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Subject-Verb Agreement. Why is it important that subjects and verbs agree in sentences? . Basics about Subject-Verb Agreement. The subject and the main verb in a sentence must match in number. Singular subjects have singular verbs. Plural subjects have plural verbs. Singular (one).
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Subject-Verb Agreement Why is it important that subjects and verbs agree in sentences?
Basics about Subject-Verb Agreement • The subject and the main verb in a sentence must match in number. • Singular subjects have singular verbs. • Plural subjects have plural verbs.
Singular (one) • Our babysleeps more than 10 hours a day. • There is one baby • The verb “to sleep” changes to “sleeps” when paired with one baby.
Plural (more than one) • Some babiessleep even longer. • There are multiple babies in this sentence. • The verb “to sleep” becomes just “sleep” when paired with multiple babies.
Words between the Subject and Verb • Sometimes prepositional phrases come between the subject and verb. • A prepositional phrase is a group of words that begins with a preposition and ends in a noun. • Common prepositions: about, after, at, before, betweenby, during, for, from, in, into, like, of, on, outside, over, through, to, toward, with, without, under, above • The verb should agree with the subject NOT the noun in a prepositional phrase.
Examples of SV Agreement with Prepositional Phrases • A small bag of potato chips contains 440 calories. • A small bagof potato chips contains 440 calories. • The tomatoes in this salad are brown and mushy. • The tomatoesin this salad are brown and mushy. • Books about baseball fill my son’s room. • Booksabout baseball fill my son’s room.
Compound Subjects • A compound subject is made up of two nouns connected by a joining word. • Subjects joined by AND take a PLURAL verb, or the verb that matches with they. • The plural form of a regular verb has NO “s” at the end.
Examples of Compound Subjects • Running and lifting weights are good ways to keep in shape. • Running and lifting weights are good ways to keep in shape. • Fear and ignorance have a lot to do with hatred. • Fear and ignorancehave a lot to do with hatred.
Practice 1, part 1 • Complete Practice 1 with a partner. Then you will check your answers with your teacher. • Recess time! • Reading and writing are important parts of the school day. • But games on the playground are, too. • The little kids in Teron’s class love racing around on these scooter-boards. • The exercise and fresh air benefits their bodies and minds.
Practice 1, part 2 • It’s time to head back into class. • The smiles on the kids’ faces makeTeron feel good. • They remind him of why he is a teacher. • Teron grew up in a poor neighborhood without his father around. • Drugs and crime were everywhere he looked. • The teachers in his own life were very important to him. • They let him know they believed he could succeed in life. • Adult support and encouragement make a big difference in the life of a child. • Teron wants to provide that kind of support to the children he teaches.
Practice 1, Part 3 • Boys and girls learn how to be adults from observing grownups around them. • Teron saw lots of negative role models, such as drug dealers, as he was growing up. • But he focused on the positive people in his life. • He hopes the kids in his class do the same thing.
Practice 2, Complete independently • When complete, you will check your answers with your teacher.
Practice 2 Answers • Taste – compound subject • Wear – plural subject • Have – compound subject • Speak – plural subject • See – compound subject • Surround – compound subject • Are – plural subject • Sleep – compound subject • Live – compound subject • Do – plural subject
