Teacher notes — Grammar for Korean Speakers
Why Korean students say "more easy": a quick fix for comparatives
- Run Drill 1 (sort and shout) at the start of three consecutive lessons. The repetition across days is what builds the reflex.
- For Drill 2, seed the card stack with the six problem adjectives from the table. Students need to produce "easier" and "more famous" at least twice each in the fifteen-minute game.
- Ban "more easy" aloud from day one. The group correction ("easier!") only works if you do it every single time, no exceptions, for at least two weeks.
- Good and bad are irregular (better, worse). Teach them separately after the regular forms stick, or students will try to apply the syllable rule and produce "gooder."
- Hangeul note: 더 means "more" but also gets used in emphasis, like 더 빨리 가 (deo ppalli ga). Students sometimes overgeneralise 더 (deo) because it is so flexible in Korean.