SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT

Getting along is all about knowing what to focus on and what to ignore

A Sentence I Wrote: Whats Wrong?

While I, like many teachers, are uneasy with the ever-

increasing focus on standardized testing, I believe that challenging students thinking in the subjective and engaging them in ways that are relevant to both them and the curriculum helps prepare them for the reality of statemandated and college prep tests.

What I should have ignored

While I, like many teachers, are uneasy with the ever-

increasing focus on standardized testing, I believe that challenging students thinking in the subjective and engaging them in ways that are relevant to both them and the curriculum helps prepare them for the reality of statemandated and college prep tests.

What was I thinking?

While I are uneasy with the ever-increasing focus on

standardized testing, I believe that challenging students thinking in the subjective and engaging them in ways that are relevant to both them and the curriculum helps prepare them for the reality of state-mandated and college prep tests.

Subjects Must Agree with Their Verbs

Really pretty simple at the heart: He runs five miles. NOT: he run five miles. They run a lot. NOT: they runs a lot. Singular subjects take singular verbs. Plural subjects take plural verbs. But watch out, singular verbs (the normal ones) have an

s. Plural verbs dont.

What That Looks Like

Singular Subject Singular Verb Plural Subject Trees Singers Plural Verb grow dance pontificate

Tree
Singer She

grows
dances

pontificates They

To Be
Singular Subject Singular Verb Plural Subject Trees Singers They Plural Verb are are are

Tree
Singer She

is
is is

To Have
Singular Subject Singular Verb Plural Subject Trees Singers They Plural Verb have have have

Tree
Singer She

has
has has

Compound Subjects
He and she like each other.

Think: they
The Rule: Compound subjects take plural verbs. X and Y take a plural verb. Not: X and Y takes a plural

verb. The singer from Utah and the driver of the bus are in cahoots.

Compound Subjects
He and she like each other.

Think: they
The Rule: Compound subjects take plural verbs. X and Y take a plural verb. Not: X and Y takes a plural

verb. The singer from Utah and the driver of the bus are in cahoots.

Practice
1. The tree and the bush is/are going to be

trimmed. 2. The bowl of cereal and the spoon need/needs to be cleaned. 3. The week before Christmas and the week after New Years Day see/sees a lot of traffic. 4. The salad with walnuts and strawberries is/are surprisingly good.

Practice
1. The tree and the bush is/are going to be

trimmed. 2. The bowl of cereal and the spoon need/needs to be cleaned. 3. The week before Christmas and the week after New Years Day see/sees a lot of traffic. 4. The salad with walnuts and strawberries is/are surprisingly good.

Practice
1. The tree and the bush is/are going to be

trimmed. 2. The bowl of cereal and the spoon need/needs to be cleaned. 3. The week before Christmas and the week after New Years Day see/sees a lot of traffic. 4. The salad with walnuts and strawberries is/are surprisingly good.

Practice
1. The tree and the bush is/are going to be

trimmed. 2. The bowl of cereal and the spoon need/needs to be cleaned. 3. The week before Christmas and the week after New Years Day see/sees a lot of traffic. 4. The salad with walnuts and strawberries is/are surprisingly good.

Practice
1. The tree and the bush is/are going to be

trimmed. 2. The bowl of cereal and the spoon need/needs to be cleaned. 3. The week before Christmas and the week after New Years Day see/sees a lot of traffic. 4. The salad with walnuts and strawberries is/are surprisingly good.

Practice
1. The tree and the bush is/are going to be

trimmed. 2. The bowl of cereal and the spoon need/needs to be cleaned. 3. The week before Christmas and the week after New Years Day see/sees a lot of traffic. 4. The salad with walnuts and strawberries is/are surprisingly good.

Practice
1. The tree and the bush is/are going to be

trimmed. 2. The bowl of cereal and the spoon need/needs to be cleaned. 3. The week before Christmas and the week after New Years Day see/sees a lot of traffic. 4. The salad with walnuts and strawberries is/are surprisingly good.

Practice
1. The tree and the bush is/are going to be

trimmed. 2. The bowl of cereal and the spoon need/needs to be cleaned. 3. The week before Christmas and the week after New Years Day see/sees a lot of traffic. 4. The salad with walnuts and strawberries is/are surprisingly good.

Practice
1. The tree and the bush is/are going to be

trimmed. 2. The bowl of cereal and the spoon need/needs to be cleaned. 3. The week before Christmas and the week after New Years Day see/sees a lot of traffic. 4. The salad with walnuts and strawberries is/are surprisingly good.

When They Get Separated

Learn to Ignore the stuff in between.

Find the subject: who/what verb?

I, like many students, enjoy summer. I, like many students, enjoy summer. The bowl of hissing cockroaches is not to enter the house. The bowl of hissing cockroaches is not to enter the house.

 The guy running recklessly down the street

to escape the hands of several masked marauders is not looking both ways before crossing.
Who is not looking? The guy Ignore everything else

Practice
1. The set of cards belong/belongs to

Michael. 2. The cards in the big blue box belong/belongs to Michael. 3. The card that Michael calls his favorite of all his cards is/are locked in a safe. 4. The big card and the little card, which have only a single defect, make/makes Michael very happy as well.

Practice
1. The set of cards belong/belongs to

Michael. 2. The cards in the big blue box belong/belongs to Michael. 3. The card that Michael calls his favorite of all his cards is/are locked in a safe. 4. The big card and the little card, which have only a single defect, make/makes Michael very happy as well.

Practice
1. The set of cards belong/belongs to

Michael. 2. The cards in the big blue box belong/belongs to Michael. 3. The card that Michael calls his favorite of all his cards is/are locked in a safe. 4. The big card and the little card, which have only a single defect, make/makes Michael very happy as well.

Practice
1. The set of cards belong/belongs to

Michael. 2. The cards in the big blue box belong/belongs to Michael. 3. The card that Michael calls his favorite of all his cards is/are locked in a safe. 4. The big card and the little card, which have only a single defect, make/makes Michael very happy as well.

Practice
1. The set of cards belong/belongs to

Michael. 2. The cards in the big blue box belong/belongs to Michael. 3. The card that Michael calls his favorite of all his cards is/are locked in a safe. 4. The big card and the little card, which have only a single defect, make/makes Michael very happy as well.

Practice
1. The set of cards belong/belongs to

Michael. 2. The cards in the big blue box belong/belongs to Michael. 3. The card that Michael calls his favorite of all his cards is/are locked in a safe. 4. The big card and the little card, which have only a single defect, make/makes Michael very happy as well.

Practice
1. The set of cards belong/belongs to

Michael. 2. The cards in the big blue box belong/belongs to Michael. 3. The card that Michael calls his favorite of all his cards is/are locked in a safe. 4. The big card and the little card, which have only a single defect, make/makes Michael very happy as well.

Practice
1. The set of cards belong/belongs to

Michael. 2. The cards in the big blue box belong/belongs to Michael. 3. The card that Michael calls his favorite of all his cards is/are locked in a safe. 4. The big card and the little card, which have only a single defect, make/makes Michael very happy as well.

Practice
1. The set of cards belong/belongs to

Michael. 2. The cards in the big blue box belong/belongs to Michael. 3. The card that Michael calls his favorite of all his cards is/are locked in a safe. 4. The big card and the little card, which have only a single defect, make/makes Michael very happy as well.

Indefinite Pronouns
Words likeeach, everybody, someone, all, none

Most are singular, but some are plural, and a few can be

either Singular: each, neither, everyone, anybody, one

Everyone likes to be correct. Anyone who knows the rules can get it right. Neither of the students gets it wrong.

Plural: both, few, several, many Few get it wrong when they know the rules. Several are easy when you know what to ignore. Many of the rules lead you to the right answer.

Indefinite Pronouns: all and none

Some require a little extra attention.

Look at the noun in the prepositional phrase If its plural, use a plural verb If its singular, use a singular verb
All of the students know the rules. All of the assignment covers subject-verb agreement. None of the pizza has been eaten. None of the pizzas have been eaten.

Sentences Starting with There/Where

There is

There are
There is one. There are two. There is only one thing to remember. There are many things that might distract you.

Collective Nouns
Collective nouns are words like family, group, jury,

committee. Usually singular, but sometimes plural: talking about them as individuals. Singular:
The class is learning about subject verb agreement. The family goes on vacation every summer. The group of scientists is talking about quantum physics.

Plural: The class are divided about how to answer number two. The family have different opinions about where to go on vacation. The group of scientists argue about the origin of the universe.