Lesson 4 - Articles THE, and A/AN (grammar rule)

ARTICLE THE: definite article (a specific object) that both the person speaking and the listener know. 

Do not use THE before proper names, name of countries, states, lakes, etc. Except when the country is collection of the states such as The United States.

Examples:

Maracaibo Lake is in Venezuela. Spanish is very difficult.

Do not use AN when speaking about things in general except when they represent a particular amount or quality.

Examples:

Gold in an important metal.  The gold in this ring is very old.

 ARTICLE A: indefinite article (not specific object, one of a number) used with consonants or when U sound /iu/

Examples:

a pen, a book, a calculator, a university.

ARTICLE AN: indefinite article (not a specific object, one of a number) used with vowels or unsound H.

Examples:

an eraser, an exercise, an apple, an hour.

Lesson 5 - Plural nouns (grammar rule)

We usually form the plural of nouns by adding an S:

	SINGULAR	car	table	friend	pen
	PLURAL	cars	tables	friends	pens

But there are some exceptions:

1. When noun ends in CH, S, SH, X, Z, add ES:

	SINGULAR	match	miss	flash	box	quiz
	PLURAL	matches	misses	flashes	boxes	quizes

2. When noun ends in O and there is a consonant before, then add ES:

	SINGULAR	hero	echo	tomato
	PLURAL	heroes	echoes	tomatoes

3. When noun ends in Y and there is a consonant before, change Y for I then add ES:

	SINGULAR	lady	story	city
	PLURAL	ladies	stories	cities

Note: when the noun end in O or Y and there is a vowel before it, only add S:

	SINGULAR	scenario	video	kangaroo		boy	key	day
	PLURAL	scenarios	videos	kangaroos		boys	keys	days

4. When noun ends in F or FE, change it for V, then add ES:

	SINGULAR	leaf	knife	shelf
	PLURAL	leaves	knives	shelves

Note: in some nouns ended in F or FE, we only add S. It also happens if the noun ends in FF or FFE.

	SINGULAR	gulf	roof	safe		handcuff	sheriff	giraffe
	PLURAL	gulfs	roofs	safes		handcuffs	sheriffs	giraffes

5. There are some irregular nouns:

	SINGULAR	man	woman	child	tooth	foot	mouse	penny	goose
	PLURAL	men	women	children	teeth	feet	mice	pence	geese

Note : for all musical terms we only add S It also happens with words ended in O from greek, etc.

	SINGULAR	piano	soprano		photo	ghetto	kilo
	PLURAL	pianos	sopranos		photos	ghettos	kilos

Exercise: fill the blanks with the correct plural forms

Desk	______________	Student	______________	Class	______________
Child	______________	Library	______________	Policeman	______________
Tooth	______________	Teacher	______________	Day	______________
		Person	______________

Lesson 6 - Colors

There are many colors you can learn. Can you identify them? - Yellow, like the sun. - Orange, like a carrot. - Green, like a lemon. - Blue, like the sky. - Violet, like the grapes. - Red, like an apple. - Brown, like the wood. - White, like the clouds. - Pink, like the pig. - Gray, like the fish. - Black, like the shadow.

If you want to ask for the color of only an object: What color is …? Examples:
What color is the sky?	- The sky is light blue.
What color is the sun?	- The sun is yellow.
What color is the sea?	- The sea is dark blue.

If you want to ask for the color of more than an object: What color are …? Examples:
What color are the leaves of trees?	- The leaves of trees are green.
What color are the clouds?	- The clouds are white.
What color are the rocks?	- The rocks are gray.

There are another colors you can learn. Can you find out their meanings?

Teal	______________________________	Chartreuse	______________________________
Azure	______________________________	Rose	______________________________
Cyan	______________________________	Magenta	______________________________

Every object has a shape. Let’s take a look at the shapes. - There is a trapezoid. - There is a square. - There is a star. - There is a rectangle. - There is a triangle. - There is a circle. - There is a hexagon. - There is a diamond. - There is a pentagon.

Lesson 7 - Parts of the house

This is a house. You can see different parts of the house. It has two floors.

In the upper floor, you can see a bedroom and a bathroom; it also has a small hall with a stair that takes you to the lower floor, and a ladder. This ladder takes you to the attic.

In the lower floor you can see the dining room and the kitchen. There’s also a small living room and a stair that takes you to the upper floor.

You can find many objects inside a house. For example, there is a microwave, a sink, a stove with an oven, cupboards, drawers, cabinets, and a refrigerator in the kitchen.

You can find a telephone, a clock, a TV set, a table, a chair and a mirror in the living room.

You usually find a bed, with pillows, a blanket and a duvet, a lamp and a window in the bedroom.

You can see there is a shower, a bath tub with a small rug, a toilet and a washbasin in the bathroom.

You can find a desk, shelves with books, a lamp and a computer in the study.

The attic is a place where we put old stuff and appliances until we need them again; it is at the top of the house.

Lesson 8 - Relatives

Please, click on the text or the images to listen.

	Your great grandparents are the parents of your grandparents.
	Your grandparents are the parents of your parents.
	Your parents are your father and your mother. The brother or your parents is your uncle, and the sister of your parents is your aunt.
	You have siblings. You are the children of your parents. The children of your uncles and aunts are your cousins.
	When you marry someone, you have children; they are your sons and daughters. The children of your brothers and your sisters are your nephews and nieces.