Approved grammar workbook companion

The workbook is a reference, not a course route

*English Grammar in Use* by Raymond Murphy (Cambridge University Press) is organised topic by topic: explanation on the left, exercises on the right, answers at the back. Treating it as a route to finish in order wastes its design. Diagnose first, then visit the units your writing actually needs.

Diagnose in ten minutes

Write ten sentences from your own work or study life. Mark each one: correct, or a problem you suspect. The problems cluster, and the clusters name your units. A learner who discovers every error is a tense issue buys two units of practice instead of thirty.

The unit loop

Read the explanation once. Cover it and redo the examples from the prompt alone. Check answers honestly and mark every miss. Then write three new sentences of your own using the same pattern, because the book drills recognition more than production. Return to the unit after three days.

What a companion adds

The workbook cannot know your week. The companion step supplies it: your timetable, your emails, your weekend plans as raw material for the pattern. Grammar practised on your own facts transfers; grammar practised on textbook strangers often stays in the book.

Exercise: pick two units and run the loop

Diagnose, choose two, complete the loop with three personal sentences each, and re-test after three days.

Worked example

Take one unit from a grammar workbook. Read the explanation once, then cover it and write three sentences of your own using the target structure. Check against the book, mark errors, and rewrite. Repeat the next day with new sentences. The book supplies the pattern; your sentences supply the learning.

Common pitfalls

• Copying examples instead of writing your own.
• Doing many units without reviewing earlier ones.
• Ignoring error patterns and repeating them.
• Treating completion of exercises as mastery.

Practice

Choose two units you have already studied. Write a short paragraph using both structures. Underline each target form. Ask a teacher or peer to check accuracy and naturalness.

Checklist

• One unit studied at a time.
• Own sentences produced.
• Errors identified and corrected.
• Review scheduled.
• Progress recorded.

Mini-exercise

Select one grammar point from a workbook. Write five original sentences, trade with a classmate, and correct each other's work.

Related lessons

Start with English grammar foundations and schedule the re-test with retrieval practice for new vocabulary.

Source

Original LinguaPro lesson prepared as a companion to *English Grammar in Use*, Fifth Edition, by Raymond Murphy (Cambridge University Press). No exercises or wording from the book are reproduced; the diagnosis and loop are original.