Teacher version of A, An, The or Nothing. This lesson is designed to teach intermediate to advanced English Language Learners when and how to use the articles a, an, and the. and when NOT to use them.This is the eighth and final lesson of the SkimaTalk course Misused and Misunderstood Words. It includes a course review. Written by Michele W. Snider, SkimaTalk teacher and author of My Virtual English dot com.

1. A, AN, THE, OR...?
When to use these words
and when to stay silent

2. Lesson 1: Look, Watch, See
Lesson 2: Talking Naturally About Nature
Lesson 3: We've Got to Stop Meeting Like This!
Lesson 4: Get Married and Throw a Party
Lesson 5: Especially Strange
Lesson 6: Are you Coming or Going?
Lesson 7: To and Fro with To and For
Lesson 8: A, An, The, or …? Today's Lesson
MISUSED AND MISUNDERSTOOD WORDS

3. A, An, The, or …?
THAT is the question! *
* This is a play on words* referencing the frequently
quoted Shakespearean character of Hamlet who said,
"To be or not to be. That is the question."
Teacher: Have the student read slides 3- 7 aloud.
Answer any questions
If the student is interested, here are links to the resources on this page:
Definition of "play on words" http://www.myvirtualenglish.com/following-the-star/
To be or not to be quotes
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/to_be_or_not_to_be.html

4. Many words can be paired with both “a/an” or “the.”
Just remember “a/an” means “one” of something.
Also, "a cellphone" in the example above indicates that it isn't special. It
is just one of several cellphones in the world.
However, "the cellphone" indicates it is the specific one.
The boy is talking on a
cellphone.
The boy is talking on the
cellphone.

5. “THE” IS OFTEN USED TO REFER
TO ANY GYM, HOSPITAL,
STORE, AND LIBRARY
I’m going to the store. This usually means
the grocery store. It could be one of
several that you go to, but it is familiar
and it has a special purpose, so we say
“the.”
I had to go to the hospital last week.
Even though my community has several
hospitals, I still say “the hospital.” Because
it has a special purpose and I am familiar
with those hospitals, so I say “the.”
However, if I was in another community
(or a foreign country) I might say, “I had
to go to a hospital.” In this case my lack
of familiarity with that hospital is
conveyed.

6. We are creatures of habit.
So, we tend to go to the
same gym.
Even if you were gym-
hopping*, you would still say
that you were headed to the
gym.
(Why?)
You might also say, “I’m
going to try out a new gym.”
This would emphasize that it
is unfamiliar.
"I’m going to the gym."

7. PRONUNCIATION OF THE: THUH OR THEE?
My Country ‘Tis of Thee…
This is the first line of a well-known patriotic
song.
Thee means “you” in 17th century English.
Sometimes “the” is pronounced “thuh,”
other times it is pronounced “thee.”
Remember how “a” becomes “an”
before a vowel sound?
Similarly, when “the” comes before a
vowel SOUND we say “thee.”
Kelly Clarkson’s performance at President
Obama’s 2013 Inauguration*
For this lesson listen to the first 45 seconds
until, "...of thee I sing."
Here are links to the resources on this page:
Review of When to use a vs. an http://www.ecenglish.com/learnenglish/when-use-a
Definition of inaugration http://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/learner-
english/inaugurate?q=inauguration
Clarkson video (have the student go to the next slide and listen to the first 45 seconds,
"...of thee I sing")

8. USE "A" AND "AN" TO MEAN: A SINGLE THING
USE "THE" TO MEAN: A CERTAIN THING, OR SOMETHING
FAMILIAR, OR WITH A SPECIAL PURPOSE
NEXT, WHEN
TO STAY
QUIET
Shhhhhh...
Teacher: Have the student read the next four slides aloud.
Answer any questions

9. QUIET SUBJECTS
General plurals
Butterflies remind me of spring.
(butterflies in general)
Compare
with specific plurals
The butterflies remind me of spring.
(The particular butterflies that I'm
looking at--or thinking about now)

10. QUIET SUBJECTS
General mass (uncountable) nouns
Rice is delicious
(rice in general)
Compare
with specific
The rice is delicious.
(The particular rice that I'm referring to)

11. QUIET SUBJECTS
Proper nouns (names, holidays, & languages)
*except if "the" is a part of the name
I need a card for Mother's Day.
My sister lives in Canada, but I live in
the US.*
* Use articles with abbreviations and
acronyms ONLY IF the letters are
pronounced: the UN, the IT department,
an MBA, or a PhD, but just SAD
(seasonal affective disorder), and
MADD (mothers against drunk drivers).

12. QUIET SUBJECTS
General places
Examples: home, bed, church, school, jail
I'm going home and going to bed.
Compare with specific plurals
Do you want to sleep in the bed?
(There is probably just one bed available)
With sports
Let's go biking. (general sport)
BUT: Let's go for a bike ride.
(bike describes the type of ride)

13. CREATE YOUR OWN SENTENCES
2. Use some of these "quiet" subjects:
11News (proper noun), rain, wind, cold, snow,
water droplets, Christmas, holidays, Santa,
children, boys, girls
1. Use both "a" and "the" to describe what you see
3. Explain the difference in
meaning when an article is
used with the nouns above
4. Identify the type of nouns
above. The first one is done for you.
See slides 8-11 if needed
Teacher: Have the student practice their learning. Have them read and follow the
instructions blow. Sample answers (teacher version only) are on the next page

14. 2. Use some of these "quiet" subjects:
11News (proper noun), rain, wind, cold, snow, water droplets, Christmas,
holidays, Santa, children, boys, girls
1. Use both "a" and "the" to describe what you see
3. Explain the difference in meaning when an article is used with the nouns above
4. Identify the type of nouns above. The first one is done for
you. See slides 8-11 if needed
Sample answers (teacher version only)
A woman is standing in the newsroom. (separate sentences are perfectly
acceptable).
For example: I am watching rain. versus, I am watching the rain. Have your student try:
cold, versus a/the cold; holidays, versus the holidays, and boys or girls versus the boys/girls
11News is featuring a cooking show for Christmas.
I am watching water droplets fall down the/a window pane.
Rain, wind, snow =mass nouns; cold =a specific noun (most
commonly used as an adjective); water droplets, holidays,
children, boys, girls =plurals; Christmas, Santa = proper nouns

15. COURSE REVIEW
Watch?, Look?, See?
Talk about nature. Meeting someone?
Weddings & Parties Use "especially."
Coming or going?
Use to and for.
A, an, the, or nothing?
Final exam: Ask the student to use the terms
below. Review lessons as indicated by the
student's performance.

16. This slide presentation was created by Michele W. Snider, teacher for SkimaTalk,
Inc., and author of
My Virtual English
That's it!
You did it!
Well done.
Please ask your teacher how to get your
Certificate of Completion
Once a student has demonstrated mastery of this course content (as demonstrated on the
previous slide) go to http://bitly.com/Certificate_MMW download a Certificate of
Completion, edit it with the student's name and date of completion, then send it to the
student via SkimaTalk mail as an attached document. Thanks for teaching Misused and
Misunderstood Words., Michele (I'd love your feedback)