If I had to describe the primary grades in one word it would be 'foundation.' That one word really boils down everything we do in the primary classroom. As primary teachers, we lay the foundation for the years of education to come. Teaching grammar is no exception. While we might not be diagramming sentences, we definitely lay the foundation. Here are some fun and interactive ways to teach grammar in the primary classroom.
Like most things in the primary classroom, the grammar concepts that we teach will be new to the students. Any time a new concept is introduced it is important to focus on one skill or concept and provide instruction and ample practice opportunities for students. As students develop an understanding of a concept they can then be combined with other learned concepts. Using this approach I introduce different grammar concepts one at a time.
The Process
1. Introduce the Concept
For each grammar concept, we follow a very similar lesson pattern. First, I introduce the grammar concept with whole class instruction. I love using posters and anchor charts so that my students can reference them as needed.
Typically, I introduce new concepts with my whole class so that we can all work together to go over our poster and make an anchor chart. This is a great opportunity to dive into some examples and perhaps even call on some volunteers to help. I love using this teaching style when introducing new concepts to help build community and work together as a class.
2. Fun and Interactive Practice
Next, we do lots of practice together. One of the first things we do is a sorting activity as a class. As we sort we talk about the grammar rule and why we choose to put each card in a certain place. This is a key part of the process because by talking about our decisions we are repeating and applying the grammar rules.
We might do this sorting activity a couple of times on different days depending on how the class is doing with the concept. Once done, the sorting activity moves into our center rotation for students to do independently.
We also complete some worksheet activities together. During this part of the learning process, we may complete the entire page together or we start together and then students finish on their own.
Don't underestimate the power of students repeating whole class activities independently in the next step of the process. Students are able to use guided learning to guide their actions as they begin working independently. This is such a great way to cement the grammar rules we're learning!
3. Continued Practice with Grammar Concepts
The next step is to give students lots of opportunities to practice the grammar concept on their own. The goal is that all that talking we did in the first two steps becomes their own self-talk as they work independently. Student practice happens in a variety of ways. Students will practice the grammar concepts using hands-on activities during our center rotations. Games are a class favorite and a fun way to learn, so I always include at least a few in our lessons!
For example, when we're learning about possessive nouns, I love to use this
"Four in a Row" game during center time. Students will use a paperclip spinner to determine what type of noun they'll look for on the game board. They use BINGO chips to cover nouns one by one until one player gets 4 in a row. Students love this game, and it's a great way to make centers feel more fun!
Free Center Activities for Grammar Practice
Another fun option is this set of
Free Synonym and Antonym Puzzles & Games. These are great activities for center time because there are 2 mystery puzzles and 2 games included! The matching game is perfect for playing with a partner. I like to model how to play this game first in small groups, then send the kids off with a partner to play. Just laminate the cards and store them in small task card boxes for a quick and easy game everyone will love!
Also included, you get 2 different mystery puzzles to practice this concept. These are perfect for independent work centers. Students will cut apart the puzzle pieces, solve for each square, and then build the puzzle. I have them check to make sure it all matches up before gluing it down. Have the kids use gluesticks apringly, so the puzzles dry quickly and can be colored after they finish. These pages also make a great active morning work activity! You can grab this free set of games and puzzles by
clicking here! Don't miss out, this is a great resource to add to your grammar lessons!
4. Review
Even after we have completed a skill or concept, we don't just move on. Instead, we continue to review the skill or concept through center activities, morning work, and homework. This allows the concept to remain fresh in students' minds. When we first finish a concept, there will likely be multiple activities done to review.
This is where no-prep worksheets come in really handy! As I review student work, I am able to do an informal assessment and determine if any re-teaching needs to be done. If most of the class is struggling with the concept, then I do whole-class re-teaching. If only a few students are struggling, then I do small group re-teaching.
Over time the number of activities will decrease, however, I try to add in an occasional review activity throughout the remainder of the year. While not a true spiral review, I know the concept of repeated exposure helps with mastery so I am intentional about reviewing previously taught skills and concepts.
Practice Pages to Weave in Daily Review
To help make this easier, I put together a first-grade language resource that covers ALL.THE.STANDARDS in one place!
This first-grade grammar pack has no prep printables for the entire year. This resource provides a simple, no-prep way for you to provide your students with the practice they need to master these important language concepts.
I love using these as part of our morning work routine. Since the pages are predictable and simple to follow, I can count on them to help support student independence. And there are 4 pages of high-quality, rigorous work activities for each standard, so you can weave these pages into your lessons as a simple way to review when you cover new skills.
You can find a free sample pack of these activities
here. This is a great way to test the pages out and see if they're a good fit for your classroom needs!
Make Grammar Fun and Easy in the Primary Classroom
I've taken my classroom-tested procedures and activities and put them into resource packs for a variety of grammar skills and concepts. All of these resources provide you with instructional posters, hands-on activities, and no-prep printable worksheets. These versatile activities can be used in one or more steps of the process to help your students master grammar!
I've put 18 Grammar Units together in one Grammar Bundle. The resources in this unit will fill your lesson plans for the entire year!
By purchasing the Grammar Bundle, you save 30% over the cost of the individual resources, however, you can purchase each of these resources individually too! Just head on over to TPT to see them all.
And, don't forget about the No-Prep 1st-Grade Grammar Worksheets too! These will allow you to weave in an engaging review into your daily routine, without all the extra prep. With both of these resources in your teacher tool box, you'll be absolutely unstoppable when it comes to teaching primary grammar!
Looking for More?
I've got tons of great posts all about grammar. Check out these ones next!
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