Help with grammar

WHEN we speak, we often use shortcuts and poor grammar but it’s not so noticeable as long as you’re communicating well. Unfortunately, the same isn’t true when you’re writing.

When you’re writing, every tiny error stands out like a sore thumb.

It’s not a problem on Facebook or Twitter (unless your friends are grammar police) but for reports and essays, good grammar is essential. Luckily there are some excellent sites online where you can pick up good language tips.

Here are some websites to check out:

English Grammar References and Exercises

http://www.ego4u.com/en/ cram-up/grammar

This is an online book that offers an overview on all the tenses (with examples) as well as chapters on prepositions, reported speech, gerunds and other grammar topics.

Guide to Grammar and Writing

http://grammar.ccc.commnet. edu/grammar

This is another huge resource that’s divided into six major areas.

Twoplacestocheckoutare– the sentence level where there is excellent advice on using colons, semi-colons and other thorny issues and the research paper level where there are some good tips on being logical, the five paragraph essay and other useful academic writing issues.

There are interactive quizzes where you can test your knowledge.