When you see a picture or an object, what’s the first thing that comes to your mind? Probably, the name of the things in the picture or the name of the object, right? And that’s where nouns play a crucial role in any language. You can’t describe anything without knowing its name, even if you know whether it is small or large, tall or short, dark or light, etc.
For children, they must learn the basics of English grammar at an early age to make language learning easier in future, and nouns are a vital element of English grammar.
To understand it more clearly, let’s start with reading what is a noun for kids?
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What is a Noun for Kids?
The noun is simply a word that is selected as a name for anything. It can be a place, person, non-living things, quality, action, state etc.
Let’s look at some of the easy examples of a noun by category:
Place: London, India, Delhi, Nainital, Sri Lanka and Australia.
Person: Anne Frank, Mahatma Gandhi, Raj, Nisha, Jyoti and Ben.
Non-Living Things: Book, pen, pencil, car, road and bus.
Quality: Goodness, hardness, honesty, bravery, kindness, happiness, wisdom and darkness.
Action: Movement, laughter, judgment and theft.
State: Sleep, youth, childhood, awake, adulthood and poverty.
Ask your kids to come up with more examples of the categories or even come up with different categories.
Types of Nouns for Kids
There are two major types of nouns, proper and common nouns.
What is a Proper Noun for Kids?
Proper nouns are nothing but the name of a particular person or place. It is quite specific and does not have further classification.
For example,
Place: Hyderabad or Kolkata.
Specific Name: Sita or Hari.
Note: Proper nouns always start with a capital letter.
What is a Common Noun for Kids?
A common noun is a name given in common to everything or every one of the same class or kind. It never starts with a capital letter unless it is the first word of the sentence.
There are other noun types as well which we need to understand to identify how some of these nouns types can also be considered common nouns. These noun types include:
#1. Abstract Noun
Abstract nouns refer to things that you can’t touch or see. For example, bravery, joy and determination.
Some more examples of abstract nouns include anger, joy, sorrow, chaos, luxury, comfort, democracy, birthday, childhood, marriage etc.
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#2. Collective Noun
Collective nouns are words used to describe a group of people or things. Board, choir and classes, are all examples of these.
Examples of collective nouns: bunch, collection, flock, herd, pod, swarm, fleet, flotilla, pack, set, family, group, jury, panel, staff etc.
#3. Countable and Uncountable Nouns
Countable nouns have both a singular and a plural form (e.g., “cat or cats,” “apple or apples”). The uncountable noun is one without a plural form (e.g., water, rain).
Here are some more examples of countable nouns:
#. House (singular) / houses (plural)
#. Fight / fights
#. Bed / beds
This group is non-countable nouns without plural forms:
#. World (always singular)
#. Music (always singular)
#. Patience (always singular)
#4. Concrete Nouns
Things that you can physically touch or see are concrete nouns.
For example, tree, hammer, cloud, flower, chair, skin, cakes, suitcases, etc.
All these noun forms mentioned above designate not an individual person or place but categories. For example, a chair is a concrete noun, a countable noun and a common noun because it is the name of a class of objects called ‘chair’.
More Common Noun Examples For Kids
Common nouns explained above would have given you an idea of a common noun and the differences between the different types of nouns. To test it, we have come up with some common noun examples for kids but differently. The examples are in the sentences and your kids have to find out which word is a common noun.
So, let’s begin the test!
#1. My favourite mug is broken.
#2. I really need a new pair of jeans.
#3. The baby was resting in her crib.
#4. He bought a new pair of boots.
#5. How many computers do you own?
#6. India is a beautiful country.
#7. The water surface was covered with fallen leaves.
#8. Life has a meaning that we give to it by our actions.
#9. In many parts of the country, you can find lions.
#10. Before placing the money in his wallet, he counted it.
Here’re Some More
#11. The girl picked up the phone and called his number.
#12. It is likely that the results will be revealed tomorrow.
#13. It is important to conserve as much water as we can.
#14. The project was extended by six more months.
#15. He went to see a movie.
#16. He seemed to be a wealthy man.
#17. My hobby is to read storybooks.
#18. I love these chocolates and cakes.
#19. Nina puts in long hours at her hospital job.
#20. It is fascinating to study dinosaurs!
Note: There can be more than one common noun in the examples, so look carefully!
Want More Such Exercises for Kids?
We hope the basics of common nouns are clear to your kids. For more such grammar topics and fun tests, check out the website of the Real School Of Montessori. We teach young kids great topics related to their career and academics, keeping in mind that they don’t miss out on the fun part of learning.
Having doubts about what we are saying? Check the free demo class and get assured now!
