Unclear pronouns for Year 4, over three pages. A worked example, Tom told Max that he was late, shows the problem and a rewrite. Pupils then take eight sentences, such as Mia and Grace argued because she took the last biscuit, name the two nouns each bold pronoun could mean and rewrite the sentence so it is clear. Two questions close the sheet. The sample answers are on page three. It follows England National Curriculum grammar for years 3 and 4.
Writing - vocabulary, grammar and punctuation
“Choosing nouns or pronouns appropriately for clarity and cohesion and to avoid repetition”
In all eight rows pupils spot where a pronoun is unclear and put a noun back, and question 9 asks when a noun works better than a pronoun.
Writing - composition
“Proposing changes to grammar and vocabulary to improve consistency, including the accurate use of pronouns in sentences”
The Rewrite Clearly column has pupils edit each sentence, and question 10 asks for a clear sentence of their own.
Tom told Max that he was late, with the question Who was late and two ways to rewrite it.
Eight sentences with one bold pronoun each, from Mia and Grace and the last biscuit to Maya dropping the glass bowl on the stone floor. Pupils write the two nouns it could mean and a clear rewrite.
Pupils say when to use a noun instead of a pronoun, then write their own clear sentence about two people.
Both nouns and a sample rewrite for all eight sentences, plus sample answers to questions 9 and 10.
Whole-class starter
Put the Tom and Max example on the board and ask two pupils to read it aloud, once as Tom and once as Max. Pupils hear the problem before they meet the table.
Edit with a partner
Pairs swap their question 10 sentences and ask one thing: can I tell who did what? Any pronoun that could point two ways gets circled.
Class discussion
Run row 5 as a talk. Most pupils say the plate straight away, so ask whether the sentence itself tells the reader.
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