RIC-20234 Primary Grammar and Word Study Year 3 – Parts of Speech

Parts of speech
Nouns
Focus
Collective and abstract nouns
Definitions
• Collective nouns are words used to name groups of
people, animals and things.
Example:
crowd, pack, class, bunch
• Abstract nouns are words used to name ideas,
feelings, events or qualities that can not be seen,
heard, smelled, tasted or touched.
Example:
generosity, joy, enlightenment, honesty
Explanation
• A collective noun represents a single group made up
of more than one person or a thing; e.g. a committee,
team, or family can not consist of one member, at
least two people must compose the unit. They can
be considered singular or plural. When referring to
the collective group, singular tends to be used when
all members of the collective noun are doing the
same thing at the same time.
Example:
The team is flying to Melbourne for the finals.
However, when referring to the individual members
of the team acting, the plural can be used.
Example:
The team are reconsidering their futures.
• ‘Terms of venery’ are collective nouns for types of
game and other wild animals, such as a murder of
crows and a parliament of rooks.
• Abstract nouns can be either count (meeting,
experience) or non-count nouns (love, charity).
Worksheet information
• If students have not been previously introduced to
abstract nouns, it will be necessary to introduce
the concept before starting this worksheet. Perhaps
give them a list for a ‘treasure hunt’, such as ‘book,
pencil, paper, happiness, youth’. Students go on the
hunt and will finish having been unable to find the
abstract nouns on their list. Explain to them that an
abstract noun is not something that we can touch,
hear, smell or see. It is usually a thought, idea, event,
concept, emotion or feeling.
• Some further examples include: advice, afterthought,
anger, beauty, business, confidence, enjoyment,
freedom, friendship, fun, happiness, health,
help, history, honesty, importance, information,
intelligence, justice, knowledge, law, love, luck,
opportunity, patience, peace, pride, progress,
responsibility, sleep, time, traffic, travel, trouble,
truth, violence, vocabulary and wealth.
• Give each student a copy of the worksheet and read
the explanation and examples of abstract nouns.
Students select two to write and draw a symbol for.
This will reinforce the concept that an abstract noun
can not be seen or touched; they may find it hard to
decide upon an image.
• For Question 2, students write an abstract noun for
each concrete noun.
• To complete the worksheet, students rearrange the
boxes, without changing the order of the letters
inside the boxes, to find the collective noun for the
person, place or thing.
Ideas for further practice
• After reading aloud to the students, or shared
reading, ask students to list some of the names
of any feelings, events, ideas or thoughts the
characters in the story may have had or felt.
• Students paint an abstract noun, using the colours
they feel best represent it. Different paintings of
the same noun can be presented as simply the way
different people see it, with each representation
having equal value.
• Students investigate and create abstract artworks.
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Answers
1.–2. Teacher check
3. (a) a host of angels
(b) an orchestra of musicians
(c) a string of ponies
(d) a quiver of arrows
(e) a gaggle of geese
Primary grammar and word study 4
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