LESSON 1.8
What Are Determiners?
Determiners are the next part of speech. Think of them as the king’s servants, because they only help nouns.
The Main Determiners
There are ten true determiners. That is, they cannot function as any other part of speech.
| a | an | the |
my | our | your | every |
| his | its | their |
Class Activity
There is no test for determiners. You need to memorize them. The easiest way is with a nursery rhyme.
Sing:
Three blind mice, three blind mice,
See how they run, see how they run,
They all ran after the farmer’s wife,
Who cut off their tails with a carving knife,
Have you ever seen such a sight in your life,
As three blind mice.
Again: Louder!
Now sing this:
a, an, the
a, an, the
my, our, your, every, my, our, your, every
Have you ever seen such a sight in your life,
As … his, its, their. his, its, their.
Again: Louder!
And again: Louder!
Class Activity
Name the parts of speech for each of the following.
For nouns, write N For verbs, write V For determiners, write D
Example: My dog asked a question D N V D N
My dog asked a question
1. His cat caught the rat? |
2. Santa touched his nose. |
3. My boat sank. |
4. Our son Sam likes basketball. |
5. The crab built a house. |
Individual or Small Group Activity
Complete either exercise: Denmark Grades 1+