Lesson video

Hi, I'm Mr. Buckingham and I'm so glad to see you today for our lesson on using modal verbs.

Now, we're gonna be thinking hard today in this lesson about how we can use modal verbs when we're writing speech and when we're doing some persuasive writing, both really useful skills we need to master.

So, let's get to it.

Today's lesson is called Using Modal Verbs, and it comes from our unit called Three Tense Forms and Modal Verbs.

By the end of today's lesson, we're going to be able to use modal verbs in a speech sentence and a persuasive sentence.

Now, we know that we often use speech when we're writing stories, to show what a character is saying, but we also might use speech in a newspaper article, to show what an eyewitness has said about an event.

And we might use persuasive writing when we're making a speech in front of our class, but we might also use it writing a letter to an important person to persuade them to do something we want.

So, modal verbs are going to help us with both of those things.

Let's find out how.

Here are our keywords for today's lesson.

My turn, your turn.

Modal verb.

Auxiliary verb.

Clause.

Speech sentence.

And persuasive writing.

Well done.

So, a modal verb is a type of auxiliary verb that helps us to talk about how likely, possible, necessary or obligatory something is.

If something is necessary, it's something we need to do.

If something's obligatory, it's something we feel or someone tells us we should do, that we're obliged to do.

An auxiliary verb is a helping verb that's paired with a main verb to change the tense or the meaning.

A clause is a group of words that contains a verb.

A speech sentence is a sentence that includes direct speech, using inverted commas.

And persuasive writing is writing that tries to change someone's mind or their behaviour.

Let's look at our lesson outline.

We're going to start off by using modal verbs in speech sentences, and then we'll move on to using them in persuasive sentences.

So, let's make a start on those speech sentences.

Now, you may already know that modal verbs are a type of auxiliary verb, and like all auxiliary verbs, they're paired with a main verb in a clause to change the meaning of the clause or sentence.

Here are some examples of sentences containing a modal verb in purple.

We should look after our community.

Could we do more to protect our neighbours from crime? We will cause a nuisance until something changes.

Each time there, we have our modal verb in purple.

Should, could and will.

And each time, the modal verb is linked to a main verb.

We should look after.

Could we do more? We will cause.

So, it's linked to that main verb in the sentence.

And often, modal verbs are used to show us the likelihood of something happening, and we can put them on a spectrum going from possible, things which could happen, to certain, things which we believe or which will definitely happen.

And it might look like this.

We could use may and might, can and could, should and ought to are getting a bit more likely, then must and need to and have to, will and shall, and will and shall suggest we believe something definitely will happen.

So, here are some examples of putting those in sentences.

We could say, we may win the competition.

We could say, we ought to win the competition.

And we could say, we will win the competition.

Can you see how changing the modal verb, may, ought to and will, is increasing the likelihood of this happening, of us winning the competition? We may win the competition suggests it's possible.

We will win the competition suggests we believe it definitely will happen.

We can also do that with questions.

We can say, might he be late? Could he be late? And will he be late? Showing us a slightly different meaning in what we're suggesting there.

So, can you find the modal verb in each of these sentences and the main verb it links to? Pause the video and have a go.

Well done.

In A, we would say need to is the modal verb, linking to the main verb, come.

In B, it would be will, linking to the main verb, make.

And notice how when we do a question with a modal verb, we have the person we're talking about, the committee, in between the modal verb and the main verb.

In C, we've got should as our modal verb, linking to the verb, be.

And in D, we've got ought to as our modal verb, linking to the main verb, stay.

So, remember, modal verbs are auxiliary verbs.

They must link to a main verb, like these ones do.

Great job.

Now, which sentence here uses modal verbs to show the highest likelihood of something happening? That means the one that's most likely to happen.

Pause the video and see if you can spot it.

Okay, hopefully you spotted that it was A.

If we look at all the modal verbs, will, might and can, we can see might and can show it's possible, it could happen, but will suggests it definitely will happen or that someone believes it definitely will happen, so that shows the highest likelihood, the most certainty.

Well done.

Now, modal verbs can have different purposes as well in a clause or a sentence.

So, some of them try to show certainty, that something definitely will happen.

We will persuade her.

He shall succeed.

Some of them try and show possibility, that something is able to happen or could happen.

She can keep a promise.

We might surprise her.

They could mention it.

I may forgive them.

Other modal verbs show obligation, so that's a feeling that something needs to be done or is the right thing to do or that we should do something.

So, for instance, we must persuade her.

She should keep her promise.

He ought to succeed.

I have to forgive them.

They need to mention it.

So, all of these are saying something which should happen, or we would recommend happening.

So, she should keep her promise is something we believe ought to happen.

They need to mention it is something we believe should be done.

So, using these different modal verbs changes the meaning of our sentences.

If we say, the restaurant will be open from 6:00 PM, we're saying we believe this is definitely going to happen with our modal verb, will.

If we say, the restaurant ought to be open from 6:00 PM, we're saying that's what's supposed to happen.

And if we say, the restaurant may be open from 6:00 PM, we're saying this could happen, but it's not certain.

So, will shows certainty, ought to shows an obligation, the restaurant is obliged to open, that it's supposed to open then, and may shows possibility.

So, using the different modal verbs changes that meaning slightly.

So, let's see if we've understood.

Is each modal verb here showing certainty, possibility or obligation? You can see them in purple in these sentences.

Pause the video and decide.

Okay, let's take a look.

Should is showing us obligation.

It's something we believe this person should do.

They should stop being aggressive.

Will is showing us certainty.

We believe the secretary's definitely going to do that.

And C is showing us possibility.

It's not certain to happen, but it is possible I could one day be an MP.

Great job for spotting those.

Now, as we've already said, we often use modal verbs in speech sentences.

Now, using speech punctuation has lots of rules, so we're just going to quickly recap what those rules look like.

Here's a sentence which includes direct speech in inverted commas and that modal verb, should.

"You should apologise," said Mrs. Begum with a frown.

So, let's just zoom in on the punctuation a minute.

This sentence, we would call a speech-first sentence, because the direct speech comes first.

So, we start with our opening inverted commas, we have a capital letter and we have the words the person has spoken.

We finish with some punctuation, either an exclamation mark, a question mark or a comma.

And then, we close our inverted commas.

Then, we have what's called the reporting clause.

Who said it and how? And then, we finish with our full stop.

So, the reporting clause is, said Mrs. Begum with a frown, and the speech is, you should apologise.

We call it direct speech.

It's exactly the words the person has said.

But we can write a speech-second sentence, where we put the reporting clause first and the words that were said second.

This has a few different rules for punctuation, which we need to know as well.

Again, we start with a capital letter.

Then, comes that reporting clause.

Who spoke and how? Then, we always have a comma.

Then, we open our inverted commas, we have our capital letter, we have the direct speech, the words that were said, and we finish with some punctuation.

This time, either an exclamation mark, a question mark, or a full stop.

It's the end of a sentence, so it can't be a comma here.

And then, we close our inverted commas.

So, there are lots of rules to remember here, but hopefully that will help you to remember them as we go forward.

So, let's just check we've remembered those rules.

Which of these speech sentences using a modal verb is correctly punctuated? So, really carefully through the sentence and see if you can spot any missing punctuation, and find the sentence which has all the punctuation that it needs.

Pause the video and have a try.

Okay, hopefully you spotted that the answer is B.

In A, we can see there's a missing comma here, after bargains.

And in C, we have a missing comma after the reporting clause.

So remember, if the speech comes first, you need to put some punctuation before that closing inverted comma.

And if the reporting clause comes first, it's always followed by a comma.

Great job if you spotted that B was correct.

Now again, when we change the modal verb in a speech sentence, it changes the meaning of that sentence.

So, we could say, "I might win the competition," said Alex.

Alex is unsure.

It's only possible.

But he could say, I could win the competition.

"I should win the competition," said Alex.

So, now he's talking about an obligation.

It's something he believes should happen.

He might say, I must win the competition, so he feels obliged to win.

I have to win the competition.

And even, I will win the competition.

Here, he's saying he believes it definitely will happen.

So, the modal verbs are telling us about Alex's changing feelings about the competition.

And we might even say these speech sentences differently if we were speaking them out loud, to show those different feelings.

"I might win the competition," said Alex.

"I must win the competition," said Alex.

"I will win the competition," said Alex.

I've changed my voice slightly when I've used a different modal verb, to show that Alex's feelings about this competition are changing.

His beliefs about whether he's likely to win have changed, because we've used different modal verbs.

So, let's see if you can do the same thing.

I've got the same sentence lots of times, but using different modal verbs.

So, can you try and say these sentences out loud to show that emotion Mrs. Begum is feeling when using those different modal verbs? See how different you can get them to show what those modal verbs mean about Mrs. Begum's feelings.

Have a go.

Okay, I wonder how you said them.

Here's how I would say them.

I would say, "You could work harder this term," said Mrs. Begum.

"You should work harder this term," said Mrs. Begum.

"You need to work harder this term," said Mrs. Begum.

"You must work harder this term," said Mrs. Begum.

"You have to work harder this term," said Mrs. Begum.

And maybe the last one, "You will work harder this term," said Mrs. Begum.

So, you've got slight differences in how we say these, but big differences in what they mean.

You could work harder this term suggests it's an option, a possibility.

You must suggests it's an obligation.

Mrs. Begum believes this should happen.

And you will work harder suggests Mrs. Begum's gonna make sure we do, whether we like it or not.

Really well done for getting those differences into your voice.

Now, we've already said that the reporting clause is the part of the speech sentence where we say who's speaking and how they speak.

So, if we look at this example, I've written, "I might win the competition," said Alex uncertainly.

So, we've got that modal verb, might, there.

And to match up with the modal verb, might, which shows us possibility, I've written the reporting clause, said Alex uncertainly.

Can you see how that matches together? He's not sure, so we've used might, and I've used the word uncertainly to emphasise that Alex isn't sure about whether he's going to win or not.

So, we're matching the reporting clause and the modal verb to show those feelings.

Here are some more examples.

I could say, "I could win the competition," pondered Alex, stroking his chin.

So, we've used a possibility modal verb, could, and we're showing that Alex is thinking about it.

He's considering whether it is possible.

I could say, "I should win the competition," said Alex with determination.

I could say, "I must win the competition," said Alex angrily through gritted teeth.

Or even, "I have to win the competition," muttered Alex desperately.

And, "I will win the competition," said Alex with fire in his eyes.

So, look how each time, the reporting clause has matched up with that modal verb to really emphasise that feeling even more than we did before.

So, let's see if you can do that now.

Can you match each piece of direct speech on the left to the most appropriate reporting clause on the right, using that modal verb to help you? Pause the video and see if you can have a go.

Okay, let's see what you got.

Hopefully you had a go at saying them out loud to see if you can show this emotion as well.

For A, I would say, "This behaviour must cease," bellowed Mr. McIntyre angrily, his eyes blazing.

For B, I would say, "May I leave the room?", asked Aisha politely with her hand raised.

And for C, I would say, "We should definitely "not do that again," muttered Andeep, embarrassed.

So, each time, we've matched the modal verb to a reporting clause which emphasises the emotion that we're showing with that modal verb.

Now, let's use that idea in our first task this lesson.

We all know the story of Cinderella, left behind when her sisters go off to the ball.

So, we're going to think, what might she say and how might she say it? And we're gonna try and use some modal verbs to help us.

Here's my example.

I could say, "I might go to the ball," said Cinderella uncertainly, looking sadly down at the ground.

So, I've got my direct speech, I might go to the ball, including that modal verb, might.

And I want you to change that modal verb each time.

But then, I've got my reporting clause, which emphasises that Cinderella feels unsure about this.

It's not definitely going to happen, it's just possible.

So, I've used uncertainly and looking sadly down at the ground in my reporting clause to show that feeling, which is suggested by that modal verb, might.

So, here are some other modal verbs you could use instead of might.

You could use must, shall, will, could, may, have to, need to, could and can.

And then, I want you to change that reporting clause to match with your modal verb.

So, you could use this structure to help you with your punctuation as well.

It matches up with the one I've put above.

So, using my example, using different modal verbs and using different reporting clauses, I want you to see if you can really show the changing emotions we might see from Cinderella as she thinks.

Might she go? Could she go? Will she go? Showing those different changes that the modal verbs suggest to us.

Pause the video and see how many you can come up with.

Have a go.

Okay, here are some example sentences I think Cinderella might have said.

Maybe we've got, "I could go to the ball," pondered Cinderella with a sigh.

"I must go to the ball," said Cinderella determinedly, gritting her teeth.

"I have to go to the ball," Cinderella muttered angrily, getting to her feet.

"I need to go to the ball," Cinderella whined sadly.

"I shall go to the ball," Cinderella shouted to the empty room.

And, "I can go to the ball!" Cinderella smiled at her fairy godmother, looking down at her glittering gown.

So, each time, I've tried to match my reporting clause to that modal verb.

I hope you've got some brilliant sentences of your own.

Well done.

We've done a fantastic job so far, learning about how to use modal verbs in speech sentences.

We're now going to turn to look at using modal verbs in persuasive sentences.

So, we often want to persuade someone to do something or persuade them that we're correct (laughs) about something, to persuade them to believe the same thing we do.

Here are some examples.

I might say, you must read this book because it has an excellent plot.

You need to work harder or the other team will win the competition.

You should make the most of your time at school because it's a privilege to have such marvellous teachers.

Our times tables have to improve so that we can solve problems more quickly.

And we're using modal verbs here to be persuasive.

We've got must, need to, will, should, have to, can, and we're trying to persuade people here to do something or to believe what we do.

So, can you find the modal verbs in each of these persuasive sentences? Pause the video and have a go.

Okay, let's see what you got.

In A, I found must.

In B, we've got need to and will.

And in C, we've got have to.

So, that's an obligation modal verb, isn't it? We're telling them, we have to bring her temperature down.

We're trying to persuade them to help do that.

Really well done if you found all four.

Now, we already know that there are different types of modal verb.

They can help us to show certainty, possibility, and to show obligation, things we think should happen.

Now, we can mix those types together in a persuasive sentence.

Let's look at these two examples again.

In the first one, we need to work harder or the other team will win the competition, we can see we have need to as a modal verb, showing obligation, it's something we believe should happen.

And then, we have will, showing certainty here.

They will win if we don't work harder.

In the second one, we've got have to, showing obligation, we have to improve our times tables, it should happen, so that we can, showing possibility, solve problems more quickly.

So, in these types of sentences, what's happening is we're saying something that definitely will or possibly will happen unless we follow the obligation, unless we do what we're supposed to do.

So, in the first one, unless we work harder, unless we do that obligation, then they're definitely going to win.

In the second one, we have to follow that obligation so that we're able to do something, and if we don't make that improvement, we're not going to be able to solve those problems more quickly, so this is really persuasive if we use these in combination.

So, are the modal verbs in these sentences showing obligation or certainty or possibility? Pause the video and see if you can work them out.

Okay, let's take a look.

In A, must is showing obligation and may is showing possibility.

In B, need to is an obligation one, and then will shows certainty.

In C, have to shows obligation and might shows possibility.

And you might have spotted a pattern there in which one comes first and which one comes second.

We'll talk about that in a second.

Great job.

Now, when we're trying to be persuasive, we often use a compound sentence with the coordinating conjunction, or, in order to be persuasive.

Let me show you.

We could say, we must take action now or the situation will get worse.

Now, we know this is a compound sentence because it contains two main clauses.

We must take action now, and the situation will get worse.

And they've been joined with our coordinating conjunction, or.

Here are some more examples.

You need to be less aggressive, or you'll find yourself in a lot of trouble.

We ought to get the community involved, or they may decide they don't want to take part.

And we usually have an obligation modal verb in the first main clause.

So, for instance, must, need to, ought to.

And then, in the second main clause, that says what certainly or possibly will happen if we don't follow that obligation.

So, we've got will, you'll is the contracted form of you will, so that's will as well, and then may.

So, here we start off with the obligation, and then in the second main clause, we say, what's going to happen if you don't follow that obligation? So, we must take the action or the situation will certainly get worse.

You need to be less aggressive, or you'll certainly find yourself in trouble.

We need to get that community involved, or they might, they possibly, they could decide they don't want to take part.

So, we're showing a consequence of the person's actions by using the obligation modal verb, paired with one which shows certainty or possibility.

And again, that's really persuasive.

So, see if you can match up the first main clause to the most appropriate second main clause, to create a persuasive compound sentence using this coordinated conjunction, or.

Pause the video and have a try.

Great effort, let's have a look.

I would say, you must not interrupt, or Mrs. Begum will be furious.

We should check this spelling in the dictionary, or we may make a disastrous mistake.

We need to ask the committee first, or they might shut down the club altogether.

And you'll see each time, the first main clause contains an obligation modal verb, and the second main clause tells us what will certainly or possibly happen if we don't follow the obligations.

Great job matching those up.

Now, we can also use subordinating conjunctions, like because and so, to create persuasive adverbial complex sentences.

Let me show you what I mean.

We could say, we need to act quickly because the situation may worsen if we wait.

Now, this sentence is an adverbial complex sentence because it's made up of a main clause, we need to act quickly, and an adverbial clause, because the situation may worsen if we wait, which starts with the subordinating conjunction, because.

Here are two more examples.

You should head to the shops now because the bargains will sell out fast.

We ought to write to our MP so that she can raise the issue in Parliament.

Now again, what we've done is, in the first main clause, the only main clause in these sentences, we've used our obligation modal verb.

Need to, should, ought to.

And then, in the adverbial clause, the one that starts with that subordinating conjunction, because or so, we've put the modal verb which shows certainty or possibility.

So, it's showing what will certainly or possibly happen if we don't follow that obligation or if we do follow that obligation.

So, for instance, the situation may worsen if we don't act, the bargains will sell out if we don't head to the shops, and she can raise the issue in Parliament if we write to our MP as we are supposed to do.

So again, the obligation comes first, and then we're telling the reader the consequence of that obligation, or of not following that obligation.

And we can see the adverbial clauses here.

Because the situation may worsen if we wait, because the bargains will sell out fast, and so that she can raise the issue in Parliament.

That's what makes these adverbial complex sentences, because they have a main clause and an adverbial clause.

So, let's see if you can match the main clauses on the left to the adverbial clauses on the right to create a persuasive adverbial complex sentence.

Pause the video and have a go.

Okay, here's what I would've done.

I'd say, we must stretch our muscles first so that we can move freely.

You need to practise this thoroughly because this knowledge will come up in your test.

We should go to a foreign country because it might be warmer there.

Really good job if you managed to match those up.

Now, finally, another way we can be persuasive with modal verbs is to use those modal verbs to create rhetorical questions.

Those are questions we ask of our reader in order to be persuasive.

We're not expecting an answer back.

They might be reading a text a long way from us.

We're not speaking to them directly, but we're making them think of something by asking 'em these questions.

Let's take a look.

We could say, will we continue to allow this destruction to occur? Can we afford to do nothing? Can we ignore this any longer? Must we wait for the government to act? Should we not try to make a difference ourselves? You might have spotted that here, the modal verb is coming at the start of the question.

Will, can, can, must and should our are modal verbs that start the question.

And you might have noticed that we can ask two or more rhetorical questions in a row to be really persuasive.

Can we afford to do nothing? Can we ignore this any longer? And that really makes my reader think, oh, I don't know, can we? I'm triggering in their mind, the idea that it won't be okay if we wait any longer to address this.

So again, these rhetorical questions starting with a modal verb can be so persuasive to our reader.

So, let's try that out.

See if you can choose an appropriate modal verb to begin each of these rhetorical questions.

Pause the video and have a go.

Okay, let's see what you did.

Here are some suggestions, yours might be different.

I could say, must we allow our enemies to defeat us? We could say, shall we let this opportunity pass us by? Will would work there too, wouldn't it? I could say, will you refuse to act when there is so little time left? So, different modal verbs will work here, but each time, we're trying to make our reader think about this question in order to persuade them to agree with us.

Now, I've put all of those different ways of being persuasive with modal verbs into one paragraph at the bottom of the page here.

I want you to look at this paragraph and see if you can find all these different methods we've used.

Can you find a modal verb that's trying to show obligation, showing us that we think someone should do something? Can you find a compound sentence using or, a complex sentence using because or so, and a rhetorical question as well? Each of those, using a modal verb as part of the sentence.

Pause the video and see if you can find all four features.

Okay, let's take a look, see if you found them all.

Let's start with that modal verb to show obligation.

Maybe you spotted should here.

There are many reasons why we should have longer lunchtimes.

We believe they're obliged to do that, something that should happen.

And then, what about a compound sentence with or? Well, that one's here.

They have to get some fresh air, or they could doze off in lessons.

What about our complex sentence? We've got, children need to be given more time outside because they may not play outside after school ends.

And finally, our rhetorical question, I've got, can we allow this to happen? Starting with our modal verb, can.

Amazing job if you found all those techniques to be persuasive in our writing.

Okay, now we're gonna try and apply all of those techniques into some persuasive writing.

I want you to imagine you're trying to persuade someone to take more care of the environment.

Maybe you think that we should recycle more, drive cars less, cycle more, reduce pollution, reduce plastic waste or use renewable energy sources more.

And I want you to write persuasive sentences using those modal verbs to persuade someone about to do these things.

And here are some ideas, using those techniques we've used in this lesson.

You could write, we must recycle more, or.

That would be a compound sentence.

You could say, we should use more renewable energy, or.

Another compound sentence.

You could say, we have to reduce plastic waste, because.

A complex sentence.

Or we ought to burn less fossil fuel, because.

We could say, you need to reduce your car use, so.

Another complex sentence.

Or some rhetorical questions, will you allow? Can we continue to? I've put my modal verbs in green there, and we've got our conjunctions as well, or, because and so, and we've got our questions at the end of our rhetorical questions as well.

So, using your ideas to improve the environment, let's see if we can come up with some persuasive sentences using our modal verbs and these language features we've learned so far this lesson.

Have a go.

Okay, here are some example persuasive sentences you could have written.

Now, yours will, of course, look different, but they might look something like this.

I've written, we must recycle more, or we will find that we run out of important resources.

We should use more renewable energy, or the climate will be damaged forever.

We have to reduce plastic waste because single-use plastics cannot be recycled.

We ought to burn less fossil fuels because it causes pollution to enter the atmosphere.

You need to reduce your car use so that you're being more environmentally friendly.

Will you allow climate change to continue? Can we continue to damage our world? Now, I think those are pretty persuasive.

They're really making us think about these issues and making us want to change our minds.

So, hopefully you have some fantastic sentences of your own.

Really well done.

Okay, what amazing learning we've done this lesson.

Let's summarise it quickly.

We've learned that a modal verb is a type of auxiliary verb that can change the meaning of a main verb.

We've learned that modal verbs can show different levels of certainty, possibility and obligation.

And we've learned that we often use modal verbs in speech sentences and we can change the reporting clause to match the modal verb we use.

And we've learned that we also use modal verbs in persuasive writing to tell our reader the effects of doing something or to create rhetorical questions.

You've done a fantastic job in this lesson.

I've really enjoyed working with you, and I really hope to see you again in the future.

Goodbye.