Before you teach — read this first
Grade 6 · Lesson 3 — Noun
U0 · Re-teach the level below · Noun (—) · 10–15 minutes · 17 slides ·
Launch → I do → We do → You do → Closure
The grammar behind this lesson — read this before you teach it.NounWhat it is. A noun names something — a person, place, thing, or idea. It is the only kind of word that can be the thing a sentence is about.
Why our test works. 'Can I put the in front of it?' works because the is a determiner, and determiners in English attach to nouns and to nothing else. *The table* is fine; the ran, the quickly, the and are not. So the test is not a trick — it is asking whether the word behaves the way only nouns behave.
Leans on. Knowing that a sentence is about something. If a child cannot yet find what the sentence is about, the noun test has nothing to hold on to.
Watch for. It fails on names and on some abstract nouns — we do not say the Sarah or the courage in every sentence. Tell the class the test finds most nouns, and names are nouns too because they name a person.
What this lesson is
A review day. No new concept: today drills conjunctions, interjections, subject. Choose the focus from the last assessment rather than from a plan made months ago — the sheet works on whatever you pick. The worked example is built on There were no cars or cabs there., ringing or.
Why it matters — say this in your own words, about ten seconds.
“When we know words well, we can learn other languages too.”
A different reason every lesson, on purpose. It is not on a slide and it
is not a script — if you have a better reason today, use yours. What should land is the
idea, not a sentence they can recite.
Recall — sixty seconds, before anything new
Nothing to retrieve yet; this is the first lesson of the year. Spend the minute on the routine instead — boards out, boards up on the signal — so it is automatic before it has to carry content.
How it goes
- Ten seconds on why it matters — “When we know words well, we can learn other languages too.” Your words, not those; it is a different reason every lesson so what lands is the idea rather than a sentence they can recite.
- Then you do one yourself, on screen, one click per move: There were no cars or cabs there. · the question · ring or · name it a conjunction. Do it exactly the way you want it done — this is the task they are about to do on their boards, not an easier one.
- You build the same thing on the board and leave it up for conjunctions, interjections, subject. The four steps are identical in every lesson of this unit — sentence, question, test, answer — so the children read the method rather than the layout, and today's board shows There were no cars or cabs there. still marked when they start work.
- The We-do runs 4 items on whiteboards — You can say Bob and Jane, ran and jumped, bumped and slumped, or sad and lonely.What two things is it holding together?, Please, Sidney," Poodle begged, "just make up a sentence that has all eight kinds of words!Could it stand on its own with an exclamation mark?, Then, You took And's hand, and Me took And's hand, and away danced You And Me.Could it stand on its own with an exclamation mark?, From somewhere high above, a cool wind blew blue, yup, and Poodle could hear it whisper, almost.Who or what is this about?. You are scanning for who applies the question and who is guessing from meaning; those look identical on a right answer and completely different on a wrong one.
- Exit directions in full, standing still, before anyone moves — Sheet and pencil · Read the question above each one BEFORE you answer it · Find the conjunction or the interjection or the subject. Then they work alone, with the same worked example printed at the head of their sheet.
- Close on For example, if I'm talking about mice, then MOUSE is my subject because I'm talking about that. — an item they have not met, so it measures rather than reminds — then the line they leave with: “A conjunction joins.”
- Watch for: Names the conjunction but not what it joins — Recognising a three-letter word is easy; tracking both sides is the skill. If you see it: “And what? And what else? Point to both.” Never accept the word alone. (Remedial sheet 17.)