Agreement Subject – Verb Sentence Structure Lessons #4: with a little help from Bill and Giblet

Part One: The Basics I have a story for you. Subject – Verb Agreement It’s about Bill and Giblet. Part One: Bill Giblet The Basics

I’m going to change one word—see if you can find it. The Basics: Introduction Bill and Giblet are pelicans. Bill is smart. Giblet is not smart—he’s annoying. He follow Bill everywhere. Bill has tried to explain to Giblet that he prefers to be alone, but Giblet never seems to remember. As it turns out, Bill does not seem to mind so much, after all. Bill and Giblet are pelicans. Bill is smart. Giblet is not smart—he’s annoying. He follows Bill everywhere. Bill has tried to explain to Giblet that he prefers to be alone, but Giblet never seems to remember. As it turns out, Bill does not seem to mind so much, after all. Do you see the change? Okay, so that’s just the beginning. But let’s use this part for a moment. I’m going to change one word—see if you can find it.

I took the ‘s’ away, and now it sounds wrong. The Basics: Introduction Bill and Giblet are pelicans. Bill is smart. Giblet is not smart—he’s annoying. He follows Bill everywhere. Bill has tried to explain to Giblet that he prefers to be alone, but Giblet never seems to remember. As it turns out, Bill does not seem to mind so much, after all. Bill and Giblet are pelicans. Bill is smart. Giblet is not smart—he’s annoying. He follow Bill everywhere. Bill has tried to explain to Giblet that he prefers to be alone, but Giblet never seems to remember. As it turns out, Bill does not seem to mind so much, after all. I took the ‘s’ away, and now it sounds wrong. Why does one little letter make such a big difference?

When we write a sentence, the subject and verb must AGREE. The Basics: Introduction When we write a sentence, the subject and verb must AGREE. Um, what does that mean? Patience, Giblet.

S P * * He follows Bill everywhere. When we write a sentence, The Basics: Introduction When we write a sentence, the subject and verb must AGREE. S P First let’s find the simple subject and the verb. Only one choice here. He follows Bill everywhere. The subject tells who or what the sentence is about. The simple subject is the main word in the subject. * The predicate tells what the subject does. The verb shows action and usually begins the predicate. *

P S * * He follows Bill everywhere. s When we write a sentence, The Basics: Introduction When we write a sentence, the subject and verb must AGREE. P S He follows Bill everywhere. s The subject and verb agree by sharing one ‘s’. The subject can be singular (ONE) or plural (MORE THAN one). If the subject is singular, the verb gets the ‘s’. If the subject is plural, the subject gets the ‘s’. * *

P S * * He follows Bill everywhere. s When we write a sentence, The Basics: Introduction When we write a sentence, the subject and verb must AGREE. P S AGREE He follows Bill everywhere. s Ooooh, I agree, too! ‘He’ is singular, so the verb gets the ‘s’. The subject can be singular (ONE) or plural (MORE THAN one). If the subject is singular, the verb gets the ‘s’. If the subject is plural, the subject gets the ‘s’. * *

P S * * Buzzing mosquitos He follows Bill everywhere. s But what if… The Basics: Introduction But what if… P S AGREE Ignore him. Let’s regroup. Buzzing mosquitos He follows Bill everywhere. s Yep, I was just about to say that. ‘Mosquitos’ is plural, so it gets the ‘s’. The subject can be singular (ONE) or plural (MORE THAN one). If the subject is singular, the verb gets the ‘s’. If the subject is plural, the subject gets the ‘s’. * *

OR OR OR Buzzing mosquitos follow Bill everywhere. s The Basics: Practice Buzzing mosquitos follow Bill everywhere. s Silly Giblet follows Bill everywhere. s And here are a few more simple examples… OR The baby duckling follow Bill everywhere. s s OR The ocean wave follow Bill everywhere. s s OR A large whale follow Bill everywhere. L s s Each sentence has an ‘s’ on the subject OR the verb… so they can AGREE!

Some flowers all summer long. bloom blooms The Basics: Practice Time to practice a bit… For the choice on top, point your finger up. For the choice on bottom, point your finger down. Let’s try one. Some flowers all summer long. bloom blooms Some flowers bloom all summer long. OR

That bunny carrots from my garden. eat eats The Basics: Practice Time to practice a bit… For the choice on top, point your finger up. For the choice on bottom, point your finger down. Okay, here goes: If you’re not sure of the answer, ask yourself: “If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear?” Here’s another: Be careful, people. He’s a doofus. That bunny carrots from my garden. eat eats Hmm, that’s not bad, Giblet. Ooh, ooh! I have a tip! That bunny eats carrots from my garden. OR Copyright © 2013 by Michael Friermood

“If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear?” The Basics: Practice Time to practice a bit… For the choice on top, point your finger up. For the choice on bottom, point your finger down. One more… My coffee so good in the morning. smell smells My coffee smells so good in the morning. My coffee smell so good in the morning. OR Would this sound right? “If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear?” Nope.

Are you ready to practice on your own? The Basics: Independent Practice Are you ready to practice on your own? Here’s a sheet on the BASICS of Subject-Verb Agreement.

Part Two: The Tricky Stuff Subject – Verb Agreement Tricky Thing #1 : Plural Subjects that do not end in ‘s’ Tricky Thing # 2: Pronouns ‘YOU’ and ‘I’ Tricky Thing # 3: Past Tense Verbs Tricky Thing # 4: Linking Verbs and Helping Verbs Tricky Thing # 5: Compound Subjects Tricky Thing # 6: Misleading Subjects

Okay, so do you remember this? Tricky Thing #1: Introduction Tricky Thing #1: Plural Subjects that do not end in ‘s’ Okay, so do you remember this? Look at this part again closely. But… Not all plural subjects end in ‘s’. The subject and verb agree by sharing one ‘s’. The subject can be singular (ONE) or plural (MORE THAN one). If the subject is singular, the verb gets the ‘s’. If the subject is plural, the subject gets the ‘s’.

Not all plural subjects end in ‘s’. Tricky Thing #1: Introduction Tricky Thing #1: Plural Subjects that do not end in ‘s’ Not all plural subjects end in ‘s’. For example… One man… two men… NOT mans One child… three children…NOT childs One tooth… four teeth… NOT tooths One mouse…five mice… NOT mouses Hmm, what about: One sheep… six, uh…. sheep! NOT sheeps

Not all plural subjects end in ‘s’. Tricky Thing #1: Introduction Tricky Thing #1: Plural Subjects that do not end in ‘s’ Now let’s pull out a sentence to look at: Not all plural subjects end in ‘s’. Bill and Giblet are on a lazy morning flight. Bill spends much of his flying time thinking up jokes to play on Giblet. He says it keeps life interesting. Giblet spends much of his flying time talking to Bill. Bill hardly ever listens. Sometimes they cross paths with a flock of geese. “Here come some geese, Giblet,” Bill says. “Those geese look for food over in that marsh. Why don’t you follow them and see what you can find?” “Sure thing, Bill.” So Giblet flies off. He’s back in five minutes. “What happened, Giblet?” Bill asks. “All they do is honk, honk, honk. It gets very annoying.” Bill clenches his beak. “Hmmph,” he growls, and they fly on. So what does this mean for subject – verb agreement? First let’s continue our story about Bill and Giblet.

Those geese look for food over in that marsh. Tricky Thing #1: Introduction Tricky Thing #1: Plural Subjects that do not end in ‘s’ Let’s pull out another sentence to look at: Bill and Giblet are on a lazy morning flight. Bill spends much of his flying time thinking up jokes to play on Giblet. He says it keeps life interesting. Giblet spends much of his flying time talking to Bill. Bill hardly ever listens. Sometimes they cross paths with a flock of geese. “Here come some geese, Giblet,” Bill says. “Those geese look for food over in that marsh. Why don’t you follow them and see what you can find?” “Sure thing, Bill.” So Giblet flies off. He’s back in five minutes. “What happened, Giblet?” Bill asks. “All they do is honk, honk, honk. It gets very annoying.” Bill clenches his beak. “Hmmph,” he growls, and they fly on. Those geese look for food over in that marsh. So the verb does NOT need an ‘s’. The subject is plural, even though it doesn’t end in ‘s’.

Sometimes they cross paths with a flock of geese. Tricky Thing #1: Introduction Tricky Thing #1: Plural Subjects that do not end in ‘s’ So we can now say… ALL plural subjects need: a verb without an ‘s’. Sometimes they cross paths with a flock of geese. Which means the verb does NOT need an ‘s’. ‘They’ is a plural pronoun. It is taking the place of ‘Bill and Giblet’. ‘Bill and Giblet’ are more than one. So ‘they’ is a plural subject, even though it doesn’t end in ‘s’.

If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear? Tricky Thing #1: Practice Let’s play our little game again… For the choice on top, point your finger up. For the choice on bottom, point your finger down. Here we go… People might in the tree house up there. live lives People might live in the tree house up there. OR If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear?

If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear? Tricky Thing #1: Practice Let’s play our little game again… For the choice on top, point your finger up. For the choice on bottom, point your finger down. And another… The firemen to the burning shed. rush rushes The firemen rush to the burning shed. OR If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear?

If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear? Tricky Thing #1: Practice Let’s play our little game again… For the choice on top, point your finger up. For the choice on bottom, point your finger down. Try this one… A moose . out of the woods. jump jumps A moose jumps out of the woods. OR If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear?

If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear? Tricky Thing #1: Practice Let’s play our little game again… For the choice on top, point your finger up. For the choice on bottom, point your finger down. Hmm, how about this one… Two crazy moose through the weeds. crash crashes Two crazy moose crash through the weeds. OR If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear?

It He She We They You I It jumps… He jumps… She jumps… We jump… Tricky Thing #2: Introduction Tricky Thing # 2: Pronouns ‘YOU’ and ‘I’ Pronouns take the place of nouns. We often use pronouns as the simple subject. It He She We They You I Subject Pronouns Wow. It’s a crazy world we live in. Now hold on right there a minute, folks. SINGULAR PLURAL SINGULAR It jumps… He jumps… She jumps… We jump… They jump… You jump… I jump… For example… ‘You’ and ‘I’ are singular, but their verbs do NOT get an ‘s’. Most of these pronouns fit with what we’ve said about subject – verb agreement. Copyright © 2013 by Michael Friermood

“If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear?” Tricky Thing #2: Practice Tricky Thing # 2: Pronouns ‘YOU’ and ‘I’ “If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear?” We to the park on Saturdays. walk walks I my package will come today. hope hopes She a dish almost every day. break breaks You to finish your homework. need needs

A beetle crawled onto a stick. Five beetles crawled onto a stick. Tricky Thing #3: Introduction Tricky Thing # 3: Past Tense Verbs We have been working with present tense verbs. Subject – Verb Agreement actually gets EASIER with past tense verbs, because, well, you don’t even have to worry about it. Check it out: PRESENT = happening now PAST = already happened Present Tense crawl or crawls Past Tense crawled A beetle crawled onto a stick. Five beetles crawled onto a stick. I crawled onto a stick. The past tense verb is spelled the same whether the subject is singular or plural.

is are am was were has have had does do did Tricky Thing #4: Introduction Tricky Thing # 4: Linking Verbs and Helping Verbs Now let’s pull out a few sentences: A linking verb is a verb that does not show action. A helping verb works together with an action verb. Bill and Giblet were wandering along the shore together. Tall coconut trees overhung the water, and seashells were scattered about. “You are walking extra-waddly these days, Gib. You might be eating too many fish.” Giblet was concerned. “Really? I do feel a bit top-heavy, Bill.” Suddenly, a coconut plopped down in front of them. Giblet stared at it, wondering. Oh boy, thought Bill. Giblet has thought of something. But just before Giblet jammed a coconut into his gullet, Bill stopped him. “Giblet! We’re pelicans. We don’t eat coconuts.” “Well you said not to eat so many fish. So I thought I’d try a coconut instead.” Bill rolled his eyes and kept walking. Here are some common linking and helping verbs: is are am was were has have had does do did Let’s hear more from Bill and Giblet. Then we’ll do a bit more with these verbs.

Giblet has thought of something. s Tricky Thing #4: Introduction Tricky Thing # 4: Linking Verbs and Helping Verbs Common linking and helping verbs: is are am was were has have had does do did Singular Subject Linking Verb Giblet was concerned. s Giblet has thought of something. s Main Verb Singular Subject Helping Verb

AND, the tricky pronouns Tricky Thing #4: Introduction Tricky Thing # 4: Linking Verbs and Helping Verbs Common linking and helping verbs: is are am was were has have had does do did Plural Subject Helping Verb Seashells were scattered about. s Main Verb You are walking extra-waddly these days, Gib. Good News! Main Verb Our share one ‘s’ rule is still working! AND, the tricky pronouns ‘you’ and ‘I’ are still being tricky! Singular Subject Helping Verb

If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear? Tricky Thing #4: Practice Let’s do the pointing-game now with Linking Verbs and Helping Verbs… For the choice on top, point your finger up. For the choice on bottom, point your finger down. Here we go… Cousin Jeb grouchy in the morning. is are Cousin Jeb is grouchy in the morning. Singular subject, so linking verb needs ‘s’ OR If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear?

If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear? Tricky Thing #4: Practice For the choice on top, point your finger up. For the choice on bottom, point your finger down. Here is another… The puppy’s feet dirty. is are The puppy’s feet are dirty. Tricky plural subject, so linking verb needs NO ‘s’ OR If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear?

If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear? Tricky Thing #4: Practice For the choice on top, point your finger up. For the choice on bottom, point your finger down. Next… You a hole in your pocket. has have You have a hole in your pocket. Tricky pronoun ‘you’, so linking verb needs NO ‘s’ OR If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear?

If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear? Tricky Thing #4: Practice For the choice on top, point your finger up. For the choice on bottom, point your finger down. Switching to helping verbs now… The gorillas in a straight line. was walking were walking The gorillas were walking in a straight line. Plural subject, so helping verb needs NO ‘s’ OR If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear?

If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear? Tricky Thing #4: Practice For the choice on top, point your finger up. For the choice on bottom, point your finger down. Once again… A duck during my nap. was quacking were quacking A duck was quacking during my nap. Singular subject, so helping verb needs ‘s’ OR If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear?

If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear? Tricky Thing #4: Practice For the choice on top, point your finger up. For the choice on bottom, point your finger down. Last one… She all afternoon. has been waiting have been waiting She has been waiting all afternoon Singular subject, so helping verb needs ‘s’ OR If I read it slow and clear, does it sound right to my ear?

and P A compound subject is made of more than one Tricky Thing #5: Introduction P S S Tricky Thing # 5: Compound Subjects A compound subject is made of more than one simple subject connected with a word like and or or. Well that’s not too tricky. Oh. Bummer. and Jancy and her monkey perform a funny show every Friday. A is PLURAL when it is joined by and. compound subject So the verb does NOT get an ‘s’. But when a compound subject is joined by OR, things get a little trickier.

Tricky Thing #5: Introduction Tricky Thing # 5: Compound Subjects Either the nature guide or the most experienced camper _____ the hikes on this trail. or Either the most experienced camper or the nature guides s s leads lead Right now, it’s ‘campers’ * This sentence has a compound subject connected with ‘or’. IF both subjects are SINGULAR, the verb needs an ‘s’. * We have to look carefully at the subjects in order to make the verb agree. IF both subjects are PLURAL, the verb does not need an ‘s’. * BUT, if one subject is SINGULAR, and one subject is PLURAL, then it depends on the subject closest to the verb. Since ‘campers’ is plural, the verb does not need an ‘s’. Now, if our subjects flip-flop, our verb will no longer agree. Since ‘guides’ is plural, the verb does not need an ‘s’. But if ‘camper’ is singular, the verb needs an ‘s’.

My two sisters or Caroline with me to the concert. is coming Tricky Thing #5: Practice Tricky Thing # 5: Compound Subjects Let’s do just a couple more practice sentences with Tricky Thing #5… My two sisters or Caroline with me to the concert. is coming are coming or Ooh, that’s tricky. We have ‘or’ joining the two subjects. That means we really need to pay attention to the subject closest to the verb. Even though the first subject is plural, ‘Caroline’ is singular, so our helping verb needs an ‘s’ (is coming). Aunt Judy and Uncle Gill both their hips when they wiggles wiggle dances. dance. and A compound subject with ‘and’ automatically makes the whole subject plural, so our verbs do not need an ‘s’—neither of them!

We’ll use a story sentence to help show something tricky. Tricky Thing #6: Introduction Tricky Thing # 6: Misleading Subjects We’ll use a story sentence to help show something tricky. For our final tricky thing about subject – verb agreement, let’s read one last installment from Bill and Giblet. Bill and Giblet are flying low over some water. They are trying to spot some breakfast. Up ahead, Bill sees something bobbing. It’s a boot. “Fresh fish, up ahead, Gib,” says Bill with a smile. Giblet flies down and snags the boot. “It’s not a fish, Bill. It’s a helmet.” Giblet puts the boot on his head. Bill just shakes his head. Right then, a flock of geese flies over the top of Bill and Giblet. “Incoming!” yells Giblet. He has spotted some doo-doo dropping right towards Bill. But Bill doesn’t see it. Giblet charges ahead and blocks the mess with his helmet. Bill stays clean. “That was awesome, Giblet.” “You’re welcome, Bill.” And on they fly together.

A flock of geese flies over the top of Bill and Giblet. Tricky Thing #6: Introduction Tricky Thing # 6: Misleading Subjects A flock of geese flies over the top of Bill and Giblet. ‘geese’ is misleading because… geese fly Here is the complete subject. But what is the simple subject? Sometimes words in the subject can mislead you when you are trying to make the verb agree. ‘flock’ is the true simple subject… A flock flies ‘Misleading’ means it leads you away from what is correct.

The stack of papers everywhere. is blowing are blowing Tricky Thing #6: Practice Tricky Thing # 6: Misleading Subjects How about a final round of our game? But let’s add a step. This time, you’ll first see only the subject. Point to the true simple subject. Either or The stack of papers everywhere. is blowing are blowing ? ? The stack of papers is blowing everywhere. OR OR

Five packs of gum just enough for the trip. is are Tricky Thing #6: Practice Tricky Thing # 6: Misleading Subjects How about a final round of our game? But let’s add a step. This time, you’ll first see only the subject. Point to the true simple subject. Either or Here’s another one: Five packs of gum just enough for the trip. is are ? ? Five packs of gum are just enough for the trip. OR OR

The gunk in the pipes the plumbing. clogs clog Tricky Thing #6: Practice Tricky Thing # 6: Misleading Subjects How about a final round of our game? But let’s add a step. This time, you’ll first see only the subject. Point to the true simple subject. Either or And one more: The gunk in the pipes the plumbing. clogs clog ? ? The gunk in the pipes clogs the plumbing. OR OR

Let’s practice on your own now. Tricky Things: Independent Practice Let’s practice on your own now. Here’s a sheet on the tricky things about Subject-Verb Agreement.