I always have fun when trying to teach my students why it is important to use pronouns. Most of them look at me blankly when I first introduce the concept of a pronoun, but pretty soon they start to see why they’re important!
Of course, we use pronouns to make sentences smoother and clearer. Why, for example, use the same name over and over (‘Laura is going to bake a pumpkin pie because pumpkin pie is Laura’s favorite dessert. Laura will use the recipe she got from Laura’s grandma.’), when a few well-chosen pronouns will do a much better job? 🙂
Ultimately, the students who grasp the concept and begin to embed pronouns into their writing more freely will become more confident, clear and capable writers.
Pronoun Hands on Activities
Doing hands-on activities always brings the element of fun into lessons. For those of you who got the literacy center down, do a minilesson and have your students complete these activities independently. If you are still on the fence about centers, try doing these in small groups whilst other students are reading or working on their no-prep printables. There are four activities in this set that focus on personal, possessive, and indefinite pronouns. It includes a simple pronoun activity, the dice pronoun game, and two sets of task cards.
Missing Pronoun Strips:
This one looks rather simple, yet is very effective. Just cut out the strips and have your students read each sentence and replace the nouns and proper nouns with the correct pronouns.
Mini pronoun gameboard:
Who doesn’t love a dice game? Students will have fun rolling a dice until they get to use all of their pronouns. A little tip: I don’t know why I didn’t think of it sooner, but try using soft sponge dice for noise control!
Task Cards:
Students can have independent or partner work time to complete these task cards and write their answers on their recording sheets (included), or you can get them up and moving around the room by playing the game of SCOOT.
How do you play SCOOT?
- Place a card on each table (or on the floor if you don’t have individual tables).
- Give students a recording sheet and station them in front of each card.
- Start the game.
- Say ‘Scoot!’ to get the students to shimmy to the next card.
- Play until desired or until everyone has gone around the room.
Pronoun Worksheets (Personal, Possessive, Indfinite, Reflexive)
These no-prep printables are perfect to teach the concept of pronouns to young learners. These worksheets were created with the clear intention of maximizing engagement. These packets were made following the Common Core Language first and second grade standards, but they have been proven to be successful with ESOL students too.
clear directions
easy to understand
age appropriate
various options
engaging
The first grade packet focuses on the most basic concept- personal, possessive, and indefinite pronouns, and the second grade packets delves into reflexive pronouns. They both come with colorful posters that outline the definition and examples for each focus pronoun, plenty of practice pages, and answer keys.
Pronoun Boom Cards
When I created Boom Cards to go with this unit, I made separate decks for each type of pronoun so that students get the maximum amount of practice. If you are not sure about using Boom Cards, you can learn more here, or you can click the links below to play a preview game.
Interactive PowerPoint Pronoun Lesson
If you have a computer, a projector, or a digital whiteboard, why not try an interactive PowerPoint lesson? This lesson focuses on personal, possessive, and indefinite pronouns and is perfect for first, second grade, and ESOL students. It will hook your students’ attention with animated explanations and exercises. Play the short sample video on the right, and read other teachers’ feedback here!
