
Bobtail hates flying.
Blackie Crow will want to fly to the party.
Bobby will try to fly too.

13

Other Helping Verbs

from

Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities

Directions: Underline every verb twice, and its subject(s) once.

Note that some of these include more than one S/V pattern.
1. Then the piercing shrieks would begin again, and she would repeat
the cry.
2. He tried to prepare himself in vain.
3. They continued to cry.
4. The shadows of the wintry afternoon were beginning to fall.
5. I should like to ask you:--Does your childhood seem far off?
6. The road-mender tried to get a peep at secret weapons in his breast.
7. "I begin to think I AM faint."
8. They continued to be uttered in their regular succession, with the
cry, "My husband, my father, and my brother!"
9. And now, Sydney, old boy, I want to say a word to YOU about
YOUR prospects.
10. "I little thought," said Miss Pross, "that I should ever want to
understand your nonsensical language."

14

More Practice with Helping Verbs

from

Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities

Directions: Underline every verb twice, and its subject(s) once.

Note that some of these include more than one S/V pattern.
1. Mr. Cruncher all this time had been putting on his clothes.
2. This must be kept secret from Lucie.
3. We had better go in.
4. I should have been much the same sort of fellow, if I had had any luck.
5. I am going to tell you something that will rather surprise you.
6. The real wickedness and guilt of his business might have remained
undiscovered.
7. "Well! you have been present all day, and you ought to know."
8. It could scarcely be called a trade, in spite of his favourite description
of himself as "a honest tradesman."
9. That abominable place would have been haunted in a most ghastly
manner.
10. His shirt was open at the throat, as it used to be when he did that
work.

15

Fill in the Blanks with Interesting Verbs

From Rip Van Winkle

Illustration
by
N. C. Wyeth

Directions: Fill in the blanks with interesting verbs.

1. To his astonishment a mountain stream was now _______________

down the gully.
2. At the foot of these mountains, the voyager may have _______________
the light smoke that _______________ up from a village, whose shingle roofs
_______________ among the trees.
3. The birds were _______________ and _______________ among the
bushes, and the eagle was _______________ aloft, and _______________
the pure mountain breeze.
4. Once upon a time, however, a hunter who had _______________ his way
_______________ to the Garden Rock, where he _______________ a
number of gourds in the crotches of trees.
5. A great stream _______________ forth, which _______________ him
away and _______________ him down precipices, where he was
_______________ to pieces.
6. Peter Vanderdonk _______________ Rip at once, and _______________
his story in the most satisfactory manner.

16

The Opening of "The Cask of Amontillado"

-- Edgar Allan Poe

Directions: Underline every verb twice, its subject(s) once.

Note that you are working with an original complete passage that includes words that you are not
expected to get right. For example, "settled" and "to make himself felt" are not verbs that should be
underlined twice. (You will learn how to explain them in later KISS levels.)

The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could; but when he
ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge. You, who so well know the nature of my soul,
will not suppose, however, that I gave utterance to a threat. At length I would be
avenged; this was a point definitively settled but the very definitiveness with which it
was resolved, precluded the idea of risk. I must not only punish, but punish with
impunity. A wrong is unredressed when retribution overtakes its redresser. It is equally
unredressed when the avenger fails to make himself felt as such to him who has done the
wrong.

17

Section 2

KISS Level 1. 2.
Adding Nouns, Pronouns, Adjectives, Adverbs, and Phrases

18

Vincent van Gogh's

(1853-1890)

Identifying Nouns and Pronouns

Self-Portrait
with Bandaged Ear
1889

Nouns
Words that name people, places, or things are nouns:
dad, sister, friend, Mr. Jones,
park, school, New York,
tree, apple, car, air, idea, health
Note that many nouns name things that you can see, but others name things such as
"air," "idea," or "health" that cannot be seen.

Pronouns
Pronouns are words that act like nouns but do not name specific people, places, or
things. They are often used to take the place of nouns:
Karla and George went to the store.
They went to the store.
Pronouns can stand in for a noun anywhere in a sentence.
The following words can be pronouns. You need not remember the top row
("Subjects," etc.). It is there to suggest how the different pronouns function in sentences.
Subjects

Objects

Possessive

Intensive

I
we
you
he
she
it
they
who

me
us
(you)
him
her
(it)
them
whom

mine
ours
yours
his
hers
its
theirs

myself
ourselves
yourself (yourselves)
himself
herself
itself
themselves

19

Other words that can be pronouns are:

which, what, this, that
some, someone, something, somebody
any, anyone, anything, anybody
Some of these words, like "his," her," "this," "that," "some," or "any" can be pronouns,
but sometimes they function as adjectives:
Where is his book?
His is in the car.
This tastes good (PA).
This ice cream tastes good (PA).
Similarly, some words can be nouns or verbs. The real test is how a word functions in
a sentence. "Fish," for example, can be a noun or a verb:
Noun:

The fish were swimming in the pond.

They were watching the fish (DO).

Verb:

Billy and Jane fish in the pond.

20

Identifying Nouns and Pronouns

From Alice in Wonderland
by Lewis Carroll

Illustration
by
Arthur
Rackham

Directions:
1. Underline verbs twice, subjects once.
2. Then put a circle around each noun and a rectangle around each pronoun.

1. She had succeeded in bringing herself down to her usual height.

2. "What do you mean by that?" said the Caterpillar, sternly. "Explain yourself!"
3. The judge, by the way, was the King and he wore his crown over his great wig.
4. She waited for some time without hearing anything more.
5. Oh, my poor little feet, I wonder who will put on your shoes and stockings for you
now, dears?
6. "Let us get to the shore and then I'll tell you my history."
7. She looked up, but it was all dark overhead; before her was another long passage and
the White Rabbit was still in sight.
8. "Mouse dear! Do come back again, and we won't talk about cats, or dogs either, if
you don't like them!"
9. "That's the jury-box," thought Alice; "and those twelve creatures (some were animals
and some were birds) I suppose they are the jurors."
10. "It matters a good deal to me," said Alice hastily; "but I'm not looking for eggs, as it
happens, and if I was, I shouldn't want yours -- I don't like them raw."

21

22

Adjectives and Adverbs

Adjectives and adverbs describe (modify the meaning of) other words in a
sentence. Adjectives modify nouns or pronouns. Therefore:

A word (or construction) that describes a noun or

pronoun functions as (and therefore is) an adjective.
Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs. Therefore:

A word (or construction) that describes a verb, an

adjective, or another adverb functions as (and
therefore is) an adverb.
"A," "an," and "the" always function as
adjectives."A" and "an" indicate that the word modified
refers to anything named by the noun or to something that
is not specifically known to the person spoken to.
For example, "A man never cries," means that any man
never cries. In "A man was walking down the road," the
speaker or writer implies that the person hearing or
reading does not know the identity of the man. On the
other hand, "The man was walking down the road," means
that the people hearing or reading already know which
man is being talked or written about.

In order to tell if a word is an adjective or an adverb, you must first look at

the word in the context of a sentence. Thus, in the sentence
The little swan proudly blew his trumpet.
"The" and "little" are adjectives because they describe the noun "swan."
"Proudly" describes how he "blew." Since "blew" is a verb, "proudly" is an
adverb. Similarly, "his" describes the noun "trumpet," so "his" is an adjective.

23

Adding Adjectives and Adverbs

From "The Blue Hotel"
by Stephen Crane
Directions:
1. Underline every subject once and every verb twice.
2. Put a box around every adjective and draw an arrow from it to the word it modifies.
3. Make an oval around every adverb and draw an arrow from it to the word it modifies.
1. He wore a heavy fur cap squeezed tightly down on his head.
2. He looked anxiously down into the bloody, pulpy face of his son.
3. The dazzling winter landscape of Nebraska seemed only a gray
swampish hush.
4. Afterwards they went to the first room, sat about the stove, and
listened to Scully's officious clamor at his daughters.
5. Instantly the men in some subtle way incased themselves in reserve.
6. The Swede, however, merely dipped his fingers in the cold water
gingerly and with trepidation.
7. Scully's wrinkled visage showed grimly in the light of the small lamp.
8. The Swede answered him swiftly and eagerly.
9. They trudged off over the creaking board sidewalks in the wake of
the eager little Irishman.
10. Presently he backed clumsily from under the bed, dragging with
him an old coat.

24

Fill in the Blanks

with Verbs, Adjectives or Adverbs
From "The Blue Hotel," by Stephen Crane
Directions:
1. Fill in the blanks with interesting verbs, adjectives, or adverbs.
2. Underline subjects once and verbs twice.
1. _____(Adv)_____, he _____(Verb)_____ from face to face and
_____(Verb)_____ _____(Adv)_____.
2. The men _____(Verb)_____ _____(Adv)______ ____(Adv)_____
into the front-room.
3. The cowboy _____(Verb)_____ his _____(Adj)_____ legs
_____(Adv)_____and_____(Adv)_____.
4. Scully _____(Verb)_____ his hand _____(Adv)_____ on the
foot-board of the bed.
5. He was _____(Adv)_____ _____(Verb)_____ the _____(Adj)_____
blood-stains on the face of the Swede.
6. Johnnie _____(Adv)_____ _____(Verb)_____ himself in a
_____(Adv)______ ____(Adj)_____ attitude, and then
_____(Verb)_____ motionless.
7. His _____(Adj)_____ and _____(Adj)_____ eyes
_____(Verb)_____ from face to face.
8. With a _____(Adj)_____ and _____(Adj)_____ air, the cowboy
was _____(Verb)_____ one hand through his _____(Adj)_____ locks.
9. The newspaper, as he turned from page to page, _____(Verb)_____
with a _____(Adj)_____ and _____(Adj)_____ sound.
10. The Swede _____(Adv)__________(Verb)_____ to a
_____(Adj)__________(Adj)_____ tree and _____(Verb)_____
upon it.

25

Study:
At a
Reading Desk
1877
by
Fredrick Lord
Leighton
(1830-1896)

What is a "Phrase"?

A "phrase" is a group of words that work together as one. Adjectives, for example,
modifying nouns and by doing so form noun phrases:
the old fir tree

Similarly, adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs, and by doing so they form
phrases:
came quickly
very beautiful
too slowly
Phrases grow as more words are added to them or as they connect to other words.
Phrases are named by the most important word in them. Thus
Verb phrases
Adjectival phrases
Adverbial phrases

very beautiful house

is called a noun phrase because the "very" modifies "beautiful," and "beautiful" modifies
the noun "house."
Two Ways of Looking at Sentences -- Modification and Chunking
When we talk about "modification," we are looking at the way a word modifies, or
affects the meaning of the word it modifies. There is, however, another important way of
looking at sentences. Almost every word in every sentence connects to another word (or
construction) in its sentence until all these words end up connected to a main subject and
verb in the sentence. Linguists (people who study how language works) call this
connecting "chunking." You will be learning more about this later, but for now we are
simply interested in adjectival and adverbial phrases. Consider the following sentence:
The little boy runs very quickly.

The adjectives "The" and "little" modify (and thus chunk to) the noun "boy." In other
words, they form a noun phrase that functions as the subject of the sentence. Similarly,
the adverb "very" modifies (chunks to) the adverb "quickly," and "quickly" modifies
(chunks to) the verb "runs." They thus form a verb phrase that functions as the verb in
the sentence.
About these Exercises on Phrases
The following exercises ask you to focus on noun and verb phrases. You really do not
26

want to work with simple sentences such as "The little boy runs very quickly." You can
do better than that. Therefore the sentences in the exercises are more complicated. The
directions for all these exercises are:
1. Underline every subject once and every verb twice.
2. Label every noun (N), every pronoun (PRN), adjective (J), and adverb (A).
3. Draw a box around every noun phrase and an oval around every verb phrase.
4. If parts of a phrase are separated by other words, draw a line to connect from box
to box or from oval to oval to connect the parts of the phrase.

The exercises include some words that function in ways that you have not studied yet. In
the exercises, these words are in bold. For these exercises, you should simply ignore
those words. For example,
In return Simon gave them a place to sleep on the floor of the attic.
In this sentence, "In," "to sleep on," and "of" are in bold, so you should ignore them.
Having completed KISS Level 1.1, you should be able to identify "Simon gave" as a
subject and verb.
Next you have to label every noun, pronoun, adjective, and adverb. You will need to
do some thinking, but remember that you are expected to make some mistakes.
"Return," for example, could be a verb, but here it does not have a subject, so it probably
functions as a noun. You should easily recognize "them" as a pronoun. Similarly, "a" and
"the" are always adjectives. After you follow direction number two, your paper should
look something like:
In return (N) Simon (N) gave them (PRN) a (J) place (N) to sleep onthe (J)
floor (N) of the (J) attic (N).
The nouns "return" "Simon" are not modified, so they are simple nouns, but "place,"
"floor," and "attic" are modified, so you should have boxes around three noun phrases:
"a place," "the floor," and "the attic."
Split phrases
Sometimes, modifiers are separated from the words they modify. For example:
Maybe she will give me a new red coat.

In this sentence, "Maybe" modifies (chunks to) "will give." In cases like this, draw an
oval (because "maybe" is an adverb) around "Maybe" and around "will give." Connect
the two ovals with a curved line.
Dr. Vavra, the developer of KISS Grammar, truly believes that you are smart and can
find the noun and verb phrases in even more complicated sentences. The following
examples include constructions that you will be learning about later, not only in KISS
Level 1, but also in KISS Level 3.
More than one subject or verb -- "and"
You may have already seen subjects that have more than one verb and verbs that have
27

more than one subject. Technically, these are called "compounds." They are the focus of
KISS Level 1.4, and they are usually joined by "and." For now, simply remember to look
for all the subjects that go with a verb and for all the verbs that go with a subject. (Note
that the "and" in the following sentence is in bold. You are not expected to explain it, but
you should be able to identify both of the subjects of "hurried."
The Fairies and the Goblins hurried to the kitchen in the hollow.
Multiple subject/verb patterns
As in the following example, many sentences have more than one subject/verb
pattern. A subject/verb pattern and all the phrases that chunk to it is called a "clause."
You will be studying clauses in KISS Level 3. For now, simply remember to look for all
the subject/verb patterns in a sentence.
"You speak truly, brother," said another tree.
Note that the example includes the word "brother." You have not yet studied the function
of "brother," but you should be able to identify it as a noun.

Remember -- being smart does not mean that you will not make mistakes. Smart
people make lots of mistakes -- and they learn from them. Ideally, your teacher will go
over these exercises with you to help you understand your mistakes.

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Identifying Phrases
From "The Gorgon's Head"
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
in A Wonder Book for Girls and Boys
Illustrated by Walter Crane
Directions:
1. Underline every subject once and every verb twice.
2. Label every noun (N), every pronoun (PRN), adjective (J), and adverb (A).
3. Draw a box around every noun phrase and an oval around every verb phrase.
4. If parts of a phrase are separated by other words, draw a line to connect from box to box or from oval
to oval to connect the parts of the phrase.

1. This fisherman was an exceedingly humane and upright man.

2. So this bad-hearted king spent a long while in considering what
was the most dangerous thing that a young man could possibly
undertake.
3. The bridal gift which I have set my heart on presenting to the
beautiful Hippodamia is the head of the Gorgon Medusa with the
snaky locks.
4. You must bring it home in the very best condition, in order to
suit the exquisite taste of the beautiful Princess Hippodamia.
5. The only good man in this unfortunate island of Seriphus appears
to have been the fisherman.
6. Medusa's snakes will sting him soundly!
7. The three sisters were really a very frightful and mischievous
species of dragon.
8. The teeth of the Gorgons were terribly long tusks.
9. Every feather in them was pure, bright, glittering, burnished
gold, and they looked very dazzlingly.
10. Not only must he fight with and slay this golden-winged,
iron-scaled, long-tusked, brazen-clawed, snaky-haired monster,
but he must do it with his eyes shut.

29

Identifying Phrases
From "The Gorgon's Head"
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
in A Wonder Book for Girls and Boys
Illustrated by Walter Crane
Directions:
1. Underline every subject once and every verb twice.
2. Label every noun (N), every pronoun (PRN), adjective (J), and adverb (A).
3. Draw a box around every noun phrase and an oval around every verb phrase.
4. If parts of a phrase are separated by other words, draw a line to connect from box to box
or from oval to oval to connect the parts of the phrase.

PERSEUS was the son of Dana, who was the daughter of a king.
And when Perseus was a very little boy, some wicked people put his
mother and himself into a chest, and set them afloat upon the sea. The
wind blew freshly, and drove the chest away from the shore, and the
uneasy billows tossed it up and down; while Dana clasped her child
closely to her bosom, and dreaded that some big wave would dash its
foamy crest over them both. The chest sailed on, however, and neither
sank nor was upset; until, when night was coming, it floated so near an
island that it got entangled in a fisherman's nets, and was drawn out high
and dry upon the sand. The island was called Seriphus, and it was reigned
over by King Polydectes, who happened to be the fisherman's brother.

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L1.2 # 19
Possessive Nouns Function as Adjectives
Possessive nouns and pronouns function as adjectives
That is Anthonys house. It is his house.
Directions:
1. Underline every subject once and every verb twice.
2. Circle every adjective and draw an arrow from it to the word it modifies.
3. Put a box around every adverb and draw an arrow from it to the word it modifies.

1. The robins song reached the sick mans darkened room.

2. Junes lovely days bring buds and flowers.
3. The brooks clear surface reflected the moons silver rays.
4. The teachers explanation made the example clear.
5. The flowers fragrance completely filled the invalids room.
6. Were Johns clothes well made?
7. The trees leaves absorb the atmospheres poisons.
8. The boys flesh was pierced.
9. The graceful maple tree has shed its beautiful scarlet leaves.
10. The audience admired the lawyers speech.

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Section 3

KISS Level 1. 3.
Adding Complements (PA, PN, IO, DO)

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