Grade 1 Fall — Sentence Mechanics, Noun-Verb Grammar, and the Three Text Types in Full Sentences
Lesson 2 30 min eng.g1.f.lesson_02.what_is_a_noun

What is a NOUN? — naming person, place, thing

Skills targeted
Objectives
  • Students define a noun as a word that names a person, place, thing, or idea.
  • Students sort noun cards into person/place/thing categories.
  • Students identify the noun in a simple sentence.
Vocabulary
nounpersonplacethingname

Lesson plan

Warm-up

3 min

Concept circle: name three things in this room.

Teacher moves
  • Reinforce: 'desk, lamp, chair — these are NOUNS.'
Media
M-1-F-GR-02-B Video Physical / non-image

60-second educational song with animated illustrations: 'A noun is a person, place, or thing — the name of what you see or what you sing.' Three verses, one per category. Cheerful melody, kindergarten-readable text. Used as the unit's noun-introduction earworm.

Direct instruction

10 min

Today we meet our first WORD CLASS: the NOUN. A noun is a word that NAMES. People are nouns: teacher, mom, doctor. Places are nouns: school, park, kitchen. Things are nouns: book, ball, apple. Ideas are also nouns — but we'll meet those later (love, peace, friendship).

Key examples
  • Dogs are things we can name.
    model Yes — names a thing/animal.
    prompt Is 'dog' a noun? Why?
  • Run is what someone DOES, not what they are.
    model No — that's an action.
    prompt Is 'run' a noun?
  • Three different kinds of nouns.
    model Person, place, thing.
    prompt Sort: 'teacher', 'park', 'pencil'.
Checks for understanding
  • Name three person-nouns.
  • Name three place-nouns.
  • Is 'happy' a noun? (No — describes a feeling, not names it)
Media
M-1-F-GR-02-A Chart Physical / non-image

Anchor chart 'NOUN = Names a Person, Place, Thing'. Three columns: PERSON (icon of a person silhouette with examples: teacher, mom, friend, doctor); PLACE (icon of a house with examples: school, park, kitchen, store); THING (icon of a backpack with examples: book, ball, apple, pencil). Footer: 'Some nouns name IDEAS too (we'll meet them in Spring).'

Guided practice

12 min
Tasks
  • Noun-sort: 15 cards into person/place/thing bins.
    scaffold Reference chart visible.
  • Identify the noun in 5 simple sentences: 'The dog runs.' 'A boy laughs.' 'My friend sings.' 'The park is fun.' 'The cookie is sweet.'
    scaffold Hint: look for the NAMING word.
  • Generate three nouns for each category.
    scaffold Picture prompts.

Formative assessment

2 min
Exit ticket
  • Underline the noun: 'The cat sits.'
  • Write one person-noun and one place-noun.
scoring Both correct = mastery; one of two = practicing; neither = reteach.

Closure

Moves
  • Chant: 'Noun = name. Person, place, thing.'

Homework

5 min
Tasks
  • Find three nouns in your kitchen tonight. Bring drawings or labels.

Exercises in this lesson

eng.g1.f.ex_03
Sort these 12 words into PERSON, PLACE, THING piles: teacher, park, book, mom, school, ball, doctor, kitchen, apple, friend, store, pencil
 sort · diff 2
eng.g1.f.ex_04
Underline the noun in each sentence: (1) The cat sleeps. (2) A bird sings. (3) My sister laughs. (4) The teacher reads.
 identify in sentence · diff 3

Differentiation

Scaffolds
  • Reduce to person/thing only
  • Picture-supported cards
  • Adult mediated sort
Extensions
  • Find an idea-noun (abstract) in a class book
  • Sort 30 cards
  • Identify all nouns in a 3-sentence paragraph
English Learners
  • Bilingual category cards
  • Use home-language nouns as bridge
Ieps 504s
  • AAC for response
  • Reduced card volume
  • Pre-built choices

Teacher notes

Avoid teaching nouns and verbs in the same lesson — kindergartners and first-graders need separate days to consolidate. The Hochman protocol recommends one part-of-speech per lesson.