English Language Conventions

For information:

Fred W. Duckworth, Jr.

c/o Jewels Educational Services

1560 East Vernon Avenue

Los Angeles, CA 90011-3839

E-mail: admin@trinitytutors.com

Website: www.trinitytutors.com

Copyright © 2008 by Fred Duckworth. All rights reserved. This publication is copyrighted and may only be copied, distributed or displayed for personal use on an individual, one-time basis. Transmitting this work in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher is expressly prohibited. All copyright notifications must be included and you may not alter them in any way. Moreover, you may not modify, transform, or build upon this work, nor use this work for commercial purposes.

What’s Here?

This class on English language conventions is designed

to help homeschool families

teach their K-12 learner(s) the

structure of the English language.

As such, an abundance of examples

have been provided, along with a kind

of “built-in” scope and sequence.

Also included is an ample amount of

student worksheets, activities and

exercises, which can be accessed from

various linked pages at this same website.

Relevant URLs have been listed were

appropriate, and finally, this course addresses

punctuation (the rules for using various graphical

marks in the written form of a language) as a

separate section covered over the

final lessons.

ENGLISH

TrinityTutors.com

GRAMMAR

LESSON 1:

Identifying Sentences

SENTENCE CONSTRUCTION

If you are in kindergarten, you will be developing the ability to recognize and use complete, coherent sentences when speaking. That’s really the only grammar skill you will need worry about at the kindergarten level.

However, no matter what your grade level, it is critical for you to learn that, for a sentence to be a sentence, it must make sense. You need to also become extremely familiar with the requirements that sentences begin with a capital letter and end with some sort of punctuation mark.

To help you remember and apply these three “guidelines” go the the webpage linked below and use your mouse to put the words in a logical order so the money can cross the bridges. (Older students may simply write the unscrambled sentences on a separate sheet of lined-notebook filler paper.)

Rainforest Run-A-Round

Even if you are a kindergarten student who cannot yet read, if you have the ability to distinguish between uppercase and lowercase letters, this knowledge can be used as a clue enabling you to determine which words come first. Moreover, a period (full stop) is an obvious clue indicating which words come last. And of course, the only remaining words should go in the middle.

If you like, you can make word strips to do the same activity. On the next couple of pages you will find several examples of what such sentences might look like.

a red house.

saw

Name _________________________ Date ___/___/___ Score _____

IDENTIFYING SENTENCES

Directions: Cut out, unscramble, and paste each of the mixed up sentences below on a another sheet of paper, one sentence at a time. Paste the words in logical order so that each of the sentences makes sense.

to swim.

like

a blue ball.

to swim

There

like

warm.

The water

very well.

swims

She

funny things.

Cats

Name _________________________ Date ___/___/___ Score _____

IDENTIFYING SENTENCES

Directions: Unscramble the mixed up sentences below and copy them on a sheet of lined-notebook filler paper in logical order so that each of the sentences makes sense.

1. the house.My dadliked

2. a big house.wasIt

3. grass.Elephantseat

4. meat.Lions and tigerseat

5. like to eatpizza.I

6. arefunny.Frogs

7. eatTheybugs.

8. areSome frogsgreen.

9. by my house.Many frogslive

10.a fun game.Baseballis

11.baseball.Iplay

12.softball.My sisterplays

13.with a bat.ballsI hit

14.a red house.sawI

15.wasThe houseold.

16.the house.My dadliked

17.a big house.wasIt

Now, the best way to identify the state-of-being verbs is to simply memorize them. They are: am, are, is, was, were, be, being, and been. Lets take a look at another sentence to see how this strategy works in action.

Because of my having memorized the state-of-being verbs, I'm able to immediately recognized that the word was is the verb in the above sentence. Pretty cool, huh?

Now let's spend a little time practicing identifying verbs in sentences. Then we will go back and finish looking at predicates.

And of course, sentences always begin with a capital letter and end with some type of punctuation mark − either a period, question mark, or exclamation point.

Now that we've covered the basics, let's take a look at how to recognize and use complete, coherent sentences when speaking (kindergarten) and writing (the first grade and up).

An important step is knowing how to separate the subject from the predicate. To help us learn this skill, we should first learn about verbs.

SENTENCES

Definition

A sentence is a group of words that expresses a complete thought.

But, in order to express a complete thought, a sentence has to be about something. In other words, it has to have a subject.

The subject of a sentence is the person or the thing that is either doing something, having something, or being something in the sentence. In other words, the subject is the person or the thing that the sentence is about.

Of the other hand, this sentence, “Kicked the can”. is NOT a complete sentence because it does not tell who or what kicked the can.

When a group of words does not have a subject, it is called a sentence fragment.

Read the sentences below. Figure out if each group of words is a complete sentence or a sentence fragment by asking yourself if the words tell you who or what did something, had something, or was something. The goal is to begin asking the same questions of yourself when you are writing.

1. Victor ate the ice cream.

2. Charlotte is my best friend.

3. Could not go to the store.

4. Luis has the keys to the room

5. Is a doctor at St. Drew Hospital.

To develop a thorough understanding of subject, you probably need to learn about the first two basic parts of speech, nouns and pronouns, but we will come back to them later.

For now, you should know that even if a sentence has a subject, it still needs something else to express a complete thought. That's because the subject in the sentence cannot do anything, have anything, or be anything without something called a predicate. (Is this 1st grade material?)

The predicate tells you what the subject of a sentence is, does, or has.

However, before you can fully understand predicates, you need to know about verbs.

A verb is a word that expresses action, or a state of being.

Verbs are the fourth of eight basic parts of speech. As you can see by the above definition, there are two kinds of verbs: action verbs, and state-of-being verbs.

VERBS

Definition

As was just said, in order to express a complete thought, a sentence was have something called a predicate.

However, before you can fully understand predicates, you need to know about verbs.

A verb is a word that expresses action, or a state of being.

Verbs are the fourth of eight basic parts of speech. As you can see by the above definition, there are two kinds of verbs: action verbs, and state-of-being verbs.

To identify and action verb, you look at each word in this intense and ask yourself, “Could I show someone how to do this?” If not, the word probably isn't an action verb. Lets look at the sentence below to get a better idea of how this works.

Could I show someone how to “Anthony?” No, I could not. Therefore, Anthony is not the action verb. Well then, could I show someone how to “laugh?” Yes, I could. So, in the above sentence, the word laugh is the action verb. Do you see how that works?

An action verb tells you what something or someone (the subject) in the sentence does or has.

A state-of-being verb tells you what something or someone (the subject) in the sentence is.

IDENTIFYING VERBS I

A verb is a word that expresses action or a state of being. To find an action verb, you look at each word in the sentence and ask yourself, “Could I show someone how to do this?”

Directions: Carefully read each sentence below. Print the numeral 4 above each action verb. (The first one has been done for you.)

1. Fido stands very still.

2. The crab snapped its claws.

3. This hamster rose on its hind legs.

4. A Blue Jay sat on the tree branch.

5. The mother bear lifted her right paw.

IDENTIFYING VERBS II

A verb is a word that expresses action or a state of being. To find a state-of-being verb, memorize all eight of them. Then look for each one as you read the sentences.

Directions: Carefully read each sentence below. Print the numeral 4 above each state-of-being verb.

1. Mr. Slob is lazy.

2. Our printer was broken.

3. I am a jogger.

4. These two are the best snow boarders.

5. Those two old guys were inventors.

Name _________________________ Date ___/___/___ Score _____

IDENTIFYING VERBS III

Directions: Write the definition for verb on the lines provided.

__________________________________________________

Directions: Carefully read each sentence below. Print the numeral 4 above each verb.

1. We all walk to school.

2. Sophia ran home.

3. The girls played soccer.

4. Those dogs are quiet.

5. Father rests every afternoon.

6. Ms. Gainer is my aunt.

7. We saw the fire.

8. The students broke the glass accidentally.

9. An apple dropped from the tree.

10. Mushrooms are plant life.

Name _________________________ Date ___/___/___ Score _____

THE PREDICATE

(Continued)

The predicate is the part of a sentence that lets you know what is going on. It either tells you what the subject in the sentence is, what the subject does, or what it has.

The simple predicate is a single verb, like walk, or a single verb-phrase, like have walked.

The simple predicate, combined with any words that describe it or add to it, is called the complete predicate. In other words, the complete predicate is all of the words that tell you what the subject is, does, or has.

To get a better understanding, let's go back to our last example:

In the above example, if I wanted to give all of the words that told what Robert Valencia was, I'd have to say, “was my father's best friend.”

Do you see that? The word “was” is just a simple predicate. It is a single verb, all by itself, without any other words attached to it. But, if I want to include all of the details, I have to say the whole phrase: “was my father's best friend,” which is the complete predicate.

1.0

Nouns

A noun is a word that is used to name a person, place, thing, or idea. It is the first of eight basic parts of speech.

EXAMPLES:

Mr. Jones and girl are nouns because both name people.

Compton and room are nouns because both name places.

Cat, and flower both name living things.

Porsche and rock name nonliving things.

Freedom, love, and power are all nouns because they name ideas or concepts.

English

Language

Conventions

Level 4

Objective:

Students will recognize and use complete, coherent sentences

IDENTIFYING NOUNS

Directions: In each of the following sentences the noun has been identified using the numeral "1". Decide if the identified word is a person, a place, or a thing. Then write your answer in the space provided. The first one has been done for you.

The baby is funny.

______________

person

______________

This table is clean.

______________

That pencil is dull.

______________

Our teacher is here.

______________

Let's go downtown.

______________

The apple is green.

1.0

Identifying Nouns

A noun is a word that is used to name a person, place, thing, or idea.

It is the first of eight basic parts of speech.

A noun that is a person, place, or thing, is usually something you can see or touch. For example, in the sentence, "My grandmother is here." you cannot see a "my," an "is," or a "here." But, you can see a "grandmother." Unless it is representing an idea, you can usually draw a picture of a noun. So, to find the noun in a sentence, try to find a word that is something you can draw a picture of.

English

Language

Conventions

Level 4

Objective:

Students will recognize and use complete, coherent sentences

IDENTIFYING NOUNS

Directions: Carefully read all of the sentences below. Identify the noun in each sentence by printing a "1" above it. Then draw a picture of the noun in the box.

IDENTIFYING NOUNS I

A noun is a word that names a person, place, thing or idea. To find a noun, it usually helps to look for a word that is something you can draw a picture of.

Directions: Carefully read each sentence below. Print the numeral 1 above each noun. (The first one has been done for you.)

1. The dog is standing still.

2. The crab is red.

3. That animal stood on its hind legs.

4. A Blue Jay sat on the tree branch.

5. The mother bear lifted her right paw.

Name _________________________ Date ___/___/___ Score _____

This orange tastes good.

The doctor is nice.

Go to school right now!

The television is broken.

My mother said don't go.

Wash the dog.

Name _________________________ Date ___/___/___ Score _____

EXAMPLE: Robert Valencia was my father's best friend.

EXAMPLE: Anthony laughed.

EXAMPLE: Robert Valencia was my father's best friend.

REVIEW

Sentences are groups of words that express complete thoughts. They always begin with a capital letter and end with some type of punctuation mark -- either a period, question mark, or exclamation point. In order to express a complete thought, sentences must have something called a predicate. The predicate lets you know what is going on in a sentence.

The simple predicate is a single word that expresses action or a state of being. It is also called a verb. There are two basic categories of verbs: action verbs and state-of-being verbs.

An action verb will tell you what something or someone in the sentence does or has. A state-of-being verb will tell you that something or someone in the sentence is.

To identify an action verb, look at each word in the sentence and ask yourself, "Can I show my teacher how to do this?" If you can't, the word probably isn't an action verb. Lets use this sentence as an example: Anthony walked to school today.

Now, I can't show my teacher how to "Anthony," how to "to," how to "school,"or how to "today." But, I can show my teacher how to "walk." Therefore, the word walk is the action verb in the above sentence.

As for identifying the state-of-being verbs, the best strategy is to simply memorize them. They are: am, are, is, was, were, be, being, and been. For our second example, let's use: Roberto Valencia was my father's best friend.

By memorizing the state-of-being verbs, I instantly recognize "was" as the verb.

There's just one last point: The simple predicate, combined with any words that describe it, is called the complete predicate. The complete predicate is all of the words that tell what the subject of the sentence is, does, or has. In the above example, if I wanted to give all of the words that told what Roberto Valencia was, I'd have to say, "was my father's best friend."

Do you see that? The word "was" is just the simple predicate. It is a single verb, all by itself, without any other words attached to it. But, if I wanted to include all of the details, I would have to say the whole phrase: "was my father's best friend," which is the complete predicate.

IDENTIFYING SENTENCES

A group of words that does not have a predicate − or verb − is usually hard to understand because it is unable to express a complete thought. Such words form an incomplete sentence.

Directions: Carefully read each group of words below. If the group of words includes a predicate (a verb), copy the complete predicate onto the line that follows and circle the simple predicate (verb). If a predicate (verb) is not included, write "incomplete sentence" on the line instead. Remember, in order to make sure that a word is an action verb, ask yourself, "Can I show my teacher how to do this?" If you can't, then chances are that the word is probably not an action verb.

1. All of the girls played soccer. ______________________________

2. My older sister went to the party. ___________________________

3. That ice cream sandwich. ________________________________

4. The top button popped off. _______________________________

5. My Aunt Bertha and Uncle Mark. __________________________

6. Anyone that likes baseball. ________________________________

7. My two dogs fought all day long. ___________________________

8. Juan Vega was passing out papers. _________________________

9. Sierra sharpened her pencil. _______________________________

10. The people on the cruise ship. _____________________________

11. Ruiz Lopez's older brother. _______________________________

SENTENCES / PREDICATES

Directions: Read each sentence carefully. Copy the complete predicate on the line that follows. Underline the simple predicate (verb).

1. Hard-working students earn very good grades.

_____________________________________________________

2. Our dog, Maxwell, ran away last night.

_____________________________________________________

3. This book by James Hamilton is the best he's written.

_____________________________________________________

4. The sleeve of my jacket ripped from top to bottom.

_____________________________________________________

Directions: In each of the sentences below, underline the complete predicate, and circle the simple predicate (verb).

5. This big bucket holds a lot of water.

6. The children are as hungry as can be.

7. Maria, Josefina, and Thomas went to the movies with us.

8. The glass broke into a hundred pieces.

9. Victoria's desire for a horse was easy to see.

10. The beautiful flowers faded as the sun beat down on them.

Not every group of words is a sentence. If a group of words doesn't have a subject, it is not a sentence. To figure out whether or not a group of words has a subject (is a sentence), ask yourself these three questions:

Who or what is doing something in this sentence?

Who or what has something in the sentence?

Who or what is something in the sentence?

If there is nothing or no one in the group of words that does something, has something, or is something, then there is no subject, and the group of words is NOT a sentence.

For example, the group of words: “Fritz Gibbons is my uncle.” is a complete sentence because it answers the question, “Who or what is something?”

“The children went to dance class.” is a complete sentence because it answers the question,“Who or what is doing something?”

And the sentence, “Walt had the ball” is a complete sentence because it answers the question,“Who has something?”

PARTS OF SPEECH

GRAMMAR English Conventions w Level 4

Focus: Define, identify, and correctly use pronouns.

PRONOUNS

Pronouns are the second of eight basic parts of speech.

Pronouns can be used in different ways. They are sometimes used as the subjects of sentences.

(The subject of a sentence is what the sentence is about.)

Definition: A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun

EXAMPLES:

I, me, you, he, him, she, her, it, we, us, they, them

me, mine, your, yours, his, her, hers, its, our, ours, their, theirs

anybody, anyone, each, either, none, someone, somebody, both, everyone, no one, neither, many, few, several, one, who, whom, what, which, whose, this, that, these, those

Name _________________________ Date ___/___/___ Score _____

PRONOUNS

Directions: Write the numeral 1 above the noun in each of the sentences below, the numeral 2 above each pronoun, and the numeral 4 above each verb. The first one has been done for you

2 4 l

We ate pickles.

They told stories.

Carlos helped us.

They laughed.

Bernard runs races.

Melanie sings songs.

Fireworks exploded.

She made burritos.

He loves candy.

Victor told them.

Instructors teach us lessons.

PARTS OF SPEECH

GRAMMAR English Conventions w Level 4

A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun. It is used to refer to a noun whose identity was made clear earlier in the writing. Personal pronouns stand in for people, places, things and ideas.

PARTS OF SPEECH

GRAMMAR English Conventions w Level 4

Here is a list of all the pronouns arranged in alphabetical order. Learn to recognize them when you see them.

first-person

mine

our

ours

myself

ourselves

second-person

you

your

yours

third-person

him

he is

she

her

hers

they

them

theirs

ours

its

who

whom

all

another

any

anybody

anyone

both

each

either

every body

everyone

herself

him

himself

his

its

itself

many

mine

most

much

myself

neither

nobody

nine

no one

nothing

one

others

our

ours

ourselves

several

she

some

somebody

someone

something

that

their

theirs

them

themselves

these

they

this

those

you

your

yours

yourself

what

which

who

whom

whose

Name _________________________ Date ___/___/___ Score _____

PRONOUNS

A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun.

Directions: Write the numeral 1 above the noun in each of the sentences below, the numeral 2 above each pronoun, and the numeral 4 above each verb. The first one has been done for you

l l 4 2 4 l l

EXAMPLE: Laura Dasher said she likes funny books.

1.T

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

The papers are on my desk.

Steven went to the movies.

Brandon is her friend.

Marcos put his chair on his desk.

Analy was on the playground.

Brian gave his pencil to Rosalya.

They go to McNair.

J‘Quincy erased his mistake.

You give me my things back.

I love milk and cookies.

Thomas needs your help.

Everyone came to the park.

This work is simple.

Davontay asked them a question.

Name _________________________ Date ___/___/___ Score _____

PRONOUNS

A pronoun (the second of eight basic parts of speech) is a word that takes the place of a noun.

We use pronouns to keep from having to repeat the same noun over and over again. For example, without pronouns, you might find occasion to write something like this:

Joe asked Joe’s sister to bring Joe the sweater Joe left on Joe’s bed.

However, the sentence doesn’t sound nearly as awkward if you use pronouns:

Larry asked his sister to bring him the sweater he left on his bed.

Directions: Rewrite each sentence, replacing each of the underlined nouns with an appropriate pronoun in order to avoid the awkward repetition of the same noun.

Susan goes where Susan wants when Susan drives Susan’s car.

Mark sees Mark’s reflection in Mark’s mirror.

Father doesn’t know if Father is going to wash Father’s car today.

The people didn’t know if the people should cheer for the people’s team.

Carla gave Carla‘s pencil to Carla’s friend.

The table needed to have one of the table’s legs fixed before the table could be used.

The students left the student’s school before the students were dismissed.

Name _________________________ Date ___/___/___ Score _____

PRONOUNS

Person pronouns can be used to replace subject nouns, object nouns, and possessive nouns.

A personal pronoun can replace a singular or plural subject noun. For example, instead of saying “the bird whistled,” you could say, “it whistled“ instead.

Personal pronouns can also replace singular or plural object nouns. For example, instead of saying “the bird whistled a song for Julie,” you could say, the bird whistled a song for her.

Possessive nouns may also be replaced by pronouns. For example, instead of saying, “Joseph’s cookie is on the table,“ you could say, “ his cookie is on the table.”

(Note: Make sure you understand that the pronoun I always takes the place of a subject noun, whereas the pronoun me always takes the place of an object noun.)

Directions: Read each sentence carefully. Write the pronoun I in the blank if it is taking the place of an subject noun. Write the pronoun me in the blank if it is taking the place of an object noun.

1. Give the ball to my brother and _____ .

2. Carla and _____ are going to the movies tomorrow.

3. Mr. Williams and _____ are going to work on a project.

4. That gift is for my mother and _____.

5. You and _____ are best friends.

6. I didn’t hear what you said to Victor and _____.

7. Diane Warren and _____ are making dinner for my wife and _____.

Name _________________________ Date ___/___/___ Score _____

POSSESSIVE PRONOUNS

As you know, a pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun.

There are a total of 66 pronouns, which are divided into seven different groups. The seven categories are: personal, demonstrative, indefinite, intensive, interrogative, reflexive, and possessive.

To possess something means to own it, so possessive pronouns are pronouns that show ownership.

Directions: All of the pronouns are listed below in alphabetical order. Read each of the pronouns carefully and circle all of the possessive pronouns.

all

another

any

anybody

anyone

anything

both

each

either

everybody

everyone

everything

few

her

hers

herself

him

himself

his

its

itself

many

mine

myself

neither

nobody

none

no one

nothing

one

others

our

ours

ourselves

several

she

some

somebody

someone

something

that

their

theirs

them

themselves

these

they

this

those

what

which

who

whom

whose

you

your

yours

yourself

yourselves

LANG ARTS Eng Conventions w Level 4

What is an Adjective?

An adjective is a describing, identifying, or quantifying word that tells you something about (or “modifies”) a noun -- though adjectives can also modify a pronoun.

Describing adjectives either tell you the type of noun, what the noun is made of, or how the noun looks, sounds, smells, tastes, or feels. Examples are words like: plastic, smelly, blue, hard, big, loud, nasty, and metal.

Identifying adjectives tell you which noun. Examples are words like: this, your, that, those, these and my.

Quantifying adjectives tell you how many nouns. Examples are words like: three, many, some, and few.

NOTE: An adjective usually comes before the noun or pronoun that it modifies.

In the following examples, the bold words are adjectives:

Red balloons floated over green treetops.

Mrs. Moore decorated her walls with pretty paper.

Small boats sank into ocean waters.

Some mines are in Kentucky.

Most stores play soft music.

Battered boxes sat on oak shelves.

Every room was filled with large, yellow, rain boots.

THE “SPECIAL” ADJECTIVES (ARTICLES)

There are three special adjectives, called “articles.” They are: a, and, and the. Articles are often referred to as “noun identifiers.”

POSSESSIVE ADJECTIVES

A possessive adjective is in adjective that indicates to whom or to what a noun belongs. Possessive adjectives tell you who or what is the owner of the noun. In most cases, a possessive adjective can be formed by adding an ’s to the end of a singular noun or pronoun, or simply an ’ at the end of a plural noun.

Certain pronouns -- called possessive pronouns -- may also serve as possessive adjectives. Some examples of such pronouns are: my, your, his, her, its, our, and their. However, please note that not all possessive pronouns may be used to modify a noun. The possessive pronouns “mine” and “yours” would be two such examples.

Name _________________________ Date ___/___/___ Score _____

LANG ARTS Eng Conventions w Level 4

What is an Adjective?

Directions: Each of the sentences below has exactly one adjective. Print the numeral three (3) above each adjective. On the line following each sentence, indicate whether the adjective you identified was describing, identifying, quantifying, possessive, or an article.

EXAMPLE: someone lost the ball. article

I cannot find a pencil. _____________________________

There are red marbles all around. _____________________________

I’m doing hard work. _____________________________

Everyone’s pizza has arrived. _____________________________

We meant to the mall yesterday. _____________________________

It is too late to go horseback riding. ___________________________

Get those fish out of here! _____________________________

Thomas is my little brother. _____________________________

Yellow marks are difficult to see. _____________________________

That is smelly cheese! _____________________________

They went on a picnic with their father’s parents. _________________

She ate an apple at lunchtime. _____________________________

Sitting on hard chairs is not comfortable. ________________________

Metal objects last longer than plastic. __________________________

Take this to the other side. _____________________________

I see three people who are not sitting down. _____________________

Take this empty container outside. ___________________________

Demonstrative Adjectives

The demonstrative pronouns (this, these, that, those, and what) may be used as demonstrative adjectives. For example: Gary tripped over that cord.

Interrogative Adjectives

An interrogative adjective (``which'' or ``what'') is like an interrogative pronoun, except that it modifies a noun or noun phrase rather than standing on its own (see also demonstrative adjectives and possessive adjectives):

Which plants should be watered twice a week?

Like other adjectives, ``which'' can be used to modify a noun or a noun phrase. In this example, ``which'' modifies ``plants'' and the noun phrase ``which paints'' is the subject of the compound verb ``should be watered'':

What book are you reading?

In this sentence, ``what'' modifies ``book'' and the noun phrase ``what book'' is the direct object of the compound verb ``are reading.''

Indefinite Adjectives

An indefinite adjective is similar to an indefinite pronoun, except that it modifies a noun, pronoun, or noun phrase, as in the following sentences:

Many people believe that corporations are under-taxed.

The indefinite adjective ``many'' modifies the noun ``people'' and the noun phrase ``many people'' is the subject of the sentence.

I will send you any mail that arrives after you have moved to Sudbury.

The indefinite adjective ``any'' modifies the noun ``mail'' and the noun phrase ``any mail'' is the direct object of the compound verb ``will send.''

They found a few goldfish floating belly up in the swan pound.

In this example the indefinite adjective modifies the noun ``goldfish'' and the noun phrase is the direct object of the verb ``found'':

The title of Kelly's favourite game is ``All dogs go to heaven.''

Here the indefinite pronoun ``all'' modifies ``dogs'' and the full title is a subject complement.

An adjective can be modified by an adverb, or by a phrase or clause functioning as an adverb. In the sentence

My husband knits intricately patterned mittens.

for example, the adverb ``intricately'' modifies the adjective ``patterned.''

Some nouns, many pronouns, and many participle phrases can also act as adjectives. In the sentence

Eleanor listened to the muffled sounds of the radio hidden under her pillow.for example, both highlighted adjectives are past participles.

Grammarians also consider articles (``the,'' ``a,'' ``an'') to be adjectives.

http://www.arts.uottawa.ca/writcent/hypergrammar/adjectve.html

Grammar has to do with how the parts of our language fit together to form sentences. It’s the process of combining words (and punctuation) correctly to communicate effectively.

When you are talking with your friends, perfect grammar may not be so important. But, when you need to appear professional, educated, or businesslike, you must be able to use what is known as Standard Edited American English (SEAE). You may have heard it referred to as proper English. Basically, it is the dialect you find in most textbooks, magazines, newspapers and business correspondence.

Standard means that it is established as the dialect most people have agreed to use.

Edited implies that you have taken the time to write it down.

American English is the dialect used here in the United States, as opposed to Great Britain, Australia, or New Zealand, though they are all similar.

And don’t make the mistake of confusing good grammar with a good vocabulary.

Grammar concerns whether or not a word is positioned in the right place. Vocabulary has to do with whether a word means what it ought— whether it is used well in terms of its definition. Just because someone spouts long, important sounding words doesn't necessarily mean they are using good grammar.

And finally, remember that when it comes to writing, your first priority is to get your ideas down on paper as quickly as possible. Don't worry about the correctness of your grammar until it is time to edit your work.

Introduction to Standard Edited American English

The above information is from