Basic Teacher, Step 13

The Basic Teacher

STEP 13

	VOCABULARY
Nouns		Adjectives
boat		first -- last
harbor
island		Structure Words
journey		say
letter		how
news
person
sail
ship
word

STRUCTURE 1 . Nouns
News behaves like the name of a substance, except that it is never used in the plural (even though it may refer to several items of news) and never used with a.

news

news.

2 . Pronouns
The pronoun it is used impersonally (that is, without standing for any noun previously named or understood) in th phrase it is (will be, etc.) followed by some information about the time of day, date, weather, temperature, etc.

It is

It will be

it is

3 . Operators

Root Form	Past	Present	Future
SAY	SAID	SAY but He etc. SAYS	WILL SAY

Learn the Present and Future Tenses of say. To is naturally the preposition used after say to indicate the person addressed.

say

says

not say

4 .Adverbs
How (== the way in which) completes the group of relative adverbs.

how

5 . Questions
With all operators except be and have (which we have seen, follow the same pattern as the auxiliaries will and may), questions which may be answered by Yes or No are formed by using do as an auxiliary and putting it before the subject, as in questions with the other auxiliaries.

Do I see

Does the news seem

Do these small boats go

In negative questions of this sort, not comes straight after the subject of do.¹

not

Note that questions with do in the Present Tense normally refer to general facts or customary actions, except in the case of say,² see, or seem, when they may refer to the present. With other operators, questions about a present act must use the -ing form.

Are

coming

come

1 . Except, as we shall see in Step 34, when the negative is contracted.
2 . The Present Tense of say, both in statements and in questions, is used more loosely than that of other operators. It frequently refers to an utterance just completed.

Questions requiring more elaborate answers than Yes or No are asked with the pronouns who (what, which) and the adverbs how, what, where, why, which are called interrogative pronouns and adverbs when so used.
By putting who in place of the subject in a statement we form a question asking for the name or some other identification of the person or persons indicated by the rest of the question.

Who has a pain?: The woman in the house at the end of the road (has a pain).
Who will go to the island?: The workmen and their families (will go to the island).
Who does the work?: A person at my office (does the work).
Who is at the door?: A man with some plants for the garden (is at the door).
Who are you?: I am the new servant.

The words in the answers which are put in brackets and repeat part of the question are given here only to show the complete construction. They would normally be omitted.

Similar questions about the object of an operator or preposition are formed by putting who(m) before the auxiliary or operator and the subject after it. Note that, with an interrogative pronoun, as with a relative, a preposition may be put at the start instead of at the end.


Who(m) does he see ?: (He sees) Joan.
Who(m) will you take in the boat?: (I will take) all these persons.
Who(m) are those persons waiting for?: (They ore waiting for) their friends.
To whom will your friend give the news?: (He will give) it to me.

The adjective whose followed by a noun, is similarly used to form questions asking for the identification of the owner of whatever is named by the noun.

Whose voice is that?: It is the voice of my father.
Whose books have you?: Your books.
Whose boat are you in?: His boat.
Whose face do you see?: The face of an old man.

What is used for questions about things in precisely the same way as who or whom is used for questions about persons.

What makes die room cold?: The open window.
What are these things?: Parts of a bridge.
What Is the first letter of the word 'journey'?: J.
What has she on her head?: A small block hat.
What do these men make?: Boxes and picture-frames.
What will you put the apples in?: My hat.
With what does he take teeth out ?: With this instrument.

What is also used as an interrogative adjective qualifying the name of either the person(s) or the thing(s) about which the question is asked.

What girls are on the ship?: Only die daughters of the manager.
What building has a high roof?: The library.
What street is the hospital in?: A street by the river.
What work does your mother do?: She is a cook.
To what part of the town are you going?: To the harbor.

The interrogative which is, like what, both a pronoun and an adjective, but, unlike what, it may in both cases be used of either persons or things. It is used when asking for the identification of some person(s) or thing(s) from a particular group. This selective sense of which is frequently brought out in the case of the pronoun by following it with of and a word indicating the group.

Which (of these girls) is your sister?: The girl in the middle.
Which (of your coats) will you take with you?: The red coat.
Which (of the boats) is this sail for?: The small boat.
Which end of the boat is the back?: The end where the seat is.
To which old man do they give food?: To the one with the stick.
Which flowers will you let me have?: Those on the table.

Questions with how, when, where, and why are asked by putting them at the front of a question of the type which is answered by Yes or No. The answer to a question starting with how tells about the way in which a thing is done.

How does he take a tooth out?: He gets a grip of it with his instrument and gives a pull.
How will these persons get to the island?: They will go in a ship.

The answer to a question starting with when gives the time at which something occurs.

When do they go to time pictures?: At night.
When does the first train go?: Early in the morning.
When will you put your gloves on?: (I will put them on) when I go out.

The answer to a question starting with where gives the place at which something is or occurs, or to which it moves.

Where is the net?: In that first drawer.
Where does the cook keep the basket?: Under the shelf.
Where is the house?: (It is) where those trees are.
Where is he going?: To the ship.

The answer to a question starting with why gives the reason for a fact. The reason given in the answer is normally introduced by because.

Why is the bathroom full of steam?: Because the window is shut.
Why do the birds come into the room?: Because we put food on the table for them.
Why is he waiting at the harbor?: Because the ship is late.

EXERCISES

1 .	(a)  What do you see in this picture?
	(b)  Which boat has a sail?
	(c)  What is the man in this boat doing?
	(d)  Where is the other boat going?
	(e)  Do you see some trees in the picture?
	(f)  Where is the man who is in the water?
	(g)  What is the first letter on the side of the ship?
	(h)  What is the last letter?
	(i)  What is the word?
	(j)  Who is by the workman?
	(k)  Why are persons waiting at the harbor?

2 . Make a list of all the nouns representing persons which you have learned so far.

3 . Ask a question in connection with each of the numbered things in the picture, 
using the word indicated in this list:
	(I)	when	(5)	how
	(2)	where	(6)	does
	(3)	who	(7)	why
	(4)	which	(8)	what

4 . Far each of the following sentences or phrases, write down a question to which it might
be the answer:
	(a)  Because the harbor is very narrow.
	(b)  When I see the ship coming in.
	(c)  It is an E or an F.
	(d)  In the middle of the island.
	(e)  He is a man front the ship.
	(f)  The one with the red cover.
	(g)  In an hour.
	(h)  My son will do it.
	(i)  With my bands.
	(j)  He is putting up the sail.
	(k)  The first door.
	(l)  The cry of a person in pain.
	(m)  My glass.

5 . Translate into Basic :
Teacher's Link

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STEP 14.

	VOCABULARY
Nouns		Nouns	Adjectives
answer		reason	blue -- yellow
cloud		sand	clear
cord		sea	long -- short
direction		sign
eye	click, click	sky
fish		smoke
kiss		step
look		tail
name		wave
question		way
rail

A SHIP COMES IN

Our town is by the sea. Great ships come into the harbor almost every day. From my bedroom window I have a view of the sea and the yellow sand, but not of the harbor. Sometimes I go down to the harbor and see the ships come in.
Why are all these persons at the harbor? A ship is coming from New York today. That is the reason. Everyone here is waiting for someone. the boy and girl by the wall are waiting for their father and mother. The old woman on the seat is waiting for her son. By her side is a man with some red flowers in his hand. They are for a woman friend. The girl in the yellow hat and the black and white coat has a brother on the ship.
The wide stretch of sea outside the harbor is blue, but the water in the harbor is green. It is very clear. I see dark plants under the water, and there, by that boat, is a fish. Do you see its tail ? The fishes in the harbor are very small. Some boy on the harbor wall are getting them in nets. Boats with white sails come and go in the harbor. Some of them go out to the island at the mouth of the harbor. The waves out there are quite high.
What are the boy and girl by the wall saying ? They are putting questions to the woman who is with them. When will the ship come ? Does every ship have a flag ? What things will their father and mother have for them ? Which side of the ship will they be on ? How will the great ship get into the harbor ? Does it make the journey from New York frequently ? They get no answers to their questions and after a time they are quiet.
Suddenly the boy says, "What is that ? Is it the ship ? Will the ship come from that direction ?" The woman who is with him says. it may be smoke from the ship or it may be only a cloud in the sky. We will see in a minute." Then another person says. "Yes, that is the ship coming into view. There is something dark under the smoke. I see it clearly. It is coming in the direction of the harbor."
The man and woman who are on the seat get up and we all take a step forward and have a look. From the land the great ship still seems very small. The time of waiting goes slowly. The man with the flowers goes back to his seat. It is almost the end of the morning before the ship gets to the mouth of the harbor. The way into the harbor is not very wide. Two small boats are waiting at the harbor mouth. One goes to the front of the ship, and the seamen on the boat take the end of a long steel cord which men on the ship let down to them. The other boat goes to the back and gives a push. That is how they get the ship into the harbor.
The letters on one side of the ship are quite clear. Its name is 'S.S. FLORIDA'. We see the faces of some of the persons on the ship. A man at my side gives a wave. From the ship he gets a wave back. The boy and girl give a wave, but they have short arms and their father and mother do not see them till they get up on the steps.
Someone who is near me says, "Who is that ? Is it Peter ?"
"Where ?"
"There, near the white boat."-
No, that is one of the seamen. But there is Peter, with two men by the rail. He is the middle one. I see him clearly now. He has a blue coat on and no hat. He is making a sign to us."
"You have good eyes !"
In a short time the ship is in its place in the harbor. It is at the end of its long journey. The first persons who get on the ship are the porters. There is great competition for them and some words of an angry argument came to my ears.
Which is your porter?"
"The one with his hands in his pockets."
"But he is my porter. He is getting my things."
"How is he doing that with his hands in his pockets ?"
The two men are still in the middle of their argument when another person comes and takes the porter.
While the porters are taking the boxes and bags, some of us go on the ship and set our friends. The mother and father of the small boy and girl take them in their arms and give them a kiss. The old woman gives a loud cry of pleasure when she sees her son. The sister gives her brother all the family news.
One after another, they all come off the ship. The last is the man with the flowers. He still has them in his hand. Trouble is coming to someone. That is clear from the look on his face. Why is he angry ? Because his girl friend is not on the ship. Where is she ? She is still in New York.

NOTES

from my bedroom window : } Note that from is used to indicated a point or
from the land : } place of observation.
sometimes == at some times.
today == 'this day,' or , used adverbially, as her, 'on this day.'
everyone, someone : in these compounds, one has the sense of person. Everyone == every person ; someone == some person, a person.
the black and white coat : Note the English way of expressing the fact that a thing is partly of one color and partly of another.
the mouth of the harbor : Mouth is used for the opening of a bag, etc. The mouth of a harbor is the entrance to it from the sea.
the waves out there : Compare with putting his hand out (step 11). Out is used to indicate a position away from that which is regarded as the center or base.
putting questions to the woman : That is, 'asking the woman questions'.
make the journey : Note that the operator make is used with journey.
answers to their questions : We give an answer to a question or person in the same way as we say something to a person.
from that direction : } Things which follow a direction viewed as pointing
in the direction of the harbor : } from something move from that direction or from the direction of the thing. On the other hand, things which follow a direction viewed as pointing to something move in that direction or in the direction of the thing.
coming into view = becoming visible. Note that view is used in this phrase without the or a possessive adjective in front of it.
clearly : By an expansion, clear has the sense of 'distinct.' Objects are clear when their outlines and details stand out sharply, as they do in a clear atmosphere. So to see a thing clearly is to see it distinctly.
we all : With the personal pronouns, an alternative way of saying all of us (you, them, it). It to put all straight after the pronoun. In this example, the pronoun is the subject of the statement. but the sans. construction is possible when it is the object: He keeps us (than, you) all waiting.
take a step : Take is the operator used with the action noun step.
have a look : Have is one of the operators used with the action noun
look. One may also take a look.
two : Basic number-word for 2.
seamen : men who work at sea, sailors.
gives a wave : Wave may be used, as here, for the act of moving the hand in a way suggesting the motion of a wave (as a greeting etc. to someone at a distance). Note that the operator used with it is give.
gets a wave back : The sense of back here is of 'in return.'
the steps : A structure with a flat surface on which to put ones foot in taking a step up or down is also called a step, and a series of these going from one level to another is simply steps.
the middle one : Note that middle may be used adjectivally.
he has a blue coat on : Have on == be wearing.
making a sign to : The operator make is used with sign, though it is not used with wave.
in a short time : Short and long are used of measurements in time as well as of measurements in space.
in the middle of their argument : One is in the middle of an activity when one is still far from having completed it.
give them a kiss : Give is the operator used with kiss.
one after another = in succession. Note the absence of any preposition introducing this, adverbial phrase. Adverbial phrases indicating order or arrangement are frequently of this type in English. -- One is frequently coupled with another in phrase. of this sort and In general comparisons : What gives pleasure to one gives pain to another.
the last == the last person. After last and first, preceded by the or a demonstrative or possessive adjective, a noun which can easily be supplied may be omitted.
that is clear from : That is 'evident from'. This sense of clear as 'obvious to the mind' is an easy metaphor from the sense of 'distinct to the eye', which was noted earlier. -- From here means 'because of'. By a natural metaphor, from is used to indicate anything serving as the basis of an effect, conclusion, judgment, said so on, from which it may be thought of as coming.
the look on his face : Look, which, in its root sense, means 'glance, act of regarding' is also used for 'appearance' in general and 'facial expression' in particular. When we the former, we say the look of a face, etc. ; when we mean the latter we as the look on a face, because an expression is thought of as a special appearance which a person puts on over the general one.

EXERCISES

1 . (a) Where is the boat?
(b) What makes the boat go up and down?
(c) Why does the boy in the boat give the cord a pull ?
(d) Which will be the last part of the fish which he will see?
(e) Why do you see the fish in the water ?
(f) Where is the basket ?
(g) What goes up from the fire ?
(h) Where is the net?
(i) Where is the bird?
(j) What other things do you see in the sky ?

2 . Describe the actions that are taking place in the above pictures.

3 . Fifteen different compounds can be formed from combinations of the following words :

some, to, sea, one, thing, work, bed, where, times, room, no, day, bath, men, every .

4. Each of the words in black print has another sense. Illustrate these second senses in sentences.

5 . Translate into Basic :

Teacher's Link

6 . Answer in Basic :

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