Authors: Helen Kada Mathias, Kikelomo Adeniyi & Chinyere Chuku (Nigeria) | Uploaded on 1 June 2022
A conjunction is a part of speech that connects or links words, phrases or clauses. The word is made up of the root word junction and the prefix con (= with or together). They are more likely to understand and remember when they have a strong visual image. Realising that the word conjunction is related to the word junction and serves a similar purpose of linking and joining will create a strong image that they can relate to.
Stage 1: Prepare
Before class, find a picture (from a textbook, magazine, newspaper or online) of a village or town showing roads and junctions.
Ensure that at each junction, 2 or more people or cars are meeting.
Stage 2: Explain
In class, begin by pinning up the picture at the front of the classroom where the learners can see it.
Say: Every day we use roads to go to different places.
Ask: Can you give examples of places where roads lead to?
Allow a few learners to give various examples of places.
Ask: Are all roads single and straight? Are some roads sometimes linked or joined?
Give the learners a chance to respond by describing different roads.
Say: A junction is a point or place where roads meet or where roads are linked or joined. Look at the picture. Can you see any junctions?
Model
Draw learners’ attention to the fact that people or cars are meeting and are linked at the junctions.
Monitor and help the learners as they walk to the board to identify junctions in the picture.
Illustrate
Have a few learners form two queues and walk round the class until they meet. At each meeting point, have them say the word junction.
Stage 4: Relate junctions and conjunctions
Say: As we have seen from the picture and as we have illustrated with our queues, junctions link roads, people, cars etc.
In a similar way, a conjunction is a part of speech that connects words, phrases or clauses. When you forget what a conjunction is, remember what a junction is and it will help you to remember the meaning of conjunction. The people or cars meeting at the junction represent words, phrases and clauses.
Stage 5: Give examples of sentences to illustrate the 3 basic types of conjunctions:
- COORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS for items that are grammatically equal eg The boys and the girls are running.
- CORRELATIVE CONJUNCTIONS which come in pairs e.g. She intended to travel either by road or by air.
- SUBORDINATING CONJUNCTIONS for introducing dependent clauses e.g. I went to the market although it was raining.
Ask: Can you make your own examples?
Allow a few learners to respond.
Extend
- Make more than one picture available for learners to work in groups
- Monitor each group as they identify the junctions in the picture and also note if people or cars are meeting at the junctions.
- Also monitor the groups as they form queues and meet at different points in the class saying the word junction.