Kindergarten

All About Nouns - Introductory Lesson

Standards
● CC.1.4.K.F. - Demonstrate a grade-appropriate command of the conventions of
standard English grammar

Essential Question
● How can we identify a noun from Friends at School?

Objectives
● Using Friends at School, the students will verbally identify nouns from the story
after being prompted by the teacher
● After the read-aloud, the students will draw a person, a place, and a thing that
they recall from the story on a worksheet provided by the teacher

Materials
● Noun category visual cards with magnets on the back
● Red bucket - place noun visual cards in here!
● Friends at School by Rochelle bunnett; photos by Matt Brown
● I Can Draw Nouns! Worksheet
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1O6DXKIoqTxyDIvCvjf3tVLqQ1n_KJhyjy
HDBcUr41rc/edit?usp=sharing
● Pencils
● Crayons
● Noun sorts - separated into bags to distribute to groups

Procedures
● Introduction
○ My kindergarten friends: I have a special activity for us to do today that
goes along with our read-aloud. We are going to learn all about nouns.
Please push in your chairs and walk over to the carpet
○ ** Sing the carpet song ** “Be respectful, be responsible, be ready to
learn”

● Active Learning Strategies

○ Make sure that all of the noun visuals are in the red bucket. Once the
students are sitting on the carpet quietly, begin explaining that a noun is a
person, place and a thing. As you talk about each part of a noun, hang up
the visual card that corresponds with it.
 ○ Person - Explain to the students that a person is a human-being just like
them. Model the correct sign language for the students. “Person” or
“People” can be signed by holding up the pointer and middle fingers with
the thumb in between and holding it upside-down. Have the students
repeat and sign “person” with you.
■ ASK - Can someone raise their hand and give me an example of a
person they know from school? (Take two examples)
○ Place - Explain to the students that a place is a location space, or a room.
Model the correct sign language for the students. “Place” is signed by
holding a hand out in front of the body with the palm facing down and
moving in a circular motion. Have the students repeat and sign “place”
with you.
■ ASK - Can someone raise their hand and give me an example of a
place in a school? (Take two examples)
○ Thing - Explain to the students that things are items and objects. Model
the correct sign language for the students. “Thing” can be signed by
holding a hand out in front of the body with the palm out and moving one
bounce from the inside to the outside. Have the students repeat and sign
“thing” with you.
■ ASK - Can someone give me an example of a thing they use at
school? (Take two examples)
○ Once the initial discussion about nouns concludes, present the book
Friends at School. Say the following to the students: “The book we are
reading today is called Friends at School. It is about classmates at school
who play and do different activities with each other. As you are following
along with the story, I want you to listen for nouns. Remember, a noun is a
person, place, or thing.”

● Sequence of Learning
○ Begin the read-aloud of Friends at School. Since the students are looking
for examples of people, places, and things, be sure to point out the
following examples and use the correct sign language for the noun
category:
■ “We are Molly and Makenna” (page 3) - Molly and Makenna are
examples of people. ** Use sign language for person as you say
“people”
■ “Every day there are special times when we can take Sam and
Sara out of their terrarium and hold them” (page 5) - A terrarium
is a big container where turtles live. This is an example of a place.
**Use the sign language for place as you say “place”
 ■ “Some days we put cornmeal or sand into the tub instead of
water” (page 12) - Cornmeal, sand, the tub, and water are all
examples of things. ** Use the sign language for thing as you say
“things”

● Summarizing Strategy
○ At the end of the story, ask for volunteers to answer the following
questions:
■ “I remember that Chris is a person that the story talked about.”
ASK - Can someone give me an example of a person from our
story? ** Sign “person” while saying “person”
■ “I remember that sandbox was a place that the story talked about.”
ASK - Can someone give me an example of a place from our
story? ** Sign “place” while saying “place”
■ “I remember that mud pies were a thing that the story talked about.”
ASK - Can someone give me an example of a thing from our story?
** Sign “thing” while saying “thing”

● Assessment & Evaluation

○ I have a fun activity to close our lesson about nouns. Please stay at your
seat until I give you directions to move.
○ Since we remember the people, places, and things from Friends at
School, we are going to draw our examples! ** Show the students the
worksheet that you completed before the lesson ** Read the directions
from the worksheet
■ In the left-hand box, the students will draw a person from the story
■ In the middle box, the students will draw a place from the story
■ In the right-hand box, the students will draw a thing from the story

Assignments
● There is no additional assignment for this lesson.

Special Considerations
● Early Finishers
○ If students finish the I Can Draw Nouns! Worksheet early, allow students
to form a group and work on the noun sort.

Bibliography
● “Standards.” SAS, www.pdesas.org/standard/.
PERSON
PLACE
THING