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Introduction
After briefly reviewing the definition of a pronoun, write the Prentice quote on the board and
discuss the pronouns in it. Ask: What noun does the pronoun she refer to? What noun does the
pronoun his refer to? Guide students to see that his is a possessive pronoun and that Prentice
means “his [the young man’s] heart.” Point out that the contraction it’s is the combination of the
subject and verb, not a possessive pronoun.
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Grammar
response. Point out that not every indefinite pronoun has a possessive form.
Ask: Which indefinite pronouns are singular? Which are plural?
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Personal Pronouns and Antecedents
A pronoun takes the place of a noun. It must agree with its noun antecedent.
Possessive Pronouns
Grammar Activities That Really Grab 'Em © Sarah Glasscock, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Like a possessive noun, a possessive pronoun indicates who or what possesses something.
Tessa’s cap is covered by bees! 6 To avoid the clumsy phrasing his or her, we
might say, “A child might read what you said
Her cap is covered by bees! and start to use reflexive pronouns in their
The hat covered by bees is Tessa’s! own writing,” which is incorrect. When writing
formally, try using plural nouns and/pronouns
The hat covered by bees is hers!
instead of singular nouns and pronouns.
Reflexive Pronouns
A reflexive pronoun ends in –self and refers back to the subject of the sentence.
Indefinite Pronouns
An indefinite pronoun refers to one or more, or all, of an unspecified group or class of people,
animals, things, or ideas.
KEY POINTS TEACHING WITH THE MODEL PASSAGE
• Some indefinite pronouns have possessive 1 The subject Everyone is a singular indefinite
forms, which are formed by adding apostrophe pronoun, so it takes the singular verb is reading.
–s: another’s, everyone’s, nobody’s. 2 The subject All is a plural indefinite pronoun,
• An indefinite pronoun that ends in –one or so it takes the plural verb agree.
–body is singular.
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MODEL PASSAGE
Everyone in my book club is reading your book, Dreams From My Father. All of us agree
1 1 2 2
that you’re a wonderful writer! We also agree that you deliver speeches that inspire us, so, I was
very dismayed to read your words in the newspaper:
3
“You helped shape Michelle and myself. Many of you have been part of our children’s lives.
4
Many of you have helped to support us, through thick and through thin. And so I’m just very
grateful to all of you.”
Surely you know, Mr. President, that the reflexive pronoun myself can only be used with
the subject I. In fact, a reflexive pronoun can only be used when the subject and the object of
a sentence are the same. For example, a person would say (or write), “She voted for herself”
instead of “She voted for her.” To make your thank-you address grammatically correct, what
you should have said is, “You helped shape Michelle and me.”
A child might read what you said and he or she might start to use reflexive pronouns
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incorrectly in his or her writing.
6
Please remember, Mr. President, we’re listening to every word you say!
Sincerely yours,
A Concerned Citizen
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WRITING PROMPTS
Pronouns
Teachers: Duplicate these prompts on sturdy paper and then cut them apart. You may also write the prompts on the board or display them onscreen.
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Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
Grammar Activities That Really Grab 'Em © Sarah Glasscock, Scholastic Teaching Resources
a feminine noun. English uses pronouns to indicate the gender of a on a sepa ra te
noun—he, she, it; him, her, it. Explain whether you think places, such sh eet of pa per.
With the Rest of the Class: Discuss your examples. If you speak another language, share
how that language uses gender.
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Name _______________________________________________________________ Date _______________
My Best Friend
Write! Who’s your best friend? Do you have more than one
Wr ite yo ur
best friend? What do you like to do together? What qualifies this
ful l resp on se
friend or these friends to be the best? Write a short description. on a sepa ra te
With the Rest of the Class: Talk about any problems you sh eet of pa per.
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Activities: Pronouns and Antecedents
Who Said That? A New Spin on an Old Tale
Have students refashion a favorite fairy tale or folktale. Give the following directions:
• Read the story several times and then write your own version of the story—but don’t use
any nouns to name the main characters. Use only pronouns.
• Exchange stories with your writing partner. Do you recognize your partner’s story—even
though the main characters aren’t identified by name?
• Then revise your partner’s story by adding proper nouns. As you revise, think about how
to balance the use of nouns and pronouns. Also make sure that each pronoun clearly
represents a specific noun.
Grammar Activities That Really Grab 'Em © Sarah Glasscock, Scholastic Teaching Resources
With the Class: Ask students to reveal the technique they used to write their stories: Did you
write a draft that included nouns and then substitute pronouns for them? Did you plunge right in
and tell the story using only pronouns? If so, how did you keep the characters clear in your mind as
you wrote?
Respect Yourself!
Materials: examples of hip-hop or rap lyrics from a source such as Kids Rap Radio
Explain that hip-hop, or rap, lyrics rhyme and have a rhythmic, 4/4 beat. After
students listen to some examples of hip-hop or rap lyrics, ask them to work in groups
to write their own. There’s a catch: Each group has to use reflexive pronouns in its
lyrics. Once a group is satisfied with the song, students can present it to the rest of the class.
With the Class: Talk about the different ways in which groups used reflexive pronouns. Explain
why we use the reflexive pronoun yourself in an imperative sentence such as Respect yourself.
• You and your group are going to build a story, pronoun by pronoun, sentence by sentence.
• To decide the order of storytellers, each member tosses the number cube. The storytellers
go in order from least number to greatest number.
• The first storyteller spins. He or she must use that type of pronoun in the beginning
sentence of your story. (Use the list of pronouns to give you ideas.)
• The next storyteller spins and must use that type of pronoun to build the next sentence.
• Continue spinning and building your story until you decide that it’s finished.
With the Class: Encourage groups to read aloud their stories and discuss the challenges they
faced in building their stories.
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ACTIVITY
I me we us my/mine our/ours
you you you you your/yours your/yours
Grammar Activities That Really Grab 'Em © Sarah Glasscock, Scholastic Teaching Resources
he him they them his/his their/theirs
she her they them her/hers their/theirs
it it they them its/its their/theirs
Reflexive Pronouns
SINGULAR PLURAL
myself ourselves
yourself yourselves
himself, herself, itself themselves
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