Common nouns  are the everyday, no-fancy-pants words we use for people, places, things, animals, ideas… basically everything that isn't a specific name. Here’s why they secretly run the world: Without common nouns → you can’t say: dog, pizza, phone, idiot, cloud, sock, heartbreak, traffic jam→ You’re reduced to pointing and making caveman grunts Proper nouns are just 0.0001% of language (Steve, Florida, Tesla, Mount Everest)Common nouns are the other 99.9999%  — they’re the

Let's go back to nouns, those wonderful building blocks that help make our sentences complete. Nouns are things, people, and places, or in other words, nouns are the things we talk about. I asked AI to generate this wonderful chart about nouns (thank you, AI). Main Types / Categories of Nouns in English Type Explanation Examples Characteristics Common noun General name for a category dog, city, feeling (i.e. happiness), table Not capitalized (unless sentence-initial) Proper n

Prepositional phrases are essential tools for precision, clarity, and elegance in adult communication. Step 1: Initial Impression – Experiencing the Relationship Consider this simple sentence: The report lies on the desk. Now, change only one word—the preposition—and notice the shift: The report lies under the desk. The report lies beside the desk. The report lies in the desk. The report lies behind the desk. Observe how a single preposition dramatically alters the meaning, l

What? In traditional classrooms, children often memorize: “A prepositional phrase starts with a preposition and ends with an object…” and then drill lists of examples. In a Montessori environment, we never begin with the definition. We begin with movement, beauty, and discovery.Here ’s how Montessori guides (ages 3–9) help children truly understand prepositional phrases—without worksheets or rote learning.1. Start with Real Life (Ages 3–6)A small basket and a glass bead are p

“A compound sentence is made when two or more complete sentences (independent clauses) are joined with a coordinating conjunction. They are equal partners holding hands with words like and, but, or, so…” Remember, independent clauses are complete sentences that can stand alone. The most common coordinating conjunctions taught are the FANBOYS: For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So I like this cartoon -- Schoolhouse Rock-- from back in the day, explaining the conjunctions to a catch

The English word sentence (in both its grammatical and judicial meanings) comes directly from Latin and carries the idea of “a meaningful opinion, thought, or judgment.”Here’s the full path: Latin: sententia = “thought, opinion, meaning, judgment, decision” (from sentīre = “to feel, perceive, think, judge” + -tia noun suffix)The original literal meaning of sententia was “a feeling” or “a way of thinking,” but very early it came to mean: a meaningful statement or opinion a jud

A good place to start is with a simple sentence: a subject + a predicate. The subject is usually a noun (a person, place, thing, or idea) or a pronoun (like he, she, it, they, we, etc. — we’ve all had a refresher on those lately!). The predicate tells us what the subject does or is. It always includes a verb (the action or state). So, a basic sentence is just someone or something (subject) doing or being something (predicate). Simple Sentence Example Patel noticed.           

AMS Symbol Key (for reference) Noun: large black triangle Pronoun: large purple isosceles triangle Article: small light-blue triangle Adjective: medium blue triangle Verb: large red circle Adverb: orange circle (smaller than verb) Preposition: green crescent Conjunction: pink rectangle Interjection: yellow keyhole Thank you, Teachers Pay Teachers , for this wonderful chart! To purchase your own, please click here .