Capital Letters and Pronouns

Overview

Students identify capital letters and personal pronouns in simple sentences, then explain what each pronoun refers to. They build on knowledge of sentences and names by noticing how capitals signal sentence beginnings and names, while pronouns help writers avoid repeating the same noun.

Learning intentions

Students will:

• identify capital letters in sentences and titles
• recognise personal pronouns such as I, he, she, it, we and they
• explain which person, place, animal or object a pronoun refers to
• reread and edit sentences for capital letters and clear pronoun use

Success criteria

• I can find and name capital letters in a sentence or title.
• I can identify pronouns in a sentence.
• I can explain who or what a pronoun refers to.
• I can edit a sentence so it begins with a capital letter and makes sense.

Curriculum links

• Language for expressing and developing ideas: recognising capital letters in titles and sentences.
• Text structure and organisation: understanding how personal and possessive pronouns help make texts cohesive.
• Creating texts: rereading and editing for spelling, sentence punctuation and clear grammar.
• Language for expressing and developing ideas: building sentences with nouns and verb groups.

Lesson structure (60 minutes)

1. 0–7 min · Hook and notice. Teacher displays the opening slides from the capital letters and pronouns introduction deck and shows: “my pet dog is called max. he likes chasing balls.” Ask, “What needs fixing, and how do we know what he means?” Students turn and talk, then identify the missing capitals and the noun referred to by he.

2. 7–17 min · Explicit teaching. Teacher uses the capital letters and pronouns teaching slides to model that capitals are used at the beginning of a sentence, for names and in titles. Model replacing repeated nouns with pronouns: “Lena has a kite. Lena flies the kite.” becomes “Lena has a kite. She flies it.” Students help underline the noun and circle the pronoun in several examples.

3. 17–29 min · Guided card sort. Teacher gives pairs a selection of the Pronouns Sentence Strip Cards and asks them to read each sentence, identify the highlighted pronoun and explain what it refers to. Students sort examples by the pronoun used, then choose two cards to share. Prompt: “What word could we use instead of the person or thing’s name?”

4. 29–42 min · Supported practice. Teacher distributes the capital letters and pronouns editing worksheet and completes the first item with the class. Students independently correct capitals in sentences and titles, circle pronouns, draw an arrow to the noun each pronoun refers to, and rewrite two sentences to remove unnecessary repetition. Teacher circulates, checking that students distinguish a pronoun from a name or other noun.

5. 42–53 min · Partner editing challenge. Teacher displays the activity instructions on the partner editing and discussion slides and provides each pair with two short sentences containing errors, such as “sally has a red bike. sally rides it to school.” Students read aloud, edit the capitals, and replace one repeated noun with a suitable pronoun. Partners explain each change using the frame: “I changed ___ because ___.”

6. 53–60 min · Plenary and exit check. Teacher returns to the review and exit prompt slides and asks students to identify the capital letters and pronouns in: “Mia visited Melbourne Zoo. She saw three penguins.” Students complete the final worksheet item: rewrite “tom has a book. tom reads the book.” using correct capitals and a pronoun, then share answers with a partner.

Resources

• the capital letters and pronouns introduction deck
• the capital letters and pronouns editing worksheet
• the Pronouns Sentence Strip Cards
• Whiteboard and markers
• Pencils, coloured pencils and highlighters
• Pair-work display or visualiser
• Word wall or classroom alphabet chart

Assessment

• During modelling and card sorting, listen for students’ ability to identify a pronoun and explain its referent.
• Check the worksheet for correct capital letters, accurate pronoun identification and sensible replacement of repeated nouns.
• Use the final rewrite as an exit check: students should include sentence-start capitals, the name Tom, and a suitable pronoun such as he or it.

Differentiation

• Support students with a capital-letter reminder card, colour coding and oral rehearsal before writing. Provide sentence frames such as “___ is a pronoun because it refers to ___.”
• For EAL students, use the illustrations on the Pronouns Sentence Strip Cards, gesture or point to the person or object, and accept oral explanations before written responses.
• Support students requiring additional assistance by completing a reduced number of worksheet items with an adult or peer, using a highlighted starting point and a limited choice of pronouns.
• Extend confident students by asking them to write a three-sentence mini-text with a title, at least three capital letters and two different pronouns. They must underline the nouns each pronoun replaces.