Types of Exercises for the Assimilation of Grammar

The following types of exercises may be suggested:
- Recognition exercises
- Drill exercises
- Creative exercises (speech exercises).
- Grammar tests.

Recognition exercises are the easiest type of exercises for pupils to perform.
They observe the grammar item in structures (sentence patterns) when hearing or reading.
Since pupils only observe the new grammar item, the situations should be natural and communicative.
For example: - Listen to the sentences and raise your hands whenever you hear the verbs in the Past Indefinite.

Drill exercises are more complicated as they require reproduction on the part of the pupils. In learning a foreign language, drill exercises are indispensable.
Drill exercises are graded:
- Repetitive drill - Pupils pronounce the sentence pattern after the teacher, in imitation of the teacher, both individually and in unison.
- Substitution - Pupils substitute the words or phrases in a sentence pattern.
- Completion - Pupils complete the sentences the teacher utters looking at the pictures.
- Answering the teacher‘s questions.
Drill exercises may be done both orally and in written form.

Creative exercises (speech exercises). This is the most difficult type of exercises as it requires creative work on the part of the learners.
These may be:
Making statements either on the picture the teacher shows, or on objects.
Asking questions with a given grammar item.
Speaking about the situation offered by the teacher.
Speaking on a suggested topic.
Making dialogues using the grammar item covered.

Dramatizing the text read.
Commenting on a film-strip, a film.
Telling the story (read, heard).
Translating into English.
j) Participating in free conversation in which pupils are to use the grammar item they have learned.

All the Creative exercises mentioned above are designed:
1) to develop pupils’ skills in recognizing grammar forms while auding and reading English texts;
2) to accumulate correct sentence patterns in the pupils’ memory which they can reproduce whenever they need these patterns for speaking or writing;
3) to help the pupils to produce sentences of their own using grammar items necessary for speaking about a situation or a topic offered, or writing an essay on the text hearted or an annotation on the text read.