B. Foundations of Language · Printing, Spelling and Sentences

Pronouns and the Verb "To Be"

B3.2About 35 minutes

Learning goals

I can use pronouns like he, she, it, we, they, him, her, us, them so I don't repeat names.
I can use pronouns that show who owns something, like my, his, her, our, their.
I can use the right form of to be: am, is, are, was, were.

Words to know

pronoun
A word that takes the place of a noun, like she for Maya or it for the ball.

personal pronoun
A pronoun for people or things: I, you, he, she, it, we, they, me, him, her, us, them.

verb
A word for an action (run) or a state of being (is).

to be
A special verb with many forms: am, is, are, was, were, be, being, been.

Too many names!

Read this:

Maya got a puppy. Maya named the puppy Biscuit. Maya loves Biscuit.

That sounds funny, right? Let's use pronouns:

Maya got a puppy. She named him Biscuit. She loves him.

A pronoun takes the place of a noun so we don't have to say the same name again and again. In Grade 1 you learned the pronoun I. Now you'll learn many more!

Pronouns point back to a noun. She points back to Maya, and him points back to the puppy.

Doing the action	Getting the action	Showing who owns it
I	me	my, mine
you	you	your, yours
he	him	his
she	her	her, hers
it	it	its
we	us	our, ours
they	them	their, theirs

Personal pronouns

Which pronoun goes where?

Use I, he, she, we, they when the person is doing the action, usually at the start: They walked to the park.
Use me, him, her, us, them when the action happens to the person, usually after the verb: Dad drove us home.
Use my, his, her, our, their to show who something belongs to: That is her jacket. That jacket is hers.

Sam and I, or Sam and me?

When you talk about yourself and someone else, say the other person first:

Sam and I built a fort. (Try it alone: I built a fort. ✓)
Grandma helped Sam and me. (Try it alone: Grandma helped me. ✓)

Cover up the other person and see which sounds right!

The cover-up trick: hide "Sam and" with your hand. "I built a fort" sounds right, so Sam and I is correct.

Worked example

Let's replace nouns with pronouns

Rewrite with pronouns: Leo and Ava made a snowman. Leo and Ava gave the snowman a carrot nose.

Who made the snowman? Leo and Ava: two people doing the action. Use They.
the snowman is a thing getting the action → it.
Keep the first sentence the same, so the reader knows who they are.

Leo and Ava made a snowman. They gave it a carrot nose.

The verb "to be"

To be is the most-used verb in English. It doesn't show an action. It tells what someone or something is like, or where it is.

It changes its form depending on who and when:

Who	Now (present)	Before (past)
I	I am	I was
he, she, it (one person or thing)	she is	she was
you, we, they (more than one, or you)	they are	they were

Forms of "to be"

was or were?

was goes with one: I was, he was, the dog was.

were goes with you and with more than one: you were, we were, the dogs were.

So it's we were and you were, never we was or you was.

Just for fun

What did the pronoun say to the noun?

"Take a break. I'll fill in for you!" 😄

Worked example

Let's choose am, is or are

Fill in: I ___ cold. The ice ___ slippery. My mittens ___ wet.

I always goes with am.
The ice is one thing → is.
My mittens is more than one thing → are.

I am cold. The ice is slippery. My mittens are wet.

Hands-on activity

Pronoun puppet show

You need: 2 or 3 stuffed animals or toys, paper, a pencil.

Give each toy a name.
Tell a short story with your toys out loud. Each time, try to use a pronoun instead of saying the name again. Example: Bear found a ball. He threw it to Bunny. She caught it!
Your grown-up says "Ding!" each time you use a pronoun. Count the dings!
Then play "to be" freeze: your grown-up says I, the dog, we, they, my sister, you. You say the matching word: am, is, are (now). Then do it again for the past: was, were.

Your turn

Replace the name in bold with a pronoun: Oliver likes hockey. Oliver plays every Saturday.

Which pronoun fits? Mom gave ___ a hug. (I / me)

Which pronoun shows owning? This is ___ backpack. (we / our)

Fill in am, is or are: We ___ going skating.

Fill in was or were: The kids ___ happy.

Fill in was or were: I ___ late for the bus.

Which is right: Sam and I went outside or Sam and me went outside?

More practice: warm-up

Which pronoun can replace the cat?

Which pronoun can replace my sisters?

Fill in: I ___ seven years old.

Fill in: She ___ my friend. (is / are)

Which word shows owning: his or he?

More practice: on your own

Fix it: Me and Jo built a fort.

Fix it: We was at the library.

Rewrite with pronouns: Nina lost Nina's mitten.

Fill in the right form: Yesterday it ___ sunny, but today it ___ snowing.

Which pronoun fits? The teacher read a story to ___. (we / us)

Challenge

Rewrite with pronouns so it sounds better: Grandpa and I went fishing. Grandpa and I caught three fish. Grandpa cooked the fish for dinner.

Is this right? That toque is hers, and this one is mine. Explain.

Write two sentences about your family, one using was and one using were.

Check your understanding

Quiz

Which word is a pronoun?

Which sentence is correct?

Fill in: The puppies ___ sleepy.

Fill in: You ___ the best helper yesterday!

Which pronoun shows owning?

Which pronoun can replace the bike?

Fill in: Dad gave ___ a snack.

For parents and teachers

Big idea: Grade 2 students learn how personal pronouns and forms of the verb "to be" work in sentences (B3.2). Using pronouns makes writing less repetitive; matching am/is/are/was/were to the subject makes it clear.

How to help at home:

When your child repeats a name over and over in writing, ask: "Which pronoun could you use here?"
Model correct forms naturally in conversation rather than correcting harshly: Child: "Me and Sam played." Parent: "Oh, Sam and I played? What did you play?"
Use the "cover up" trick for Sam and I / Sam and me.

Common difficulties:

"Me and him went..." Very common in speech. Teach the "cover up" test.
"We was" / "you was". Practise we were, you were, they were as chants.
Unclear pronouns (She told her she was late: who?). Ask: "Who is she?" Sometimes the name is clearer.
Children from homes that speak other languages may follow different pronoun or to be rules. Celebrate both languages while practising English patterns.