{"id":11342,"date":"2022-02-02T19:46:33","date_gmt":"2022-02-02T19:46:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.plato-philosophy.org\/?p=11342&#038;post_type=teachertoolkit&#038;preview_id=11342"},"modified":"2025-10-07T12:07:21","modified_gmt":"2025-10-07T19:07:21","slug":"does-grammar-matter","status":"publish","type":"teachertoolkit","link":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/teachertoolkit\/does-grammar-matter\/","title":{"rendered":"Does Grammar Matter?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Lesson Overview<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Has anyone ever corrected you on your grammar? In this lesson, teachers will encourage students to explore their use of grammar. We all use it, but why does it matter? In looking further into their grammar use, students will consider the role that grammar plays in different people\u2019s lives.<\/p>\n<p>This lesson breaks down the Prescriptivism\/Descriptivism debate into bite-sized chunks. Essentially, Prescriptivists believe that one form of a language is the proper form of that language and they focus on how language should be used. Descriptivists, on the other hand, focus on how language is currently used, recording how our use of language changes over time.<\/p>\n<p><em>Before teaching this lesson, watch the attached video on your own to gain a better understanding of this distinction.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Discussing Individual Experience with Grammar<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>As an opening activity, ask students to think of a time when someone corrected their grammar. Have them write their answer on a piece of paper or in a notebook, documenting the situation and how it made them feel.<\/p>\n<p>Then, take the conversation deeper with the entire class.<\/p>\n<p>Questions to ask:<\/p>\n<p>\u25cf How did this make you feel? Why?<\/p>\n<p>\u25cf Did your grammar mistake affect the meaning of what you were trying to say?<\/p>\n<p>\u25cf Why do you think people care about grammar?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Formal Introduction to Grammar<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.khanacademy.org\/humanities\/grammar\/parts-of-speech-the-noun\/welcome-to-grammar-subject\/v\/introduction-to-grammar\">Video &#8211; Khan Academy &#8211; Introduction to Grammar<\/a><\/p>\n<p>This video says that there are many Englishes.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Questions to ask:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>What do you think this quote means?<\/li>\n<li>Can you think of any examples of different types of English?<\/li>\n<li>Think about pronunciation and word use\u2014 have you ever disagreed with someone about what to call something?<\/li>\n<li>Why do some people make fun of types of English that aren\u2019t their own?<\/li>\n<li>What might be some positive and negative results of having grammar?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Prescriptivism vs. Descriptivism: The Grammar Debate<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Have students watch the video on the Video tab: Ted-Ed: Does Grammar Matter?<\/p>\n<p>Video Summary: At first, people only spoke to one another to communicate. Then, they began to write down their language so they could communicate with other people in different places. Because of this, languages were standardized. In other words, people who had power decided how the language was written and spoken so that people could better understand one another. To this day, people disagree over whether or not languages should be used in a specific, uniform way, or recognized and legitimized for their diverse range of forms.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Questions to ask:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Has your perspective changed on whether or not you think grammar does or does not matter?<\/li>\n<li>Do you think grammar should change over time to include different groups of people? Or, should it stay the same so that people can rely on it?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Encourage students to explain why they feel this way.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Take-Home Activity &#8211; Grammar Journal!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Step 1: Ask 3 of your friends\/family members about a time when someone corrected their grammar. Then, ask them how they feel about grammar.<\/p>\n<p>Do they find it helpful?<br \/>\nWhat was their experience learning grammar?<\/p>\n<p>Step 2: Write their answers in your grammar journal (along with your own answers). Once you have collected answers, write down 3 observations about the answers you collected.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/hamiltoncs.org\/K-12-philosophy\/uncategorized\/does-grammar-matter\/\">See the lesson in its original format.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Lesson Overview Has anyone ever corrected you on your grammar? In this lesson, teachers will encourage students to explore their use of grammar. We all use it, but why does it matter? In looking further into their grammar use, students will consider the role that grammar plays in different people\u2019s lives. This lesson breaks down <a href=\"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/teachertoolkit\/does-grammar-matter\/\" class=\"more-link\">&#8230;<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Does Grammar Matter?<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":15943,"template":"","toolkitcategory":[757,30],"gradelevel":[47,46],"topics":[249,594],"class_list":["post-11342","teachertoolkit","type-teachertoolkit","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","toolkitcategory-epistemology","toolkitcategory-languages-literature","gradelevel-middle-school","gradelevel-primary-elementary","topics-grammar","topics-philosophy-of-language"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Does Grammar Matter? - PLATO - Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Does Grammar Matter? - PLATO - Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Lesson Overview Has anyone ever corrected you on your grammar? In this lesson, teachers will encourage students to explore their use of grammar. We all use it, but why does it matter? In looking further into their grammar use, students will consider the role that grammar plays in different people\u2019s lives. This lesson breaks down ... Does Grammar Matter?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/teachertoolkit\/does-grammar-matter\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"PLATO\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/PLATOPhilosophy?fref=ts\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-10-07T19:07:21+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/pexels-photo-5676740.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"500\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"750\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@platoorg\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/teachertoolkit\\\/does-grammar-matter\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/teachertoolkit\\\/does-grammar-matter\\\/\",\"name\":\"Does Grammar Matter? - PLATO - Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/teachertoolkit\\\/does-grammar-matter\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/teachertoolkit\\\/does-grammar-matter\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/pexels-photo-5676740.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-02-02T19:46:33+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-10-07T19:07:21+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/teachertoolkit\\\/does-grammar-matter\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/teachertoolkit\\\/does-grammar-matter\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/teachertoolkit\\\/does-grammar-matter\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/pexels-photo-5676740.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/pexels-photo-5676740.jpeg\",\"width\":500,\"height\":750,\"caption\":\"stack of English grammar books\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/teachertoolkit\\\/does-grammar-matter\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Philosophy ToolKit\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/teachertoolkit\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Does Grammar Matter?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/\",\"name\":\"PLATO\",\"description\":\"Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2016\\\/05\\\/Plato-Logo.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2016\\\/05\\\/Plato-Logo.png\",\"width\":354,\"height\":181,\"caption\":\"Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/plato-philosophy.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/PLATOPhilosophy?fref=ts\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/platoorg\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Does Grammar Matter? - PLATO - Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Does Grammar Matter? - PLATO - Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization","og_description":"Lesson Overview Has anyone ever corrected you on your grammar? In this lesson, teachers will encourage students to explore their use of grammar. We all use it, but why does it matter? In looking further into their grammar use, students will consider the role that grammar plays in different people\u2019s lives. This lesson breaks down ... Does Grammar Matter?","og_url":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/teachertoolkit\/does-grammar-matter\/","og_site_name":"PLATO","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/PLATOPhilosophy?fref=ts","article_modified_time":"2025-10-07T19:07:21+00:00","og_image":[{"width":500,"height":750,"url":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/pexels-photo-5676740.jpeg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_site":"@platoorg","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/teachertoolkit\/does-grammar-matter\/","url":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/teachertoolkit\/does-grammar-matter\/","name":"Does Grammar Matter? - PLATO - Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/teachertoolkit\/does-grammar-matter\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/teachertoolkit\/does-grammar-matter\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/pexels-photo-5676740.jpeg","datePublished":"2022-02-02T19:46:33+00:00","dateModified":"2025-10-07T19:07:21+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/teachertoolkit\/does-grammar-matter\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/teachertoolkit\/does-grammar-matter\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/teachertoolkit\/does-grammar-matter\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/pexels-photo-5676740.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/pexels-photo-5676740.jpeg","width":500,"height":750,"caption":"stack of English grammar books"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/teachertoolkit\/does-grammar-matter\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Philosophy ToolKit","item":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/teachertoolkit\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Does Grammar Matter?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/#website","url":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/","name":"PLATO","description":"Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/#organization","name":"Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization","url":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Plato-Logo.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Plato-Logo.png","width":354,"height":181,"caption":"Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/PLATOPhilosophy?fref=ts","https:\/\/x.com\/platoorg"]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/teachertoolkit\/11342","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/teachertoolkit"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/teachertoolkit"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15943"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11342"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"toolkitcategory","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/toolkitcategory?post=11342"},{"taxonomy":"gradelevel","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/gradelevel?post=11342"},{"taxonomy":"topics","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/topics?post=11342"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}