Teaching Basic Grammar to Adults: A Gentle and Effective Approach
Why on earth would you teach that gobbledygook? Everyone knows at least one language and learned most of the grammar they’ll ever need before they entered first grade. Our English grammar is almost entirely based on word order. Have you ever heard anyone say "the red old barn"? No. Even small kids know that it's "the old red barn."
Link Grammar to Good Literature
Don't separate grammar from good literature. Read a good story, discuss the story, weave in and out of the story any way you can. At some point, now and then, you would mention, "oh by the way, this sentence is written a certain way because it’s clearer or it’s traditional or it’s recommended by most teachers."
In other words, you teach and defend Standard English softly and subtly. This approach has been guiding my teaching for the past 23 years. I always remember that because of God's grace, I learned English grammar well. I remain humble and polite always, never project my ego, and never raise my voice. I treat my learners with respect and dignity.
Respect and Consent
Unless the person you want to correct has explicitly asked you to teach them grammar, there is no way you can teach or correct their grammar without coming across as an officious asshole. Do you really want to make people avoid you? Correcting other people's grammar is the best, fastest way I know of to drive people away from you. Unless you long to be an outcast, don't appoint yourself to correct or "teach" people grammar.
If you can understand people and they can understand you, communication has been achieved. Let it be.
Utilizing Appropriate Resources
Schools and publishers addressed this problem many years ago. They produced books both textbooks with their attendant workbooks and fiction books which taught basic grammar aimed at adults instead of primary-aged children. One of the problems with giving a high schooler or adult a book written to introduce English basic grammar was the childishness of the content. A fine idea for six-year-olds, not a good idea for sixteen learners.
It always seemed odd to me that books which taught Latin to high school students never had example sentences meant to appeal to first graders. No Dick and Jane and Spot their dog. More likely Pompey or a legionary on the frontier fighting the Gauls. Yet when it came to teaching English, we had to use primary texts. Perhaps ten years after I started teaching, there were High-interest Low-readability books. The sentences were simple, the explanations elementary, but the subject matter was not.
Effective Teaching Methods
A method I used was to never ever simplify any idea and never ever use the wrong term for something. There are those who say it's important to be clear and accurate in your explanations. Teaching an adult outside of a school setting, I probably skip saying all of this, but I would certainly do all of this. Clear, concise, and accurate teaching is key to effective instruction.
Remember, the goal is to help adults understand grammar without feeling silly or unintelligent. By weaving grammar into engaging and meaningful contexts, and treating learners with respect and dignity, you can achieve remarkable results. Happy teaching!