What is the Difference between Ethereal and Ephemeral
A viewer recently asked us to compare the words ephemeral and ethereal. Thomas offers a peek into the roots of each word to make their meanings clear.
Tag: History
What is a Whiz Deletion?
What in the world is a whiz deletion? A way of deleting wizards? Actually, it names something we do all the time in English. Take a peek!
How Different are Nouns and Pronouns?
A student from Quest Academy’s 4th grade Mustang class asks, “How Different are Nouns and Pronouns?” Thomas gives an interactive answer to this question, explaining the importance of grammar in the process.
Is the Word Everyone Singular or Plural?
Are indefinite pronouns such as everyone, everybody, anyone, anybody, no one, nobody, someone, and somebody singular or plural? Here’s a clear and concise answer!
When was grammar invented?
A student from Quest Academy’s 4th grade Mustang class asks, “When was grammar invented?” Thomas gives a poetic answer to this question, explaining the importance of grammar in the process.
Debussy and the Music of Imagination
We’re delighted to announce the release of Marie Rackham’s Debussy & Me, 21 pieces of classical piano music to facilitate learning.
Where is Marie’s Cozy Beach Cottage Located?
Debra H. from Montreal asks, “Where is Marie’s cozy beach cottage located?” Here Thomas explains not only where Marie’s cottage is located, but why she wanted to film Cozy Grammar there.
Whose or Who’s? 3 Ways to Remember Grammar Easily
Even the brightest students of English grammar can become confused about whose or who’s. In fact, a student from Kahului, Maui, recently asked me to clarify the difference in an Ask Cozy Grammar video. After you take a peek, I’ll share three keys I’ve discovered to remembering grammar easily, keys you can easily use with your students.
Quotation Marks and their Intriguing and “Strange” History
A topic that can sometimes intimidate students (or their teacher or parents!) is how to use quotation marks in a sentence. Everything seems fine till you need to combine quotation marks with other kinds of punctuation marks, like periods and commas. Does the final period go inside or outside the quotation marks? Here’s our answer.
Grammar, Creativity, Excellence, and Peace
Marie and I have both long believed that grammar can enhance creativity. We’re therefore particularly delighted to share a poem written by one of Cozy Grammar’s students, Miguel Gonzalez Del Castillo. Miguel wrote the following poem in response to a creative writing assignment in the Basic Cozy Grammar Course.
Exclamation Marks and the Power of Language
Do you remember the first time you discovered exclamation marks? How powerful! And how fun! These marks can serve powerfully, especially when used adeptly. But using exclamation marks adeptly can take some practice. That’s why we wanted to share two free excerpts from our Basic Cozy Punctuation Course.
What is the History of Punctuation?
Sometimes knowing a little history can go a long way in helping us understand a subject. Exploring the story of where punctuation comes from is not only interesting but can also help us learn to use the dots, lines, and squiggles of punctuation easily, freely, and joyfully.
The Dots, Lines, and Squiggles of Punctuation
Punctuation can often seem intimidating. Everywhere we look, there appear to be different and contradictory rules about how we’re supposed to use all these dots, lines, and squiggles in our writing. But as Marie explains, punctuation is simply a tool to clarify meaning and prevent misunderstanding.
The Power of Pronouns
Despite their humble appearance, pronouns are one of a writer’s most useful tools and can even unleash great comedy. To show you what I mean—and to prepare you for a fun activity with language—take a peek at this month’s free excerpts. Just so you know, you may find yourself laughing!
Plural Verbs and the Pronoun You
Two video excerpts from Marie about plural verbs, as well as a companion video about why we use the plural verb “are” with the pronoun “you,” even if there’s only one of you. Both videos give a sense not only of Marie’s way of clarifying the basics of grammar, but also of how Marie and Thomas take those points into other realms of life. Take a peek!
What are Subjects and Predicates?
Last month we shared an excerpt from The Basic Cozy Grammar Course in which Marie showed how we can make our writing more interesting by changing the order of the subject and the predicate in our sentences. This month we wanted to share an excerpt that clarifies what, exactly, subjects and predicates are. Take a peek!