This one is easy. . .and obvious. Every teacher on the planet has heard, "Can I use the bathroom?" or "Can I get a drink?" It's at this point that you would utter the standard teacher response, "I don't know. Can you?" Then you go to the corner and snicker to yourself because you just made a funny.
"Can" refers to your ability to do something. If you're able to go to the bathroom, then you wouldn't ask if you can. You should already know the answer to that question.
Now if you're asking for permission, that's a horse of a different color. In this instance, it's correct to use "may."
Then, when a student asks, "May I use the bathroom?" the correct response now is, "No. Sit down and get your work done."
Isn't English a beautiful language?
About Me
- Random Musings
- Obviously, the picture is not of me. It's our pride and joy, Daisy. She's a lot better looking than I am, so I figured you'd want to look at her instead. I'll write the posts, however. She can't. She doesn't have opposable thumbs. Currently, I teach high school English, and, since I'm trying to improve the use of language in 16-year-olds, I thought I'd branch out and give some pointers to adults, too. Hope you're not offended. It's just my way of improving the world -- one day at a time. Oh, by the way, I'm always available for freelance writing/editing jobs -- and I'm pretty inexpensive, so. . .
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