Practical tools for learning and teaching grammar

C
A
5. Choose pronouns to fill in the blanks.
a. Michael gave . . . . . . . . . . some of . . . . . . . . . .
b. . . . . . . . . . . really enjoyed . . . . . . . . . .
c. . . . . . . . . . . were ripe and juicy. 
d. So . . . . . . . . . . gave . . . . . . . . . . to Bella.
e. . . . . . . . . . . enjoyed it too. 
f. . . . . . . . . . . said . . . . . . . . . . was the best . . . . . . . . . . had ever 
had.
g. Shall . . . . . . . . . . go and get more of . . . . . . . . . .?
h. Yes . . . . . . . . . . is a good idea. 
i. Let . . . . . . . . . . go now. 
j. . . . . . . . . . . can take this basket to carry . . . . . . . . . .
6. Students draw a flowchart for pronouns showing personal pronouns 
and demonstrative pronouns. Further categories can be added as 
they are learnt.
Checklist: pronouns
Students should now be able to:
• give the meaning of the word ‘pronoun’
• define the word pronoun – what is a pronoun? (with emphasis on 
the point that a pronoun 
takes the place
of a noun, so the noun is 
not mentioned)
• explain why we have pronouns in our language
• pick out or mark the nouns in a given passage
• replace nouns with pronouns in a given passage
PRONOUNS
Personal
we
Demonstrative
this
40
GrAMMAr for eVerYone

---

Verbs 
We can’t 
do
 without them!
Definition: 
The word ‘verb’ comes from the Latin 
verbum
meaning 
‘word’. Verbs are doing, being or having words. 
Before learning about verbs
, students should:
• understand the term ‘noun’
• recognise common and proper nouns
• understand the term ‘pronoun’
• recognise most personal pronouns
• be able to explain their purpose
It is a good idea to teach verbs next, as a noun or pronoun 
together with a verb, can form a complete sentence. This proves 
most satisfactory for the student.
Care should be taken by the teacher to proceed to each new 
section or concept only when the previous one has been fully 
grasped. The order of the segments has been chosen carefully to 
provide a sound structure of understanding. 
For example, the section on finite and non-finite verbs comes 
naturally at the end of the first section. However, teachers may 
judge the timing of teaching this, depending on students’ level of 
understanding. It should not be left too long. A simple way of 
expressing it would be that a verb must have a doer (i.e. a subject) 
for it to make sense.
Finite and non-finite verbs
A verb needs a noun (or a pronoun) in front of it for it to make 
sense.
3
41

---

A
For example:
John 
waves
.
The load 
slipped
.
Verbs are of two kinds, non-finite or finite. Non-finite means 
not complete. Non-finite verbs are not complete, because they do 
not have a subject, that is, the person or thing that does the action, 
or that the sentence is about. For more about the subject see
page 92.
Non-finite verbs also do not show a sense of time, i.e. tense. 
Finite verbs have both a subject and a tense.
For example:
I hope (present)
John hoped (past)
The most common and recognisable form of non-finite verb is 
the to-infinitive.
For example:
to drink, to be, to laugh …
3.1 Activities: finite and
non-finite verbs
The recognition of 
action
is one of the first verbal concepts that young 
children grasp, so we have them thinking about things that they do, 
such as breathe, eat, clap, play.
1. Students act the verbs. This can be done in teams with each person 
calling out a verb for their counterpart in the other team to act. The 
latter then calls out their verb for the next in the first team, until all 
have had a turn. 
2. Provide on paper a list of nouns plus a separate list of verbs in 
random order, which students match. This, too, can be done orally 
or in writing. The lists could be written side by side and students 
draw lines matching the nouns to suitable verbs, for example:
42
GrAMMAr for eVerYone

---

A
birds
pedal
trees
hoot
radios
neigh
lions
sing
dolphins 
blare
water
roar
cyclists 
erupt
volcanoes 
grow
owls
flows
3. Students are provided with a list of nouns with which to compose 
sentences by adding an appropriate verb to each. This also could be 
done in reverse, for example:

Noun
Verb (students add)
a. the boy 
joked
b. snow
fell
c. my uncle 
laughed
d. our cat 
scratched
e. the hose
broke
f. a ghost
appeared
g. the wind
howled
h. my friend
fell sick
i. the ship
sailed
j. the horses
galloped
4. Students use the present tense to indicate a habitual action, for 
example:
Uncle John snores.
April brings showers.
a. Dad
f. jet planes
b. my brother
g. eagles
c. old cars
h. ducks
d. tramps
i. geese
e. dictators
j. soldiers
43
Verbs

---

A
5. Students add nouns to the following verbs that will indicate habit 
or custom, for example:
Lions – Lions roar.
a. . . . . . . . . . . beat drums
b. . . . . . . . . . . sing
c. . . . . . . . . . . leave trails
d. . . . . . . . . . . guard the building
e. . . . . . . . . . . make speeches
f. . . . . . . . . . . irons shirts
g. . . . . . . . . . . paint pictures
h. . . . . . . . . . . take money
i. . . . . . . . . . . rattles
Tense