English Language Arts
Grade 4
15 min
Replace the singular noun with a pronoun
Replace the singular noun with a pronoun
What you'll learn
- Identify the antecedent in 8 out of 10 sentences containing a pronoun and its antecedent.
- Explain the rules of pronoun-antecedent agreement, including number and gender, with 80% accuracy in a written paragraph.
- Apply the rules of pronoun-antecedent agreement to correctly rewrite 5 out of 7 sentences containing pronoun-antecedent agreement errors.
- Analyze a short paragraph and identify all instances of pronoun-antecedent agreement errors, justifying each correction with a specific rule in 3 out of 4 attempts.
Tutorial Preview
1
Introduction & Learning Objectives
Learning Objectives
Identify a singular noun in a sentence.
Define the term 'personal pronoun' and list the singular personal pronouns (he, she, it, him, her).
Choose the correct personal pronoun to replace a specific singular noun based on its gender and role in the sentence.
Rewrite a sentence, replacing a singular noun with the correct pronoun to avoid repetition.
Explain that the noun a pronoun replaces is called an 'antecedent'.
Differentiate between subject pronouns (he, she, it) and object pronouns (him, her, it) in simple sentences.
Does this sound right? 'Maya loves dogs. Maya asked for a dog for Maya's birthday.' 🥱 That's a lot of 'Maya'! Let's learn a writer's trick to make that sentence sound much smoot...
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Key Concepts & Vocabulary
TermDefinitionExample
Singular NounA word that names only ONE person, place, thing, or idea.The **teacher** read a **book** in the **library**.
PronounA word that is used to take the place of a noun.Instead of 'The boy threw the ball,' you can say '**He** threw the ball.'
Personal PronounA type of pronoun that refers to a specific person or thing. For singular nouns, we use he, she, it, him, or her.**She** is my best friend. I gave the gift to **him**.
AntecedentThe noun that a pronoun replaces or refers to. The pronoun must agree with its antecedent.In '**Maria** loves to read. **She** reads every day,' the word 'Maria' is the antecedent for the pronoun 'she'.
Subject PronounA pronoun that is the subject of the sentence; it's the one...
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Key Rules & Conventions
The Pronoun Agreement Rule
A pronoun must agree with the noun it replaces (its antecedent) in both number and gender.
If the noun is singular and masculine (like 'boy'), use a masculine pronoun ('he' or 'him'). If the noun is singular and feminine (like 'girl'), use a feminine pronoun ('she' or 'her'). If the noun is a thing or place (like 'desk'), use a neuter pronoun ('it').
The Clear Antecedent Rule
A pronoun must clearly refer to one specific noun.
Make sure your reader knows exactly which noun your pronoun is replacing. If a sentence has two boys, 'Tom' and 'Sam', saying 'he went to the store' is confusing. In that case, it's better to use the noun again fo...
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Challenging
Read the sentence: 'The box contained a secret, but the box was locked.' Which pronoun can replace the second 'the box'?
A.he
B.it
C.its
D.that
Challenging
Read the sentence: 'My sister's friend, Amelia, is coming over to play.' Which pronoun can replace 'Amelia'?
A.She
B.Her
C.It
D.They
Challenging
Read the sentence: 'The reason the plan failed was a complete mystery.' Which pronoun can replace 'the plan'?
A.he
B.him
C.it
D.its
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Frequently asked questions
What grade level is "Replace the singular noun with a pronoun"?
Replace the singular noun with a pronoun is a Grade 4 English Language Arts lesson on ExcelOS.
What will I learn in Replace the singular noun with a pronoun?
You'll be able to: Identify the antecedent in 8 out of 10 sentences containing a pronoun and its antecedent; Explain the rules of pronoun-antecedent agreement, including number and gender, with 80% accuracy in a written paragraph; Apply the rules….
Is "Replace the singular noun with a pronoun" free to practice?
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How many practice questions are included with Replace the singular noun with a pronoun?
This lesson includes 27 practice questions across multiple difficulty levels, each with instant feedback and explanations.