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Subject-verb agreement

Use singular and plural nouns with matching verbs in sentences, maintaining subject-verb agreement (e.g., 'He hops' vs 'We hop')

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What a learner can do afterwards

  • Write 'The dog runs' (singular) and 'The dogs run' (plural) with correct verb agreement
  • Correct subject-verb agreement errors in sentences: fix 'The children plays' to 'The children play'
  • Choose the correct verb form to match a singular or plural subject in a gap-fill exercise

1 · Read

Getting this right helps people understand you the first time. When just one person or one thing is doing something, the verb usually gets an extra s. Say it with me: he hops, she jumps, it runs.

Thedogruns
One dog doing the running: the verb runs gets an s.

When more than one person or thing is doing something, the verb loses that s. Say it with me: we hop, they jump, the dogs run.

Thedogsrun
Two dogs doing the running: the verb run has no s.
Good to know

Here is the trick: nouns often add an s for more than one, like dogs. Verbs do the opposite. One doer adds the s to the verb, more than one takes it away.

Two little words are special: I and you. They name just one person, but the verb stays plain, with no s. Say it with me: I run, you run. I jump, you jump.

The words is and are play the same matching game. Use is with one doer: the dog is fast. Use are with more than one: the dogs are fast.

One doer: the verb gets an s. More than one: no s. I and you take the plain verb. One takes is, more than one takes are.

The rewritten reading was written for this dataset.

2 · Watch

Take it off screen

Print a worksheetA4 with an answer key page for grown-ups. No screen, no internet.

Where it sits

Where this leads

Jobs that lean on this skill. Follow one to see everything it is built on.

Then practise

24 questions wait behind this lesson, each with its answer explained. Every answer feeds the sky: stars light as they are learned, and dim when it is time to come back.

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Subject-verb agreement · English, ages 6 to 7 · LightMySky