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Grammar lessons: Articles for kids | Grade 1 and 2

by Kelin George

January 3rd 2023, 3:54 pm

Even though articles make up only a tiny part of speech and writing, they play a significant role in coherently conveying the message.

What's an Article?

Simply put, an article is a word that makes a noun a noun without describing it. When you say, "she bought a doll.", the article 'a' indicates that the word 'doll' is a noun.

Types of Articles

There are only three articles in the English language—a, an, the.

Articles are divided into two—definite and indefinite articles.

"The" is the only definite article, while "a" and "an" are indefinite articles.

"A" is used before nouns with consonant sounds, for example, a ball, a dog, or a pen. And "an" is used before nouns with vowel sounds, like an egg, an orange, or an apple.

Teaching Articles

Start simple with questions like, "what is this?". Show pictures of a single object and ask your child about the picture.
Model behavior. While teaching kids articles or any other core concepts demonstrate examples first. So when you show an image of an object to your child, say it aloud first, then ask your child to state articles for the rest of them.
Teach articles effectively through conversations. Daily conversations like, "Do you see a bird?", "Could you please pass the salt?" When your child speaks, listen to their use of articles, and train them by repeating their sentences back to them while emphasizing the article. If they say, "I saw cat yesterday." repeat the sentence saying, "Oh, you saw 'A' cat yesterday."
Stress articles when you come across them in a passage when reading to your child. You can also ask your child to describe pictures in the book. Ask questions like, "What is this?", "What did she do?", "What do you think they're going to do next?".
When your child speaks to you and forgets to use articles, gently correct them.

Here are a few FREE worksheets for your child to practice the usage of articles.