Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Two, to, and too

Two, to, and too sound alike, but they mean different things. We're going to discuss some tricks to use when you're trying to figure out which one you need in your sentence.

Two

Two refers to the number 2. Use it when the word is communicating that there are 2 objects or people.

It was two o'clock in the morning.
There were two slices of pie left.
There are two people in front of me in line.

To

To tells you that someone of something is going somewhere, or is moving towards something.

I went to the store.
She took me to the doctor.
We walked to the waterfront.

The idea that to is moving towards something is a little bit tricky. Notice this sentence:

He said that in order to complete the assignment, we should read the book.

Notice that he said “to complete the assignment.” This shows that he wants to move something towards completion.

We wanted to create a web page.

Notice that “to create” shows a desire to move towards creating a web page.

Too

Too is used to emphasize something. You can usually substitute too for also.

We'd like to go, too.
This, too, is important.
Shari wants to participate, too.

* Notice that too, when used like also, always has a comma before it if it is at the end of a sentence, and has a comma before and after it if it is in the middle of a sentence.

Too can also be used to express an excess of something.

There are too many of us here today.
I have too much homework.
There is too little being done to save the polar bears.

Journal for the Day

All sections:

Write a story or poem about living a good life.

Journal for the Day

All sections:

Freewrite!

Monday, November 9, 2009

Journal for the Day

All sections:

Write a story about a character who is mean and bossy. Make sure your character says, does, and thinks things that demonstrate these attributes.

Sunday, November 8, 2009

Download Worksheet PDFs from Engrade

As you know, when I upload worksheets to this webpage, the formatting goes a little nuts. The good news is that Engrade allows me to upload PDFs of the worksheets I give you in class. So if you haven't signed up for Engrade yet, this is a really good reason to activate your account!

Download PDF worksheets from www.engrade.com!

Weekend Journals

All sections:

Saturday: What does it mean to live a life on the surface?

Sunday: How do you feel about authority figures? describe a situation in which you interact with an authority figure.

Friday, November 6, 2009