This is exercise is designed to teach students how to “codeswitch” between African American Vernacular English (AAVE) and Standard English (SE)

Codeswitching is “the practice of moving back and forth between two languages or between two dialects of the same language” (Nordquist 2013).

Explain to students that many of us speak formal English and informal English.

Formal English - Used at school, work, or other formal settings

Informal English - Used at home, with friends, or while hanging out with friends

Review the sample sentences with students. Using their own sentences, have students contrast the differences between the SE (formal) sentence and the AAVE (informal) sentence. After practicing contrastive analysis on their sentences, ask students to create new sentences using techniques of formal English.

Kayla mother visited our class yesterday. (AAVE)

Kayla’s mother visited our class yesterday (SE)

Robert play video games for three hours yesterday. (AAVE)

Robert played video games for three hours yesterday (SE)

Tracy drive to school everyday. (AAVE)

Tracy drives to school everyday. (SE)

I gave Gina ten dollar for the book. (AAVE)

I gave Gina ten dollars for the book. (SE)

Erica going shopping at the mall this afternoon. (AAVE)

Erica is going shopping at the mall this afternoon. (SE)

Taylor she make good grades in school. (AAVE)

Taylor makes good grades in school. (SE)

T.J parents gave him a iPad for his birthday. (AAVE)

T.J.’s parents gave him an iPad for his birthday. (SE)

Keisha put lotion on her ashy hands. (AAVE)

Keisha put lotion on her dry hands. (SE)

This exercise will help students learn to “codeswitch.”

Inform students that the informal language they speak with family and friends is not bad.

Teach student that we choose the style of English (formal or informal) we speak based on our situation or context.

Fogel, Howard, and Linnea C. Ehri. “Teaching African American English Forms To Standard American English-Speaking Teachers.” Journal Of Teacher Education 57.5 (2006): 464-480. Academic Search Complete. Web. 23 Jan. 2014.

Rickford, John. “Using the Vernacular to Teach the Standard.” In Ebonics in the Urban Education Debate. Center for Language Minority Education and Research. California State University, Long Beach. 1999 (Revised 2005). Address.

Nordquist, Richard. “Code Switching." About.com Grammar & Composition. N.p.. Web. 21 Sep 2013. <http://grammar.about.com/od/c/g/codeswitchingterm.htm>.