RIC-20786_Teaching_Strategies_for_Writing_BkA_word_choices

Your partner in education 

BOOK A 

TEACHING 

STRATEGIES 

FOR WRITING 

Word choices 

Australian Primary Publisher 

of the Year 2015 and 2016

Teaching strategies for writing (Book A) 

Published by R.I.C. Publications ® 2018 

Copyright © Diane Henderson and Rosemary Morris 2018 

RIC–20786 

Titles in this series: 

Teaching strategies for writing (Book A) 

Teaching strategies for writing (Book B) 

Teaching strategies for writing (Book C) 

Teaching strategies for writing (Book D) 

Teaching strategies for writing (Book E) 

Teaching strategies for writing (Book F) 

Copyright Notice 

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The publisher licenses the individual teacher 

who purchased this book to photocopy these 

pages to hand out to students in their own 

classes. 

Except as allowed under the Copyright Act 1968, 

any other use (including digital and online uses 

and the creation of overhead transparencies 

or posters) or any use by or for other people 

(including by or for other teachers, students or 

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Copyright Act. 

For your added protection in the case of 

copyright inspection, please complete the form 

below. Retain this form, the complete original 

document and the invoice or receipt as proof 

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Internet websites 

In some instances, websites or specific URLs may be recommended. While these are checked and rechecked at the time of 

publication, the publisher has no control over any subsequent changes which may be made to webpages. It is strongly recommended 

that the class teacher checks all URLs before allowing students to access them. 

View all pages online 

PO Box 332 Greenwood Western Australia 6924 

Website: www.ricpublications.com.au 

Email: mail@ricpublications.com.au 

2015 & 2016

FOREWORD 

Teaching strategies for writing is series of six books using modelling, guided and independent practice to teach 

students strategies they can use to improve the clarity, correctness and richness of their writing. The focus is on 

sentences, their structure, punctuation and word choices and on developing editing and proofreading skills and their 

habitual use. 

Titles in this series: 

• Teaching strategies for writing (Book A) • Teaching strategies for writing (Book D) 

• Teaching strategies for writing (Book B) • Teaching strategies for writing (Book E) 

• Teaching strategies for writing (Book C) • Teaching strategies for writing (Book F) 

TABLE OF CONTENTS 

Teachers notes ................................................................................................... iv–v 

Class recording sheets 

Assessment activities ................................................................................... vi–ix 

Assessment writing ........................................................................................ x–xi 

Student writing checklist ...................................................................................... xii 

Student self-evaluation ....................................................................................... xiii 

WORD CHOICES 

Unit 1 Nouns, noun groups and adjectives ............................................... 2–7 

Unit 2 Pronouns, confusing pronouns (me, I), which pronoun? ............... 8–13 

Unit 3 Verbs and adverbials .................................................................... 14–19 

Unit 4 Verbs: tense, matching verbs ...................................................... 20–25 

Assessment ................................................................................................ 26–29 

SENTENCE STRUCTURE 

Unit 5 Sentences, word order, questions ............................................... 30–35 

Unit 6 Sentence beginnings ................................................................... 36–41 

Unit 7 Conjunctions ................................................................................ 42–47 

Unit 8 Paragraphs ................................................................................... 48–53 

Assessment ................................................................................................ 54–57 

PUNCTUATION 

Unit 9 Using punctuation, short sentences ........................................... 58–63 

Unit 10 Full stops, capital letters, proper nouns and commands ............ 64–69 

Unit 11 Apostrophes in contractions ....................................................... 70–75 

Unit 12 Apostrophes for possession ........................................................ 76–81 

Assessment ................................................................................................ 82–85 

EDITING AND PROOFREADING 

Unit 13 

Unit 14 

Unit 15 

Unit 16 

Spelling (vowel sounds), sentence structure, 

punctuation, word choices, editing ............................................ 86–91 

Spelling (more vowel sounds), sentence structure, 

punctuation, word choices, editing ............................................. 92–97 

Spelling (suffixes) sentence structure, 

punctuation, word choices, editing ........................................... 98–103 

Spelling (homophones), sentence structure, 

punctuation, word choices, editing ......................................... 104–109 

Assessment ............................................................................................ 110–113 

TEACHING STRATEGIES FOR WRITING (Book A) 

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iii

TEACHER NOTES 

ABOUT WRITING 

A good writer is not simply one who knows about and can 

use text types. A good writer is one with the capacity to 

produce interesting, informative, grammatically correct 

text, for a specific purpose, that achieves any writer’s 

intent – clear, precise communication. 

TEACHING WRITING 

Students can and should be taught strategies that will 

help them to write better. These include improvements 

in word choices, sentence structure, punctuation and 

editing and proofreading. Writing strategies taught 

should be modelled, discussed and then applied, firstly 

with teacher support and then independently. However, 

the emphasis always should be on the writing process, 

which requires forethought, planning and a rational, 

measured approach in order to produce the desired 

outcome. Editing and proofreading are essential 

components of any writing. It is important that students 

edit and proofread habitually, with a specific purpose, 

and concentrate on the careful consideration of each 

sentence, one at a time. Activities provided in this series 

encourage students to think about appropriate aspects 

of their writing before, during and after the process. 

LESSON PROCEDURE 

Introduction 

Discuss the text title with students. Ask for their 

interpretations of what the title could mean. 

Discuss the text type. Why does it fit into this category? 

What are the specific features of this type of text? 

Guide the discussion to introduce the teaching points/ 

strategies to be covered during the course of the unit. 

For example, check they understand terms such as noun 

group, adverbial, sentence, paragraph and comma. 

Development 

Read and discuss the text, either in groups or as a 

class. Assist students with any unfamiliar vocabulary or 

expressions. 

Differentiation 

Work through the introductory activities with the class 

as a whole, ensuring students understand what is 

required of them. 

Work with those requiring additional assistance while 

the remainder of the class work independently on the 

activities. 

ASSESSMENT 

An assessment is included for each unit in the book. 

Because of the way it is structured, this assessment 

will allow you to see individual student’s understandings 

as well as any common points of weakness which may 

require further assistance. 

FORMAT 

Teaching strategies for writing is organised into four 

sections: 

Word choices 

Punctuation 

Sentence structure 

Editing and proofreading 

Each section has four units of work and one assessment 

unit. 

Teaching units 

Each six-page unit of work has a specific focus, two 

teacher pages and four activity pages. 

Assessment units 

• Following each section is a four-page unit of 

assessment activities—one page for each unit. 

• Answers are provided in the teachers pages for that 

unit. 

• Teacher record sheets—see pages vi–ix. 

Assessment writing tasks 

• A suggested paragraph writing topic for each unit is 

provided on the teachers pages. 

• Teacher recording sheet—see pages x–xi. 

• Student proofreading checklist—see page xii. 

• Student self-evaluation—see page xiii. 

Review 

In pairs or small groups, students review their answers, 

giving their reasoning where required and critiquing the 

longer sentence or paragraph responses. 

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TEACHER NOTES 

Sample open pages 

TEACHER INFORMATION 


UNIT 2 

PRONOUNS, CONFUSING PRONOUNS 

(ME/I), WHICH PRONOUN? 

UNIT 2 



Focus 

Word choices – pronouns, confusing pronouns (me, I), which 

pronoun? 

Progression 

Recognise 

Students will recognise a pronoun from modelled examples. 

Choose 

Students will choose appropriate pronouns from given examples, 

with teacher support. 

Use 

Students will choose and use correct and appropriate pronouns in 

supplied and self-written sentences. 

Definition of terms 

Pronouns are words used to replace nouns. 

A possessive pronoun replaces a noun identifying ownership by 

the person or thing to which it refers. 

The subject of a verb is the person or thing ‘doing’ the action. 

The object of a verb is the person or thing affected by the action. 

Introduction 

Good writers improve their writing by replacing nouns with 

appropriate and correct pronouns. 

The use of pronouns prevents constant repetition of a noun, 

making text more manageable and fluid. 

It is important for students to know the correct pronouns to use in 

the context of a sentence. 

Possessive pronouns 

Possessive pronouns are used to replace the name of a person or 

thing; e.g. That book belongs to him (John), it is his. 

NOTE: The words ‘his’ and ‘its’ can be used as a possessive 

determiner as well as a possessive pronoun; e.g. his book, its tail 

Relative pronouns 

The relative pronouns ‘who’,‘which’ and ‘that’ are used to refer to 

nouns and pronouns; e.g., the boy who, he who, the team that, the 

book which. 

The correct use of ‘who’ for people is more critical. Although 

‘which’ and ‘that’ can both be used in many contexts, ‘which’ should 

strictly be used to refer to a particular desk (telling which one); 

e.g. the desk which is by the door. The relative pronoun ‘that’ has 

a broader reference and doesn’t refer to one desk; e.g. the desks 

that are by the door. 

LESSON NOTES AND PLANS 

Introduction 

• Discuss the text title with students. 

• What sort of text do they think it will be? 

• Why do they think this? What are some of the features of a recount? 

• Introduce the term ‘pronoun’ and explain that words replacing nouns 

are pronouns. Use examples from the classroom; e.g. Tran = he, 

Mary = she, the board = it, the tallest boy in the class = he. 

• Read the text with or to the class. 

• Identify some of the pronouns used in the text to replace people, 

places and things. 

• Identify single and plural pronouns from the text. 

Pronouns – Page 11 

• Read and discuss the definition at the top of the page. 

• Explain that good writers use pronouns instead of repeating the 

same nouns. 

• Explain why it is important to use the correct pronoun for the noun it 

replaces. 

• Work through the activities with the class as a whole, ensuring they 

understand what is required of them. 

• Work with those requiring additional assistance while the remainder 

of the class work independently on the activities. 

Using pronouns – Page 12 

• Discuss the examples at the top of the page. 





• Provide opportunities for the class to share their answers to 

Question 2. 

Which pronoun – who or that? me or I? – Page 13 

• Questions 1 and 2 focus on the relative pronouns ‘who’ and ‘that’. 

• Explain that ‘who’ must be used for people. 

NOTE: ‘That’ and ‘which’ refer to things, places and can both be used 

for groups of people; e.g. the team which, a class that, (but ‘the 

members of the team who’). 

• Encourage students to read the sentences aloud to help them to 

choose the correct pronouns. Encourage them to ask the question 

‘Who did it?’; if the answer is ‘I’, then ‘I’ is correct; if not, it should be 

‘me’. 

ANSWERS 


1. (a) It 

(b) He 

(c) She 

2. (a) they 

(b) it 

(c) she 

3. (a) her 

(b) them 

(c) me 

4. (a) you 

(b) me, her, him, us 

(c) they 


1. (a) No because the nouns are repeated and not replaced by 

pronouns 

(b) The girl and boy rode bikes to the zoo. They left them at the 

gate. The girl went to see the bears. She liked them. They were 

brown. The boy went to the penguins. He watched them playing 

in the water. 

2. (a) mine 

(b) ours 

(c) yours 

(d) theirs 

3. Teacher check 

Which pronoun – who or that? me or I?— Page 13 

1. (a) that 

(b) who 


3. (a) me 

(b) I 

(c) me 

4. (a) ✗ 

(b) ✓ 

ASSESSMENT ANSWERS 

Assessment activity – Page 27 

1. (a) it 

(b) he 

2. (a) it 

(b) them 

3. (a) who 

(b) that 

4. (a) me 

(b) I 

5. The children went to the zoo. They enjoyed seeing the animals. My 

favourite was the giraffe. It was very tall. 

Class record sheet – Page vi 

ASSESSMENT WRITING 

• Paragraph topic – At the zoo 

• Focus: Word choices – pronouns 

Self-evaluation – Page xiii 

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9 

Teacher page 1 Teacher page 2 

UNIT 2 

ZOO FRIENDS 

UNIT 2 

PRONOUNS 

A pronoun is used to replace a noun. 

For example:‘birds’ – they; ‘a frog’ – it 

1. Circle the pronouns in the sentences. 

(a) Sally saw a green snake. It was sleeping. 

Sally, Mike and Ellie went to the zoo. 

They all saw their favourite animals. 

Sally liked snakes. She saw a big green 

snake. It was sleeping. She saw two brown 

snakes. They were lying in the warm sun. One 

snake slid over to the glass. It flicked its 

tongue in and out. Sally thought it was 

smiling at her. She liked them all. 

The monkeys were Mike’s favourites. 

One monkey was eating melon. He 

had melon juice running down his 

chin. Two cheeky monkeys played a 

trick on him. They crept up behind 

him and poured water on him. 

The melon monkey jumped up and 

chased them. He was angry. Mike 

laughed so hard he cried. 

Ellie went straight to the elephants. 

There was a mother elephant. She 

is called a cow. There was a father 

elephant. He is called a bull. And 

there was a baby elephant. It is 

called a calf. The mother was feeding 

apples to her calf. She picked them 

up in her trunk for the calf to eat. 

Ellie loved the whole family. She 

could watch them for hours. 

(b) One monkey was eating. He was eating a melon. 

(c) There was a mother elephant. She is called a cow. 

2. Circle the correct pronoun in each sentence. 

(a) My favourite animals are cats and it they are loving. 

(b) She has a pet fish and she likes looking at she it . 

(c) The girl went to see the birds and he she wanted one. 

3. Chose a pronoun to write in each space. 

them me her 

snake over to (a) Sally saw the slide . 

(b) I like monkeys but Tom doesn’t like . 

(c) Please come to the zoo with . 

4. Write a correct pronoun in the space. 

(a) I think 

are my best friend. 

(b) Mum and Dad took 

to the zoo. 

(c) The animals played and 

had fun. 

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11 

Activity page 1 Activity page 2 

UNIT 2 

USING PRONOUNS 

The girl and boy rode bikes to the zoo. The girl and boy left the 

bikes at the gate. The girl went to see the bears. The girl liked 

the bears. The bears were brown. The boy went to the 

penguins. The boy watched the penguins playing in the water. 

1. Change all the underlined nouns to pronouns. Write the new text. 

UNIT 2 

WHICH PRONOUN – WHO OR THAT? ME OR I? 

The pronoun ‘who’ is used for people and ‘that’ for other things. 

For example: The boy who saw the snake that was in the zoo. 

1. Add ‘who’ or ‘that’. 

(a) The monkeys 

were playing ran away. 

(b) The boys 

were watching them laughed. 

2. Finish the sentences using ‘who’ or ‘that’. 

(a) The children 

(b) The animals 

2. Choose the correct pronoun. 

mine yours ours theirs 

is my is . 

(a) That book. It 

(b) Those are our toys. They are . 

(c) There is your cat. It is . 

Use ‘I’ when I’m the one doing something. … I am talking. 

Use ‘me’ if I’m NOT the one doing something … Mum’s talking to me. 

3. Write ‘I’ or ‘me’ in the space. 

(a) The keeper gave 

some 

food for the apes. 

(d) They own the bikes. The bikes are . 

(b) 

threw it into the cage. 

3. Write your own sentence using ‘his’ or ‘hers’. 

(c) My friend wanted to share the food with . 

4. Is the pronoun correct? Put a tick or cross in the box. 

(a) John saw I at the zoo. 

(b) I loved the elephants. 

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13 

Activity page 3 Activity page 4 



v

CLASS RECORD 

ASSESSMENT ACTIVITIES 

Date: 

Name Unit 1 Unit 2 Unit 3 Unit 4 

vi 




CLASS RECORD 

Name: Unit: Date: 

Paragraph topic: 

Name 

Comment 

x 



STUDENT WRITING CHECKLIST 

Name: 

Date: 

Paragraph topic: 

Sentences 

My sentences: 

• make sense by themselves. .................................................. 

• have interesting beginnings. ................................................. 

• are not too long or too short. ................................................. 

Punctuation 

I used: 

• capital letters to start sentences. ........................................ 

• capital letters for names and ‘I’. ........................................... 

• full stops. ............................................................................... 

• question marks. .................................................................... 

• exclamation marks. ............................................................... 

Words 

I have some: 

• interesting nouns. ................................................................. 

• descriptive adjectives. .......................................................... 

• informative verbs. ................................................................. 

• adverbials to tell ‘how’, ‘when’ and ‘where’. ........................ 

Spelling 

I checked that: 

• words look ‘right’. .................................................................. 

• the sounds in words are written correctly. ........................... 

xii 



STUDENT SELF-EVALUATION 


I wrote a paragraph about: 

My goal was to focus on: 

How well did I achieve my goal? 

Two things I did well in my writing were: 

Next time I write a paragraph I will try to: 

STUDENT SELF-EVALUATION 


I wrote a paragraph about: 

My goal was to focus on: 

How well did I achieve my goal? 

Two things I did well in my writing were: 

Next time I write a paragraph I will try to: 



xiii


UNIT 1 

NOUNS, NOUN GROUPS 

AND ADJECTIVES 

Focus 

Word choices — nouns, noun groups and adjectives 

Progression 

Recognise 

Students will recognise a noun/noun group/adjective from 

modelled examples. 

Choose 

Students will choose an informative noun/noun group/adjective 

from given examples, with teacher support. 

Use 

Students will choose and use an appropriate, informative noun/ 

noun group/adjective in supplied and self-written sentences. 


Nouns are words used to name people, places, things, feelings and 

ideas. 

A noun group is a noun with other words used to name people, 

places, things, feelings and ideas. 

Adjectives are describing words adding to or changing the 

meaning of a noun or pronoun. 

Introduction 

Good writers improve their writing by their choice of words used 

to correctly name people, places, things, feelings and ideas. They 

can choose words to add information to nouns to make a more 

precise noun group. Noun groups have a noun, plus: 

• a determiner, e.g. the bread, many fillings 

• a possessive, e.g. the boys’ pasta, Dad’s food 

• an adjective, e.g. tasty meal, sun-dried tomatoes 

• nouns, e.g. kitchen benches, camp oven 

• a number, e.g. five tomatoes 


Introduction 

• Discuss the text title and layout with students. 


• Why do they think this? 

• Introduce the term ‘noun’ and explain that the words naming places, 

things or people are nouns. 


• Identify nouns used to name people places and things. 

• Identify nouns with capital letters. What do these nouns name? Why 

do these nouns have capital letters? 

Nouns – Page 5 


• Discuss why nouns are an important part of every sentence and why 

it is important for writers to think about nouns and to choose good, 

interesting and informative nouns. 

• Explain that good writers think about different words to name the 

same thing (synonyms) before choosing the best one. 





Noun groups – Page 6 


• Explain that often instead of using one word to name something, 

good writers add more information by writing a group of words. 

• Provide examples of noun groups including the word ‘book’ plus a 

determiner, e.g. my book, this book, some books, and with adjectives, 

e.g. a scary book. 

• Show by example how careful choice of noun groups can lead to 

a clearer understanding by the reader. (For example, ‘The boy ran 

home’ vs ‘The small, terrified boy ran home’.) 

Adjectives – Page 7 


• Ask students to identify adjectives from the text. 

• Provide opportunities to share their answers to Question 4. 

2 




UNIT 1 

NOUNS, NOUN GROUPS 

AND ADJECTIVES 

ANSWERS 

Nouns – Page 5 



1. (a) elephant 

(b) hand 

(c) dad 

(d) teacher 

2. (a) animal 

(b) question 

(c) class 

(d) boy 


Noun groups – Page 6 

1. (a) a bad boy 

(b) the high ceiling 

2.–3. Teacher check 

1. (a) teacher 

(b) donkey 


3. the busy classroom 




• Paragraph topic – At school 

• Focus: Word choices – nouns, noun groups and adjectives 


4. (a) Alec’s left hand 

(b) a smart answer 


Adjectives – Page 7 

1. (a) high 

(b) busy 

(c) bad 




3

UNIT 1 

SMART ALEC 

Alec was really not a bad boy, but he was always getting into 

trouble. Why? Because he always had a smart answer to questions. 

His friends all called him ‘Smart Alec’. 

One day in class, the teacher, Mrs Kennerly, was talking about animals. 

‘Can anyone name an animal starting with D?’, she asked. 

Jasmine’s hand flew up. 

‘Yes, Jazz?’ 

‘A donkey!’, she said, proudly. 

‘Very good, Jazz. Now, can anyone name an animal starting with E?’ 

Alec’s left hand shot towards the high ceiling. 

Mrs Kennerly sighed. 

‘Yes, Alec?’ 

‘An elephant!’ he said, beaming. 

‘Well done, Alec’, said his patient teacher. ‘What about an animal 

starting with T?’ she asked the class. 

Alec’s left hand was first in the air. ‘I know’, he said. ‘Two elephants!’ 

Mrs Kennerly sighed again. 

“You just can’t help yourself, Alec, can you? Please go outside and wait 

for me there.’ 

When Alec had gone, she turned back to the waiting class. ‘Now,’ she 

said, ‘can anyone tell me an animal starting with M?’ 

But before anyone could answer, they heard Alec’s voice from outside 

the busy classroom. 

‘Maybe an elephant!’ 

4 



UNIT 1 

NOUNS 

Nouns tell us the name of a person, place or thing. 

For example: teacher, classroom, hand 

Good writers choose their naming words, or nouns, carefully. 

1. Which noun in the story means: 

(a) an animal with a trunk? 

(b) something on the end of your arm? 

(c) a father? 

(d) someone who teaches a class? 

2. Choose the best noun for each sentence. 

class boy question animal 

(a) An elephant is an . 

(b) We need to answer the . 

(c) My 

(d) The 

is going to the zoo. 

named Alec was smart. 

3. Write an interesting sentence for each noun. 

(a) teacher 

(b) trouble 



5

UNIT 1 

NOUN GROUPS 

A noun group is a noun with other words which tell more 

about the noun. For example: tall boy, the boy, one boy 

1. Circle the whole noun group in these sentences. 

The nouns are underlined to help you. 

(a) Alec was really not a bad boy. 

(b) His hand shot towards the high ceiling. 

2. Add some words to each noun to make an interesting noun group. 

(a) class 

(b) animal 

3. Write an interesting sentence using one of the noun groups above. 

4. Find two other noun groups in the story. 

(a) hand 

(b) answer 

5. (a) Write a noun group using the word room. 

(b) Use the noun group in an interesting sentence. 

6 



UNIT 1 

ADJECTIVES 

Adjectives are describing words. 

They can tell more about a noun. 

For example: a big, grey elephant 

1. Circle the adjective that tells more about the nouns. 

Write them on the line. 

(a) high ceiling 

(b) busy classroom 

(c) bad boy 

2. Choose one or two interesting adjectives you 

could use to describe each noun. 

(a) frog 

(b) cat 

(c) duck 

3. Use each adjective to describe a noun in an interesting sentence. 

(a) beautiful 

(b) funny 

4. Add adjectives to make the sentences more descriptive. 

(a) The girl had a toy. 

(b) A boy made a cake. 



7


UNIT 2 



Focus 

Word choices – pronouns, confusing pronouns (me, I), which 

pronoun? 

Progression 

Recognise 

Students will recognise a pronoun from modelled examples. 

Choose 

Students will choose appropriate pronouns from given examples, 

with teacher support. 

Use 

Students will choose and use correct and appropriate pronouns in 

supplied and self-written sentences. 


Pronouns are words used to replace nouns. 

A possessive pronoun replaces a noun identifying ownership by 

the person or thing to which it refers. 

The subject of a verb is the person or thing ‘doing’ the action. 

The object of a verb is the person or thing affected by the action. 

Introduction 

Good writers improve their writing by replacing nouns with 

appropriate and correct pronouns. 

The use of pronouns prevents constant repetition of a noun, 

making text more manageable and fluid. 

It is important for students to know the correct pronouns to use in 

the context of a sentence. 

Possessive pronouns 

Possessive pronouns are used to replace the name of a person or 

thing; e.g. That book belongs to him (John), it is his. 

NOTE: The words ‘his’ and ‘its’ can be used as a possessive 

determiner as well as a possessive pronoun; e.g. his book, its tail 

Relative pronouns 

The relative pronouns ‘who’, ‘which’ and ‘that’ are used to refer to 

nouns and pronouns; e.g., the boy who, he who, the team that, the 

book which. 

The correct use of ‘who’ for people is more critical. Although 

‘which’ and ‘that’ can both be used in many contexts, ‘which’ should 

strictly be used to refer to a particular desk (telling which one); 

e.g. the desk which is by the door. The relative pronoun ‘that’ has 

a broader reference and doesn’t refer to one desk; e.g. the desks 

that are by the door. 


Introduction 



• Why do they think this? What are some of the features of a recount? 

• Introduce the term ‘pronoun’ and explain that words replacing nouns 

are pronouns. Use examples from the classroom; e.g. Tran = he, 

Mary = she, the board = it, the tallest boy in the class = he. 


• Identify some of the pronouns used in the text to replace people, 

places and things. 

• Identify single and plural pronouns from the text. 



• Explain that good writers use pronouns instead of repeating the 

same nouns. 

• Explain why it is important to use the correct pronoun for the noun it 

replaces. 






• Discuss the examples at the top of the page. 





• Provide opportunities for the class to share their answers to 

Question 2. 

Which pronoun – who or that? me or I? – Page 13 

• Questions 1 and 2 focus on the relative pronouns ‘who’ and ‘that’. 

• Explain that ‘who’ must be used for people. 

NOTE: ‘That’ and ‘which’ refer to things, places and can both be used 

for groups of people; e.g. the team which, a class that, (but ‘the 

members of the team who’). 

• Encourage students to read the sentences aloud to help them to 

choose the correct pronouns. Encourage them to ask the question 

‘Who did it?’; if the answer is ‘I’, then ‘I’ is correct; if not, it should be 

‘me’. 

8 




UNIT 2 



ANSWERS 


1. (a) It 

(b) He 

(c) She 

2. (a) they 

(b) it 

(c) she 

3. (a) her 

(b) them 

(c) me 

4. (a) you 

(b) me, her, him, us 

(c) they 



1. (a) it 

(b) he 

2. (a) it 

(b) them 

3. (a) who 

(b) that 

4. (a) me 

(b) I 

5. The children went to the zoo. They enjoyed seeing the animals. My 

favourite was the giraffe. It was very tall. 



1. (a) No because the nouns are repeated and not replaced by 

pronouns 

(b) The girl and boy rode bikes to the zoo. They left them at the 

gate. The girl went to see the bears. She liked them. They were 

brown. The boy went to the penguins. He watched them playing 

in the water. 


• Paragraph topic – At the zoo 

• Focus: Word choices – pronouns 


2. (a) mine 

(b) ours 

(c) yours 

(d) theirs 


Which pronoun – who or that? me or I?— Page 13 

1. (a) that 

(b) who 


3. (a) me 

(b) I 

(c) me 

4. (a) ✗ 

(b) ✓ 



9

UNIT 2 

ZOO FRIENDS 

Sally, Mike and Ellie went to the zoo. 

They all saw their favourite animals. 

Sally liked snakes. She saw a big green 

snake. It was sleeping. She saw two brown 

snakes. They were lying in the warm sun. One 

snake slid over to the glass. It flicked its 

tongue in and out. Sally thought it was 

smiling at her. She liked them all. 

The monkeys were Mike’s favourites. 

One monkey was eating melon. He 

had melon juice running down his 

chin. Two cheeky monkeys played a 

trick on him. They crept up behind 

him and poured water on him. 

The melon monkey jumped up and 

chased them. He was angry. Mike 

laughed so hard he cried. 

Ellie went straight to the elephants. 

There was a mother elephant. She 

is called a cow. There was a father 

elephant. He is called a bull. And 

there was a baby elephant. It is 

called a calf. The mother was feeding 

apples to her calf. She picked them 

up in her trunk for the calf to eat. 

Ellie loved the whole family. She 

could watch them for hours. 

10 



UNIT 2 

PRONOUNS 

A pronoun is used to replace a noun. 

For example:‘birds’ – they; ‘a frog’ – it 

1. Circle the pronouns in the sentences. 

(a) Sally saw a green snake. It was sleeping. 

(b) One monkey was eating. He was eating a melon. 

(c) There was a mother elephant. She is called a cow. 


(a) My favourite animals are cats and it they are loving. 

(b) She has a pet fish and she likes looking at she it . 

(c) The girl went to see the birds and he she wanted one. 

3. Chose a pronoun to write in each space. 

them me her 

(a) Sally saw the snake slide over to . 

(b) I like monkeys but Tom doesn’t like . 

(c) Please come to the zoo with . 

4. Write a correct pronoun in the space. 

(a) I think 

(b) Mum and Dad took 

(c) The animals played and 

are my best friend. 

to the zoo. 

had fun. 



11

UNIT 2 

USING PRONOUNS 

The girl and boy rode bikes to the zoo. The girl and boy left the 

bikes at the gate. The girl went to see the bears. The girl liked 

the bears. The bears were brown. The boy went to the 

penguins. The boy watched the penguins playing in the water. 

1. Change all the underlined nouns to pronouns. Write the new text. 

2. Choose the correct pronoun. 

mine yours ours theirs 

(a) That is my book. It is . 

(b) Those are our toys. They are . 

(c) There is your cat. It is . 

(d) They own the bikes. The bikes are . 

3. Write your own sentence using ‘his’ or ‘hers’. 

12 



UNIT 2 

WHICH PRONOUN – WHO OR THAT? ME OR I? 

The pronoun ‘who’ is used for people and ‘that’ for other things. 

For example: The boy who saw the snake that was in the zoo. 


(a) The monkeys 

(b) The boys 

were playing ran away. 

were watching them laughed. 

2. Finish the sentences using ‘who’ or ‘that’. 

(a) The children 

(b) The animals 

Use ‘I’ when I’m the one doing something. … I am talking. 

Use ‘me’ if I’m NOT the one doing something … Mum’s talking to me. 

3. Write ‘I’ or ‘me’ in the space. 

(a) The keeper gave 

food for the apes. 

some 

(b) 

threw it into the cage. 

(c) My friend wanted to share the food with . 

4. Is the pronoun correct? Put a tick or cross in the box. 

(a) John saw I at the zoo. 

(b) I loved the elephants. 



13


UNIT 3 

VERBS AND ADVERBIALS 

Focus 

Word choices – verbs and adverbials 

Progression 

Recognise 

Students will recognise a verb or adverbial from modelled 

examples. 

Choose 

Students will choose the more or most informative verb or 

adverbial from given examples, with teacher support. 

Use 

Students will choose and use appropriate, informative verbs/ 

adverbials in supplied and self-written sentences. 


Verbs or ‘doing’ words show actions or states of being or having. 

Adverbials are words or groups of words that add information, 

usually to a verb or verb group. They can tell how (manner), when 

(time) or where (place) something happens. Adverbs can modify 

(add information to) any words that are not nouns or pronouns. 

(These are modified by adjectives.) 

Paragraphs are sections of writing dealing with a particular 

subject or point, beginning on a new line. 

Introduction 

Good writers improve their writing by their choice of informative 

and appropriate verbs and adverbials. 


Introduction 


• Can they work out the answers to ‘Who am I?’ 

• List things some birds do. 

• Introduce the term ‘verbs’ and explain that the words telling what 

birds do are verbs. 


• Ask students to identify the text type and discuss the clues. 

• Can they work out the answers to ‘Who am I?’ 

Verbs – Page 17 


• Discuss why verbs are important part of every sentence and why 

it is important for writers to think about verbs and choose good, 

interesting and informative verbs. 





Boring verbs – Page 18 

• Review students’ understanding of the term ‘verb’ and ask them to 

provide examples. 

• Discuss the overuse of boring verbs like saw, went and said and 

give alternatives for said, such as yelled, screamed, whispered. 

• Explain that better verbs can give more information about what is 

happening and can change the meaning of a sentence. 

• Brainstorm and list more informative verbs for got. This will assist 

students to complete Questions 2. 

Adverbials – Page 19 

• Read and discuss the definition of adverbials and the examples 

given. 

• Explain that good writers add adverbials to give the reader more 

information about verbs and to make their writing more interesting. 

• Brainstorm and make three lists of adverbials that could tell how, 

when and where. 

• In pairs or small groups, students review their answers. 

14 




UNIT 3 


ANSWERS 

Verbs – Page 17 

1. (a) search 

(b) seize 

(c) pounce 



1. (a) eat 

(b) pounces 

(c) calls 

2. (a) crawl, fly, wriggle, slither, walk 

(b) oink, squeak, quack, moo, neigh 

(c) Teacher check 


Boring verbs – Page 18 


Adverbials – Page 19 




• Paragraph topic – Who am I? 

• Focus: Word choices – verbs and adverbials 


1. (a) in the pond 

(b) early in the morning 

(c) slowly 

2. (a) in the grass (where) 

(b) quickly (how) 

(c) at night (when) 




15

UNIT 3 

WHO AM I? 

You’ll see me swim 

On lake and pond 

I eat most things 

Of snails I’m fond 

And when I’m finished 

With my snack 

You’ll hear me calling 

‘Quack, quack, quack’. 

I am a . 

You’ll hear me call 

One cold dark night 

But you’ll never hear 

My wings in flight 

Nor will my prey 

Like mouse and shrew 

They’ll never hear 

‘Hoo, hoo, hoooo’. 

I am an . 

You’ll see me soar 

Above the ground 

Searching for food 

Circling round and round 

And then I pounce— 

A gold-brown streak— 

To seize my prey 

With claws and beak. 

I am an . 

16 



UNIT 3 

VERBS 

A verb is a doing word. 

For example: We write stories. This bird talks. 

Good writers chose their verbs carefully. 

For example: Instead of writing, ‘The eagle flew’, a better 

writer could write, ‘The eagle soared’. 

1. Choose the best verb for each sentence. 

seize pounce search 

(a) The duck will 

(b) The eagle will 

(c) The owl will 

for snails. 

its prey in its claws. 

on a mouse. 

2. oink squeak crawl fly quack 

wriggle slither moo walk neigh 

(a) Circle the verbs that can tell how animals move. 

(b) Cross the ones that can tell how animals sound. 

(c) Choose one to use in an interesting sentence. 

3. Write an interesting sentence using one of the verbs. 

swim eat hear finish 



17

UNIT 3 

BORING VERBS 

We use some verbs like ‘went’ 

too often. A better verb would 

tell how something went. 

1. Write each sentence using a better verb. 

(a) The ducks went to the pond. 

(b) A boy went to the zoo. 

2. Write three other verbs for ‘went’. 

3. Write a better word for ‘got’ in each sentence. 

(a) The girl got her bag. 

(b) She got into the car. 

Art suggestion 

A girl getting into a car with a bag 

(c) The car got going. 

4. Write three other verbs for ‘got’. 

5. Write two sentences about watching birds. You must not use the 

verb ‘saw’. 

18 



UNIT 3 

ADVERBIALS 

An adverbial can tell when, how or where the verb happens. 

For example: Today (when) the owl flew quickly (how) to the 

ground (where). 

1. Circle the adverbial telling more about the verb. 

(a) The little duck swam in the pond. 

(b) The frog swam early in the morning. 

(c) The fish swam slowly. 

2. Circle the adverbial. 

Write ‘how’, ‘when’ or ‘where’ on the line. 

(a) Ducks waddle in the grass. 

(b) Eagles swoop quickly. 

(c) Owls hunt their prey at night. 

3. Add an adverbial to tell how. 

The ducks quacked . 

4. Add an adverbial to tell when. 

The owl flew . 

5. Add an adverbial to tell where. 

The frog croaked . 



19


UNIT 4 

VERBS: TENSE, MATCHING VERBS 

Focus 

Word choices – choosing correct verbs—tense, consistency, subject, 

regular, irregular 

Progression 

Recognise 

Students will recognise the tense of a verb; subject–verb agreement 

(asking ‘who or what is doing the action?’); regular and irregular verbs; and 

auxiliary verbs from modelled examples. 

Choose 

Students will choose the tense of a verb; subject–verb agreement; regular 

and irregular verbs; and auxiliary verbs from given examples, with teacher 

support. 

Use 

Students will use the correct tense; subject–verb agreement; regular 

and irregular verbs; and auxiliary verbs in self-written sentences and 

paragraphs. 


Verbs or ‘doing’ words show actions or states of being or having. 

Subject–verb agreement – The form of the verb must match who or what is 

performing the action; e.g. I am reading, They are reading. 

Main verb – the verb describing the action. 

Auxiliary verbs are verbs added to the main verb which can change its 

tense; e.g. He swims, He is swimming. He had been swimming. 

Regular verbs follow a regular pattern when changing from the present to 

the past tense; e.g. shop – shopped, rate – rated. 

Irregular verbs are verbs which do not follow a regular patterns when 

changing from the present to the past tense; e.g. buy – bought, swim – 

swam, fly – flew. 

Note: Auxiliary verbs 

The verbs to be and to have are used as auxiliary or ‘helper’ verbs. They have 

many forms which change with subject and the tense. See the chart below. 

The verb ‘to be’ 

The verb ‘to have’ 

Person Pronoun Present Past Present Past 

First I am was have had 

Second you are were have had 

third he/she/it is was has had 

First we are were have had 

Second you are were have had 

Third they are were have had 


Introduction 


• What do they think the text may be about? 

• Ask students to identify the text type. 

• Revise the term ‘verbs’ and list some examples of what 

people do (verbs). 

• Read the text to or with the class. 

• Identify some of the action verbs used in the text. 

Verb tense – Page 23 


• Discuss why verbs are an important part of every sentence 

and why it is important for writers to use the correct verb 

tense. 

• Discuss and elicit from students the tense of the story 

(past tense – it has happened). 

• Work through the activities with the class as a whole, 

ensuring they understand what is required of them. 

• Work with those requiring additional assistance while 

the remainder of the class work independently on the 

activities. 

Past tense verbs – Page 24 

• Review students’ understanding of the term ‘verb’ and ask 

them to provide examples. 

• Discuss changing verbs to past tense. Most add ‘d’ or ‘ed’. 

• Ask students to list some common irregular past tenses. 

For example; catch – caught, say – said. 



Matching verbs – Page 25 

• Discuss with students how verb forms change, depending 

on who or what is doing the action. Use simple examples; I 

am running; we are running. 

• Introduce the concept of the subject; i.e. ask who or what 

is doing the action. For example; ‘Mum is watching Dad.’ 

Ask ‘who or what ‘is watching’. Mum (subject) is watching. 



Introduction 

Good writers improve their writing by their choice and use of correct verb 

forms for emphasis and to make meaning explicit. 

20 




UNIT 4 


ANSWERS 

Verb tense – Page 23 

1. (a) past 

(b) future 

(c) present 


3. (a) will have 

(b) will make 

Past tense verbs – Page 24 

1. (a) licked 

(b) handed 

(c) use 

(d) liked 

2. (a) ate 

(b) were 

3. Answers will vary. Teacher check 

Matching verbs – Page 25 

1. (a) was slicing/Mum 

(b) rolled/She 

2. (a) ✓ 

(b) ✗ – rolled/had rolled 

(c) ✓ 

(d) ✗ – enjoyed/did enjoy 

3. (a) cut/sliced 

(b) spread 

(c) was/tasted 



Assessment activity — Page 29 

1. (a) present 

(b) past 

2. (a) is using 

(b) will eat 

3. (a) saw 

(b) ate 


5. (a) am eating/I 

(b) liked/The boys 

6. (a) ✓ 

(b) ✗ – fitted 



• Paragraph topic – My lunch 

• Focus: Word choices – verbs and adverbials 




21

UNIT 4 

YUMMY LUNCH 

My mum is so clever! She made me a yummy lunch. This is what she did. 

First, she took a fresh tortilla and laid it flat on a plate. 

Then, using a knife, she spread creamy mayonnaise over the tortilla. 

Next, she placed three slices of fresh ham on top of the mayonnaise. 

A slice of cheese fitted neatly over the ham. 

Finally, Mum cut up some crunchy lettuce and added that over everything. 

Then, starting at one side, Mum rolled the whole wrap into a tube. 

Mum sliced the wrap into two equal pieces and handed me the plate. 

I licked my lips, opened my mouth wide and bit into the juicy wrap. 

I enjoyed my yummy lunch. 

22 



UNIT 4 

VERB TENSE 

Verbs can tell what has happened in the past (Mum made lunch), 

what is happening now in the present (Mum makes lunch) and what 

will happen in the future (Mum will make lunch). 

1. Underline the verbs. Write ‘past’, ‘present’ or ‘future’ 

after each sentence. 

(a) Mum sliced some cheese. 

(b) I will eat the tortilla soon. 

(c) I am watching Mum. 

Little verbs help with tense: will (future), is/are (present), had/were (past) 

2. Write an interesting sentence about something you: 

(a) are eating now. 

(b) were eating yesterday. 

(c) will eat tomorrow. 

3. Correct the tense of the verb and write it on the line. 

(a) Tomorrow I have a sandwich for lunch. 

(b) Next week Mum make tortillas. 



23

UNIT 4 

PAST TENSE VERBS 

Changing most verbs to the past tense is easy – we 

add ‘ed’ or ‘d’. For example: slice – sliced; roll – rolled. 

1. Write the past tense of each verb. 

(a) lick 

(c) use 

(b) hand 

(d) like 

Some past tense verbs need to change more. 

For example: take – took; make – made 

2. Write the past tense of each verb. 

(a) My sister eats her lunch. 

(b) We are in the classroom. 

Helpers 

Verbs 

has 

done 

have had seen been 

gone 

The verbs ‘seen’, ‘done’, ‘been’ and ‘gone’ need a 

‘helper’. Look at the walking sticks to find the ‘helpers’. 

3. Choose a verb to go with each helper. Write the verbs. 

(a) has (b) have (c) had 

24 



UNIT 4 

MATCHING 

VERBS 

Verbs can also change to show who or what 

is doing the action and when it happened. 

For example: I was cooking. They were cooking. 

I am cooking. She is cooking. 

1. Circle the verb. Draw a line under who is doing the action. 

(a) Mum was slicing the wrap. 

(b) She rolled it carefully. 

2. Put a tick or a cross to show if the verb group is correct. 

(a) Mum is making my lunch. 

(b) Mum had rolling the wrap. 

(c) I was watching Mum make my lunch. 

(d) I did enjoyed my lunch. 

3. Write a verb or verb group to match who 

or what is doing the action. 

(a) Mum 

(b) She 

(c) The tortilla 

the lettuce. 

the mayonnaise. 

yummy. 

4. Write some interesting sentences about making lunch. Choose 

your verbs carefully. 



25

ASSESSMENT UNIT 1 

NOUNS, NOUN GROUPS AND ADJECTIVES 

Name: 

Date: 

1. Choose the best noun for each sentence. 

teacher elephant donkey uncle 

(a) Mrs Jones is my favourite . 

(b) We saw a 

in the field. 

2. Write an interesting sentence using the noun. 

boy 

3. Circle the whole noun group in the sentence. 

Alec was outside the busy classroom. 

4. Add some words to make an interesting noun group. 

(a) donkey 

(b) elephant 

5. Choose one or two interesting adjectives to describe each noun. 

(a) animal 

(b) dad 

6. Add adjectives to make the sentence more descriptive. 

(a) The boy showed us his toy. 

(b) An animal ate the grass. 

26 




PRONOUNS, CONFUSING VERBS (ME/I), WHICH PRONOUNS? 

Name: 

Date: 


(a) The monkey was playing, then it they ran away. 

(b) The boy was watching and she he laughed. 

2. Circle the pronoun in the sentences. 

(a) The snake slid to the glass and the girl saw it. 

(b) The elephants were eating and the baby was with them. 


(a) The girl 

(b) The bears 

liked the snakes was tall. 

were brown ate honey. 

4. Write ‘me’ or ‘I’ in the space. 

(a) Mum gave 

(b) 

put it in my bag. 

lunch to take to school. 

5. Read the text. Change all the underlined nouns to 

pronouns. Write the new text. 

The children went to the zoo. The children enjoyed seeing the 

animals. My favourite was a giraffe. The giraffe was very tall. 



27



Name: 

Date: 

1. Choose the best verb to complete each sentence. 

eat calls pounces 

HOO 

(a) The ducks 

(b) An eagle 

(c) The owl 

snails. 

on his prey. 

‘Hoo, hoo, hoo’. 

2. Write each sentence using a more descriptive verb. 

(a) The ducks went around the pond. 

(b) The eagle saw his prey. 

(c) The owl got a mouse. 

3. Add an adverbial to tell ‘how’. 

The yellow duck walked . 

4. Add an adverbial to tell ‘when’. 

The eagle caught his prey . 

5. Add an adverbial to tell ‘where’. 

An owl hooted . 

28 





Name: 

Date: 

1. Write ‘past’, ‘present’ or ‘future’ after each sentence. 

(a) Mum is spreading the mayonnaise. 

(b) I tasted the tortilla. 

2. Correct the tense of the verb and write it on the line. 

(a) Mum using a knife now. 

(b) Tomorrow I ate a wrap. 

3. Write the past tense of each verb on the line. 

(a) I see Mum in the kitchen. 

(b) The girl eat her dinner last night. 

4. Write each verb with a helper. 

(a) seen 

(b) gone 

5. Circle the verb. Underline who is doing the action. 

(a) I am eating my lunch. 

(b) The boys liked tortillas. 

6. Put a tick or cross after each sentence 

to show if the verb group is correct. 

(a) Mum had placed the ham on top. 

(b) The cheese had fit on top. 



29

RIC-20786_Teaching_Strategies_for_Writing_BkA_word_choices

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