Grade 4 · Lesson 4 — Verb

U0 · Re-teach the level below · Verb (—) · blocked practice · 10–15 min · 17 slides · no Poodle book pages yet — Square One runs on remedial sheets
Anchor to leave them with: A noun names something.

ObjectiveStudents will tell verb apart in mixed practice.

Smallest pieceReview and apply what we already know.

Spot test“Which question is this?”

Why that test works'What is happening?' finds action verbs; 'is it just telling me that something IS?' finds being verbs. Both work because a verb is the only word that changes with time — ran, runs, will run — so if a word can be moved into yesterday or tomorrow, it is a verb.

Why — in your own wordsWe learn words so we can say exactly what we mean.

MaterialsMini-whiteboard + pen per student · Board or screen for the deck · Board space kept clear for the VIP — it stays up all lesson · Worksheet — Lesson 4 · Deck: G4_L004_… .pptx · If it breaks: Remedial sheet 07, Remedial sheet 08, Remedial sheet 09, Remedial sheet 10, Remedial sheet 11 · Study guide — Quiz 1 (goes home today)

Vocabulary — pre-pointedT3: noun = a naming word — it names a person, a place, a thing, or an idea; pronoun = a word that stands in for a naming word, so we do not say it twice; adjective = a word that tells us more about a naming word
T2: sort = put into groups

Slide	Part	On screen / book	Teacher says	Teacher does — point, click, clap	Students
1	Launch	Grammar — Day 4	(nothing yet — this is on screen as they come in and settle)	Have Grammar — Day 4 up before they enter. Say nothing about it; it is doing its work by being there.	See it on the way in. Know grammar is next.
2	Launch	Verb	“Assalamu alaykum.”	Greet and settle.	Return the greeting.
3	Launch	Today — Launch highlighted	“Our plan.”	Point down the steps.	Look.
—	Launch	Why — say it ten seconds, off screen, in your own words	“We learn language so we can teach people about Allah.”	Why this matters. Say it, do not read it. Ten seconds. Note: Your words. A different reason every lesson.	Listen.
4	Launch	Today the questions jump around: noun + pronoun + adjective.	“Today the questions jump around — noun + pronoun + adjective. Your first job, before you answer anything, is to notice which one I am asking.”	Say it slowly. This is the actual objective of the day. Note: NAME THE INTERLEAVING. Unannounced mixing feels random to a six-year-old; announced, it is a game they can win.	Listen.
5	Launch	The questions · Noun — “Can I put “the” in front of it?” · Pronoun — “Whose place is it taking?” · Adjective — “Which one? What kind? How many?” · I will not tell you which is coming. · Listen for the question, THEN answer.	“Noun: “Can I put “the” in front of it?” · Pronoun: “Whose place is it taking?” · Adjective: “Which one? What kind? How many?”. I will not tell you which is coming.”	Click per line. Write the questions on the board and leave them up.	Listen.
6	I do	Today — I do highlighted	“Watch me work out which question it is — then do one.”	Point to I do.	Watch.
7	I do	I-do example Watch me do one the exact task, modelled — sentence · question · ring it · name it	“You need my indefinite little brother.” … “Can I put “the” in front of it?” … “brother — a noun.” … “Whose place is it taking?” … “You — a pronoun.” … “Which one? What kind? How many?” … “little — an adjective.” “Two questions. Two answers. One sentence. Your turn.”	One click per move: the sentence · the question · ring the word and name it · hand it over. Do it exactly the way you want them to do it — this is the task they are about to do on their boards, not a different, easier one. Note: Model the DOING, not only the thinking. The ring is the same mark they will make; the wording is the same wording you want back.	Watch. Hands still.
—	I do	(board — build the VIP, then leave it up)	(you are narrating each stage as you draw it — see the stages)	Build on the BOARD, not the slide. · Write You need my indefinite little brother. · ① Write the question underneath: Can I put “the” in front of it? · ② Try it on brother — “the brother” — it works · ③ Ring brother and name it: a noun Then leave it up for the whole lesson. Note: Walk it one click per step — this is the slide the teacher talks through, not one to flash. Leave the BOARD copy up; the slide can move on once they start, because the same strip is printed at the top of their sheet. Come back to it if anyone stalls.	Watch it being built. It stays there to look at.
8	We do	Today — We do highlighted	“Together. Boards out.”	Boards out.	Boards ready.
9	We do	I want this to be beautiful, clear, and simple, like grammar itself. Can I put “the” in front of it? Answerfind the noun	“I want this to be beautiful, clear, and simple, like grammar itself.” … “Can I put “the” in front of it?”	Say the SENTENCE, then point at the question as you say it. Boards up on signal.	Decide which question, then answer.
10	We do	Possessive pronouns include mine, yours, his, hers, theirs, its, ours, yours, and theirs. Whose place is it taking? Answerfind the pronoun	“Possessive pronouns include mine, yours, his, hers, theirs, its, ours, yours, and theirs.” … “Whose place is it taking?”	Say the SENTENCE, then point at the question as you say it. Boards up on signal.	Decide which question, then answer.
11	We do	Nouns are words that name things, like boat fish, bird, island, and wind. Whose place is it taking? Answerfind the pronoun	“Nouns are words that name things, like boat fish, bird, island, and wind.” … “Whose place is it taking?”	Say the SENTENCE, then point at the question as you say it. Boards up on signal.	Decide which question, then answer.
12	We do	Gosh," spluttered Swam, "special situation, but I'm not iposed to socialize with Is. Which one? What kind? How many? Answerfind the adjective	“Gosh," spluttered Swam, "special situation, but I'm not iposed to socialize with Is.” … “Which one? What kind? How many?”	Say the SENTENCE, then point at the question as you say it. Boards up on signal.	Decide which question, then answer.
13	You do	Exit directions Before you start · Sheet and pencil · Read the question above each one BEFORE you answer it · Find the noun or the pronoun or the adjective · Do all of them, then look up · Wait for “go”. procedure — given standing still, before anyone moves Worksheet — Lesson 4	“Before you move. Sheet and pencil. Read the question above each one BEFORE you answer it. Find the noun or the pronoun or the adjective. Do all of them, then look up. When I say go — and not before.”	Exit Directions. Give ALL of it standing still, before anyone touches anything. Then release. Do not add instructions once they are working — that is what the VIP on the board is for. Note: Given BEFORE the release, in one go. Adding a step mid-task is what produces the hands going up.	Listen with hands still. Then start.
14	You do	VIP slide How we did it together the worked example — one click per step 1. Write You need my indefinite little brother. 2. ① Write the question underneath: Can I put “the” in front of it? 3. ② Try it on brother — “the brother” — it works 4. ③ Ring brother and name it: a noun Worksheet — Lesson 4	“On your own. Read the question first, every time.”	Watch for children answering the previous question out of habit — that is the error this day exists to surface.	Work alone.
15	Closure	Today — Closure highlighted	“Boards up one more time.”	Point to Closure.	Boards ready.
16	Closure	Adjectives modify nouns, true, but they modify pronouns, too stick to them like glue. Answerfind the adjective	“Last one — and I am not telling you which question.”	Boards up on signal. Reveal.	Answer. Hold up.
17	Closure	Listen for the question first.	“Listen for the question first.”	Collect boards.	Repeat it.

If it breaks — stop and repair

Do not move on. Reteach with the sheet named against the error, and let the float absorb it.

Secure looks like: Answers the right question for each item without prompting, and self-corrects when they realize they answered the previous one.

Common errors

Calls the word after “the” a noun when it is an adjective — “the red…”
The spot test is positional, and an adjective sits in the same slot.
→ “The red WHAT? It has not finished. Keep going to the naming word.” Remedial sheet 07
Refuses idea nouns — “you can't touch peace, so it isn't a thing”
We taught person/place/thing first, and touchability generalised.
→ “Can you say THE peace? Then it is a noun. Some nouns you can only think about.” Lesson 17 exists for this. Remedial sheet 08
Finds only the first noun in a sentence
Stops at the first success — a search habit, not a grammar error.
→ “Good. Now is there another one? Keep going to the period.” Remedial sheet 07
Cannot say which noun the pronoun replaces
Recognising the word is easier than tracking the reference.
→ “Put the naming word back in. Does it still make sense?” The swap-back is both the check and the repair. Remedial sheet 09
Uses a pronoun with no noun before it, then cannot explain it
Speech does this constantly and is understood from context.
→ “Who is he? I do not know yet — you have not told me.” Remedial sheet 09
Calls “my” or “his” a pronoun
They are, in fact — just not the kind being taught.
→ Say yes, and say it is a different kind we meet later. Never mark a correct instinct wrong.
Marks the noun as the adjective
They sit side by side and only one has been named so far.
→ “Which one is the THING? Then the other one is telling you about it.” Remedial sheet 10
Calls an adverb an adjective — “quickly”
Both are describing words; only the target differs.
→ “What is it telling you about — a thing, or a doing?” This is why adverbs come later, not sooner. Remedial sheet 11
Finds only one adjective when two share a noun
The search stops at the first hit, as with nouns.
→ “Is there another one in front of it?” Remedial sheet 10

Three tiers

Core	As written.
Bridge	2–3 word items only. Teacher does the first one with the student.
Foundation	One word at a time; student echoes, then one clap. No sentences yet.

Non-verbal cue

Noun: flat hand, palm down, held still — a thing you could put on the table · Pronoun: two fingers swapping places, left over right · Adjective: fingers sprinkling down onto the flat noun hand

Question continuum: “How many claps?” (concrete) → “How do you know that was one word and not two?” (open)

As-Suffah Academy · Language Arts · Grade 4 · Lesson 4 Launch → I do → We do → You do → Closure