Notes - Basic Step by Step

Notes for Basic Step By Step

PART III . NOTES

For the Teacher

and the advanced learner.

Notes
1 . The Body
2 . Food
3 . Work
4 . The Weather
5 . The Family
6 . A Building
7 . Fire
8 . The Country
9 . The Sea
10 . Time

About Steps 11-20
11 . The Machine
12 . Business
13 . Money
14 . Noise
15 . News
16 . Amusement
17 . Education
18 . Reading
19 . The Earth
20 . History

About Steps 21-30.
21 . Invention
22 . Feeling
23 . Art
24 . Trade
25 . Transport
26 . Peace
27 . Language
28 . Society
29 . Government
30 . Science

Pictures

A and THE
IS
AND

ON and OFF
SUBSTANCE
OF

TIME WORDS
OPERATIONS
DIRECTIONS

THE MACHINE
VIEW
PUT UP WITH
ACCOUNT

Part III . Notes

On the opposite page we may see the relation between the divisions of Part A of The ABC of Basic English and the first ten steps of the present book. On the left are listed ten points of the system, numbered in the order in which they were taken up in the The ABC ; on the right are groups of numbers representative of Steps 1--10. These numbers make clear which of the points listed on the text come into the Step in question. The numbers in black print are those of the divisions from which the chief teaching-points listed on the left come into the Step in question come ; those in normal print are representative of points of which examples are given, but which get fuller attention in some other Step ; and those between ( ) are for divisions from which a word or words has been taken but of which no general account is needed at this stage. Every step keeps as near as possible to the parallel division in the ABC account, only such changes being made as are necessary for the natural use of the material.
The purpose of these Notes is to give full details of the way in which the 100 words which are not names of things or qualities have been worked in ; and at the same time to make clear point by point, from another angle, the teaching value of the system as outlined in the general discussion at the front of the book.

	Order of the ABC	Basic Step by Step
1 . .	Operations : -- simple acts; (Be), have will, may.	1 , 3, 5.
2 .	Statements with not. (Use of do).	1, 2, 3, 4, 5, (8)
3 .	Directions.	1, 2, 3, (8).
4 . . . . .	How, when, and where :-- Forms with -ly ; Again, over, far, forward, here, near, now, out still, them, there, together, well, little, much : Almost, enough, even, only, quite, so, very.	1, 2, 3, 4, 8. . .
5 . . .	Words representative of names :-- I-- we , he--they, you ; this--these , that--those.	1, 3, 4 ,5, 7. .
6 .	Cries and orders. (Yes, no, and please.)	(1), (3), 4, 5, 6, 7.
7 . .	Complex words :- Separate ; half-joined (with'-') ; joined.	4, 7, 8, 9.
8 . . . .	Joining words :- And, or, but, that, because, if,though, white; Before, after, fill; How , when, where, why.	(1), (3), (4), 8. .
9 .	Who and which (as joining words).	(3), 4, 8, 9.
10.	Questions :- Simple change of order.	(1), (7), 8, 10.

At the end of Step 10, the learner has been given everything in Part A of the ABC, though the more complex rules for framing Questions are kept for the second stage. At the end of Step 20, he has been given the complete structure of the system, that is to say, everything but examples of the -er, -ing, and -ed endings in connection with the names of things, expansions of sense, special uses, and one or two other details important for giving a natural effect. On this higher-level material Steps 21-30 are based.
So the first 20 Steps give the young learner 500 of the names of things and qualities, with all the other 100 coming in by degrees (see p. 38) ; making 600 words in all. In this way he will be able to go forward to the last ten Steps, where most of the harder words are grouped in stories of greater range and interest together with such of the simpler words as did not come naturally into any of the earlier groups.
The first Step in word-learning is possible when we have the framework for making the simplest form of statement. In the ABC this framework is given by directions for putting is (are, was, were) between the names of things and qualities, with the use of a (an) and the, and, and or, and the addition of s to names of things when more than one thing is talked about.
The name of an act may then take the place of is, and the name of the ting acted on be put after it, with the name of a direction, if needed, after than, and so on.
In the first 10 Steps only the number 1 is needed. A suggestion for putting the numbers 1, 2, 3, before the learner, so that they may be no harder than one word, such as Radio, is given on page 51.
The 20 names of things are listed in two groups ; those which come most naturally under the heading, and those whose connection with it is looser, or which have no special connection but are used it the story for other reasons. In the first Step, for example, 15 parts of the body are named in the first group ; the words back, front, part, side are more general in their use, though all of them are very necessary for such statements as are made about the parts.
Qualities having opposites are listed with their opposites as one learning-unit ; and every Step of the first 20 gives us at least one example of words which may be taken together in this way.
At the foot of the page, other words which might come naturally into a group of 30 or more words under the heading of the Step are listed in sloping print -- first those whose root use has a necessary connection with the question, then expansions (marked (e)) and special uses (marked (s)) of the same sort, then words whose connection is looser, and last such expansions and special uses. Those that do not come into the learner's work at this stage, but they make clear how the field in question is covered in Basic. By seeing and hearing them even once, he will be helped when he comes to them later. With the first Step, for example, there are 15 other parts of the body, with which tail and horn would naturally be listed if we were talking about animals ; and in addition to breath and to back, nail, and side as special body names, we might have put such words as top (of the arm) or under (part), or hollow, which would be used in talking about the "shoulder" or the "sole" of the foot or the "arm-pit".
The teacher will keep in mind what was said on page 47 -- that all the little words which put the others in either their places will come in again frequently in later steps. If the sense of the statements is clear enough for the learning of the 25 words listed at the front of every Step, that is enough -- in all the early Steps. For most countries, the sense might equally well be given in the framework of the learner's natural language : " Ich habe (J'ai, Est mihi) a body," and so on. But that is not the quickest way of learning a language ; and by seeing the words, hearing them, saying them, and writing them, as part of a framework whose general sense and structure is clear to him, the learner will get them in his head without much trouble. Later, if some necessary word is not completely clear, it will be time enough to go over the framework itself in greater detail. This may best be done at the stage when special training is given in form-changes from examples.
At the start of the detailed notes on every Step are listed all the words used in it in addition to the 25 names of things and qualities, with the divisions of the ABC from which they are taken. Words which are given in "The First Step" of the ABC, or which are simply examples of material there covered, are put in the first line with no numbers after them. At the end are grouped any opposites which are to be noted here. Forms of words, and words which have come in before but are listed again as having another use, or as opposites, are but between ( ), because they are not on the same level as new words.

STEP 1 . The Body (Notes)

a , the, (is), and.
have, put, take, 1.
at, between, in, off, on, 3.
I, this, that, 5.
(my),

What things (20) and qualities (5) come best into our first learning group of 25 ? Clearly there is a strong argument for making a start with their body and its parts. The body and its parts are with us for pointing purposes wherever we go. The schoolroom may be without pens and ink, or the teacher may be in the open air where there are no doors and windows ; but all learners have bodies.
The only trouble about starting with the body is that I and my are needed for talking about its parts, and the other words of this sort are not necessary till a later stage. On the other hand, there are good reasons against starting with the forms of put, take, and have which would be forced on us by statements in the third person ; so common-sense gives us I and my, together with this and that for pointing purposes.
Take, put, and have are our first examples of 'names of operations'. The work which such words do has been made clear in the account of the chief sorts of word in Basic (Part I), as has the part taken by the names of directions, of which five come into the present Step. The chief uses of the opposites off and on, and their relation to one another, are covered in the pictures. A bird's-eye view of the 13 chief operation-words and of all the direction-words is given in the pictures after the Notes on Step 10, which will be of great use when enough examples of these two sorts of words have come in.
It will be noted that the parts of the body are not separate things which may be put or taken here and there quite in the same way as boxes or tables. We normally get a grip of what we take as part of the act of taking, in whatever direction we take it ; and we put what we have taken on the table, or in some other direction such as up or down. But for general purposes taking one's hand off one's head is the same sort of act as taking a box off a table.
Though the body-words are here put into simple statements, so that they may be talked about like other things, it is a good idea to get such words into the memory in the same way as in a quicker and quicker rhyme :

This and that, as will be noted, are used in two ways : 1 . by themselves, having the sense "The thing here (there) I am pointing to" ; 2 . as pointing words in front of the name of a thing.
My head," and so on. In English, the owner-forms such as My (your, his, and so on) are regularly used in connection with the parts of the body, where other languages might have the word for 'the' or no word at all.
"I have a nose." The use of have here may seem a little different from its use in such statements as "I have a book," but a natural expansion of this simplest use makes it possible for us to say that we 'have' anything of which we are in a wide sense the owners.
"The right side." Take note that names of qualities are used not only after is but before names of things (not after), and that when the is needed in addition to a quality-word, it comes before the quality-word. The same order is the rule when any of the other 'adjectives' in the Operations list (a, this, that, and so on, and the owner-forms of the 'pronouns', such as my) are used with the quality-words.
"A thumb and fingers." Take note 1. of the form for more than one 'fingers' ; and 2, of the fact that a(n) has no form for use before names in the form for more than one, and that these, when they have no need of the or some other pointing-word, are used by themselves. -- The thumb is sometimes looked on as one of the fingers, so that we may say "I have 10 fingers," but frequently, as here, it is named as a separate thing.
"Fingers on my hand." The simplest picture of on is that of something resting on top of another thing, but anything which is supported by or fixed to another is on it, even when what is on anything is a part of it.
Foot and tooth, though they might come in here, have been kept till a later stage because they are among the small number of words whose forms for more than one are not made by the addition of ' s .' See the Note at the end of Step 5.
Opposites : this -- that , off -- on , put -- take.
Back to Body. Hint : swap to that page, do not use link.

Step 2 . FOOD (Notes)

some.
go , may , will , 1.
not , 2.
from , of , to , with , 3.
here , there , 4.
(it) , 5.
or ,

A important point to be noted here is that we do not put a before the names of substances, such as food, soup, bread, etc., because they are not, like things such as head, meal, basin and so on, looked on as units, complete in themselves (which is the idea given by a). When we are talking of a substance in a general way, we put nothing in front of it ("Cake is sweet") ; when we are talking of an amount of it which is present at the time, we commonly, though not necessarily, put in some word giving this idea of 'an amount of' ("Some food is on the table"). When the is used before the names of substances it has the sense of "the amount of butter, etc., here present or in question.
The picture opposite will be of help in making clear this division of things into 'things' in the narrower sense of 'units', and 'substances' (of which such 'things' are made). It will be seen from the picture that when the name of a substance has a quality-word in front of it, it is made clear that what we are talking of is 'a sort of' cloth etc. ("a cloth of good quality"), we do make use of a and that in that sense the name of a substance may even be used in the form for more than one ("different cloths"). But this is a point which it will be better not to give the learner till a later stage.
Have . From these examples we may see the development from having of food on our plates to the having of it (by the process of taking it into our stomachs) as part of ourselves.
With . In its root use, as in "I have some bread with it," with is simply a sign that the things joined by it are together. But in the statement, "I put the meat in my mouth with the fork," the fork not only goes into the mouth with the meat, but is the instrument by which it is put there. This gives a clear example of the way in which with, from having the general sense of connection in space or time, comes in addition to be used for the connection between an act and its instrument.
It . The form which may take the place of the name of a thing or animal (not a person) which is being talked about. For the present, like any name of a thing, it will be used only before is (will or may) or after the names of operations or directions.
"I take the spoon . . . and put . . . ." In a statement in which the same person is said to do two or more acts, it is not necessary for the doer to be named with every act.
May . has the general sense of "It is possible;" but, as noted in the ABC, a thing is possible in two ways. In the first, some person makes it possible (by giving power or authority) ; in the second, general conditions do so. The examples of may given here are of the first of these users.
Because will and may are only helping words, the name of some act necessarily comes after them.
"I may not have." "The taste of salt is not bitter." Take note that not-statements using may or be (is) are made by simply putting not straight after these words.
"Cake and cheese." The words cake and cheese are used not only for the 'pictured' things to which we give these names, but in addition for the substances of which these things are made. Take note that some is frequently not put in where it is clear without it that we are taking of "a certain amount of" whatever is in question.
"An orange ." An is used in place of a before words starting with the letters a, e, i, and o ; and with u when it has an open sound, as in umbrella, uncommon, and so on.
Of , which is used like the name of a direction, seems at first to have little connection with space. It is, however, a development from off. The skin off the orange is the skin of the orange. That which is taken off was necessarily at one time on, and so is a part of, or, more generally, the property of, the thing from which it was taken. This development is clearly pictured on the opposite page and over.
Opposites : from -- to , here -- there.
Back to Food

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