The Passive Voice in Writing

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• havo
• Leerjaar 4

The Passive Voice in Writing

Learning Objectives

• Understand the difference between active and passive voice
• Know when and when not to use the passive voice
• Recognize common and creative uses of the passive voice
• Identify passive voice misuse

What do you already know about the difference between active and passive voice?

Active vs. Passive Voice

• Active voice: subject performs the action of the verb
• Passive voice: subject is acted upon by the verb

When to Use Passive Voice

• When the performer of the action is unknown, general, or less important than the recipient of the action
• When the action itself is the focus

Creative Uses of Passive Voice

• Emphasizing certain elements of a sentence
• Creating a specific tone

Passive Voice Misuse

• Not all sentences with the verb 'to be' are in the passive voice
• Avoid using passive voice when it obscures the performer of the action or makes the sentence unnecessarily wordy

Definition List

• Passive voice: A grammatical construction where the subject is acted upon by the verb
• Active voice: A grammatical construction where the subject performs the action of the verb
• Past participle: The form of a verb typically used in the passive voice, often ending in -ed or -en

Write down 3 things you learned in this lesson.

Have students enter three things they learned in this lesson. With this they can indicate their own learning efficiency of this lesson.

Write down 2 things you want to know more about.

Here, students enter two things they would like to know more about. This not only increases involvement, but also gives them more ownership.

Ask 1 question about something you haven't quite understood yet.

The students indicate here (in question form) with which part of the material they still have difficulty. For the teacher, this not only provides insight into the extent to which the students understand/master the material, but also a good starting point for the next lesson.