Update on an Inspirational Grammar Song

          Our first unit in the high intermediate academic ESL class is on the news, so of course we read about man who was texting in a movie theatre who was shot and killed by the retired police office.  Maybe a few days ago I posted something about how that might make the students, coming in to a new semester, think twice before texting.  The grammar point that's taught in the first unit is the passive voice, so I've resurrected an old grammar song and updated it:

From the news the impression we’ve got:

If we text in this class, we’ll be shot.

Beware of all guns.  For Bufano

All guns were turned in, were they not?

I also want them to learn about Bufano's "St. Francis of the Guns," which they see every day without knowing that it was made (so legend goes) with all the guns that were turned in after the assassination of Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King.  

An Inspirational Grammar Song

By Tina Martin (with her apologies)

To the tune of  “The Impossible Dream”

To learn grammar like passive voice

We must  (We are given no choice)

Apply all our brain power to verb forms..

To this, we are raising our voice.

To right each grammatical wrong

In form, tense, and number and song.

TO BE plus the PAST PERFECT VERB FORM.

Our English is strengthened to strong.

This is our quest, to master this tongue

Where English is spoken, read, written, or sung.

To fight against odds,

To improve, do our best,

So our level is raised like the scores on each test.

And we know, if we’ll only be true to this glorious quest

That our English will be seen as quite good, and we finally can rest.

And our world will be bettered by this:

By the passive which finally was used

            By students whose last ounce of courage

            Took them far from just being confused!

Update for January 2014

It’s said music is a relief.

It’s said music lifts us from grief.

We know music’s said to relieve us.

We know that’s been said, let’s be brief….

From the news the impression we’ve got:

If we text in this class, we’ll be shot.

Beware of all guns.  For Bufano

All guns were turned in, were they not?

And it’s said our world’s better for this:

By the passive which finally is used

            By students who didn’t like grammar

            Who were less bruised by it than amused.