Grammar Girl Podcasts

Whitney M.

March 1, 2009 - 5:19 PM

Today is Christmas!

Okay, not really, but to me, it feels like Christmas!

The other day, my friend and I were text messaging, and he ended one of his texts with a preposition. Now, I want to start with a disclaimer: it is okay to end a sentence with a preposition because it becomes silly not to. As Winston Churchill once said, ironically, "Ending sentences with prepositions is something up with which I will not put."

By this, he is saying that it is silly to formalize one's writing by focusing on prepositional constructions. In modern writing, it is acceptable to end a sentence with a preposition.

Back to my initial point-I jokingly corrected my friend's prepositional construction because I had helped him study for his grammar tests last term. As a rebuttal, my friend accessed YouTube clips of prepositional construction dilemmas that, under the circumstances, held very little weight. His message was that grammar, in the grand scheme of things, is really not important.

Well, I was not going to have it. So I continued to send him video clips of instances that showed how important grammar really is.

That was when I stumbled upon Grammar Girl! I learned that weekly podcasts of grammar lessons are available for free on iTunes! Grammar Girl is one of the several instructors who are sponsored to post podcasts. The series is called "Quick and Dirty Tips for..." and Grammar Girl's tips are for "Better Writing."

I was ecstatic! Now, I have downloaded 32 grammar podcasts that I can listen to on my iPod!

Today is Christmas because, as I go about my Sunday business, I am enriching my base of grammatical knowledge.

What a treat!