Grade by Grade
B. Foundations of Language · Spelling, Printing and Sentences

Naming Words and Action Words

B3.2 B3.1About 35 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can find nouns (naming words) for people, places, animals and things.
  • I can tell if a noun means one or more than one.
  • I can use the word I correctly.
  • I can use action words (verbs) to tell about the past, the present and the future.

Words to know

noun
A naming word for a person, place, animal or thing: firefighter, park, moose, drum.
singular
Just one: one cat.
plural
More than one: three cats.
pronoun
A word that takes the place of a noun. I is a pronoun you use for yourself.
verb
An action word: run, eat, jump, sing. Is and was are verbs too.
past, present, future
Past already happened (walked). Present is happening now (walk). Future will happen later (will walk).

Naming words: nouns

Look around you. Everything you can name is a noun!

A noun names a:

  • person: teacher, firefighter, grandma, baby
  • place: park, school, library, rink
  • animal: moose, beaver, robin, dog
  • thing: drum, eraser, book, mitten
👩‍🚒🏞️🫎🥁
Person, place, animal, thing: all nouns!

One or more than one?

A noun can be singular (one) or plural (more than one). Plurals usually end with -s or -es.

  • one desk → two desks
  • one berry → three berries
  • one bus → two buses

Words like a and one tell you there is just one. Number words like two and many tell you it's plural.

The pronoun I

When you talk about yourself, use I. It's a pronoun: a word that stands in for a name.

  • Instead of "Maya likes to read," Maya says: "I like to read."

Remember:

  • I is always a capital letter.
  • When you talk about yourself and someone else, name the other person first: My dad and I went skating.

Action words: verbs

A verb tells what someone or something does:

The dog runs. The baby laughs. We skate.

Verbs also tell when something happens.

A golden retriever running across the grass in a park.
The dog is a naming word (noun). Runs is an action word (verb): The dog runs in the park. AI-generated image
Past (yesterday)Present (today, now)Future (tomorrow)
I walked to school.I walk to school.I will walk to school.
She played tag.She plays tag.She will play tag.
We jumped.We jump.We will jump.
He ran fast.He runs fast.He will run fast.
I ate lunch.I eat lunch.I will eat lunch.
Verb tenses: past, present and future
yesterdayPASTI walked.todayPRESENTI walk.tomorrowFUTUREI will walk.
Verbs tell when: walked for the past, walk for the present, and will walk for the future.

Time clues

  • Past often adds -ed: walk → walked. Some verbs change instead: run → ran, eat → ate, go → went, see → saw, sit → sat.
  • Present: walk, walks, or is walking.
  • Future uses will: will walk.

Words like yesterday, today and tomorrow are clues to which one to use.

Silly but true

Silly but true: some words can be a naming word and an action word! You brush your hair with a brush, and you skate with a skate on each foot. ⛸️

Worked example

Let's find the nouns and verbs

Find the nouns and the verb: The firefighter climbs the ladder.

  1. Ask: Who or what is named? firefighter (a person) and ladder (a thing). Those are nouns.
  2. Ask: What does the firefighter do? climbs. That's the verb.
  3. When is it happening? Now: present.

Nouns: firefighter, ladder. Verb: climbs (present).

Worked example

Let's change the time

Change this to the past and the future: I play outside.

  1. Past: add -ed to play: Yesterday, I played outside.
  2. Future: add will: Tomorrow, I will play outside.

Past: I played outside. Future: I will play outside.

Hands-on activity

Noun hunt and verb charades

You need: paper, a pencil and a grown-up.

  1. Noun hunt: Walk around your home. Make 4 lists: People, Places, Animals, Things. Write or draw at least 2 nouns in each list.
  2. Plural check: For 3 of your things, write the plural (cup → cups, dish → dishes).
  3. Verb charades: Take turns acting out a verb without words: hop, swim, eat, sleep, skate. The other person guesses.
  4. Then say a sentence for the action in the past, present and future: I hopped. I hop. I will hop.

Your turn

1

Is park a person, place, animal or thing?

2

Find the noun: The robin sings.

3

Make it plural: one tree, two ___

4

Find the verb: The baby claps.

5

Fix it: me and my mom baked cookies

6

Change to the past: I jump.

7

Change to the future: We skate.

More practice: warm-up

1

Is teacher a person, place, animal or thing?

2

Name 2 nouns you can see right now.

3

Is dogs singular or plural?

4

Is sing a noun or a verb?

5

Which word is in the future: walked or will walk?

More practice: on your own

1

Find 2 nouns and 1 verb: The beaver chews the log.

2

Make it plural: one dish, two ___

3

Past, present or future? Tomorrow we will go to the library.

4

Change to the past: I eat an apple.

5

Fill in I or me: ___ like to draw.

Challenge

1

Write a sentence about yesterday using went.

2

Fix all the mistakes: yesterday i run to the bus

3

Make a sentence with a plural noun and a verb in the present.

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

Which word is a noun?

2.

Which word is plural?

3.

Which sentence is correct?

4.

Find the verb: The dog digs a hole.

5.

Which sentence tells about the past?

6.

Which sentence tells about the future?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: Grade 1 students learn how parts of speech work in sentences: common singular and plural nouns, the pronoun "I", and verbs in the past, present and future (B3.2). Knowing that a sentence needs a who/what and a verb also supports building sentences (B3.1).

How to help at home:

  • Use the terms casually: "Hand me that noun. The spoon!"
  • Model correct past tenses gently by repeating: Child: "I runned!" You: "You ran! You ran so fast."
  • Talk about yesterday, today and tomorrow at bedtime, using all three tenses.

Common difficulties:

  • "Me and Sam..." This is very common in speech. A tip: take the other person away. Would you say "Me went" or "I went"?
  • Over-regular past tenses (runned, eated, goed). This shows your child knows the -ed rule! Teach irregular verbs one at a time.
  • Thinking only actions are verbs. For now, focus on action verbs. Children will learn about is, am and are later.