A Lesson Plan in Grammar

Subject-Verb Agreement

I. OBJECTIVES
A. Focus Skill: Construct own sentences using the proper usage in the Subject-
Verb Agreement
B. Support Skills:
 Identify the form of the subject and the verb in the sentence
 Choose the correct form of the verb to make it agree with the subject
 Familiarize the rules of subject-verb agreement

II. SUBJECT MATTER

A. Macro Skill: Grammar
B. Form: Subject-Verb Agreement
C. Reference: http://nealetreviewer.wordpress.com
D. Materials: Visual Aids

III. PROCEDURE
A. Motivation
The Market Place
The teacher is going to post pictures of a baby and a puppy on the left
side of the board. On the right side of the board, pictures of a bone and a
bottle of milk will be posted. The pictures on the left side (baby and puppy)
will be the consumer and the pictures on the right side (bone and bottle of
milk) will be the consumer’s proper food.

The students are expected to identify the proper food for the
puppies which is the bone and baby which is the milk.

1. Do you agree that milk is good for the baby?

2. Do you agree that milk is good for the puppy?
 3. Do you agree that bones are good for the dogs?
4. Since the milk is good for the baby and the puppies, do you think bones
are also for babies?
5. Do you agree that bones don’t fit to the needs of the babies?

B. Highlighting of Form

Like the need of the baby and the puppies of proper food, language
particularly the subject and verb must agree with each other. This is for the
purpose of clear and better communication.

The subject and verb must agree in number: both must be singular, or
both must be plural. Notice the difference between singular and plural forms in
the following examples:

a. The baby drinks the milk.

b. The babies drink the milk.

1. A compound subject joined by and usually requires a plural verb.

Example: Mr. Enriquez and Mr. Mendoza are owners of a shopping mall.

EXEMPTION: when the items of a compound subject joined by AND refer to the
same person or thing or together represent a single unit or idea, a singular verb is
required.

a. The chairman and CEO of GMA 7 is a lawyer.

b. Ham and egg is my favorite breakfast

2. A compound subject joined by or, nor, either . . . or, neither . . . nor requires
a singular verb if each word in the compound subject is singular.

Example: Neither GMA nor ABS-CBN has the right to question the order of the court.

Note: when the items of the compound subject joined by or, nor, differ in numbers
or in person, the verb agrees with the nearer subject.

a. Neither Peter nor his classmates are informed about the shortened
period.
b. Mrs. Petra or her daughters are capable of signing the document.

3. Intervening expressions like as well as, in addition to, no less than, with,
together with, besides, along with, in company with, accompanied by, including, and
others do not affect the number of the subject.

Example: Will, together with Melai, is going to Baguio.

 4. Nouns plural in form but singular in meaning such as economics, gallows, mathematics,
measles, civics, mumps, physics, news, etc. requires a singular verb.

Example: Meningitis is a dreadful disease.

5. Some nouns like pants, trousers, jeans, shears, scissors, tweezers, and
pliers are always plural.

Example: Pliers are often used by technicians.

6. When collective noun such as audience, army, class, committee, company,

family, flock, swarm, group, herd, jury, team, denotes a collection regarded as a unit, it
requires a singular verb. When it refers to persons or things included in the collection, it
requires a plural verb.

Example: The audience is big. The faculty is composed of competitive teachers.

7. Indefinite nouns, pronouns, and adjectives such as each, every, another,

any, one, either, neither, anyone, each one, everyone, someone, no one, anybody,
everybody, somebody, something, are singular and requires a singular verb.

Example: Someone has to deal with the problem.

Note: ALL, NONE and SOME may take either a singular or a plural verb according to their
meaning.

Example: All delegates have arrived.

8. Nouns denoting quantity and amount such as number, half, part, portion,
and plenty may take a singular or plural verb according to their meaning.

Examples: A number of books were destroyed during the flood. The number of
books destroyed in the flood is big.

9. Quantities and sums or multiples of numbers when expressing a single idea may take a
singular verb.

Example: Eleven times two is twenty-two. Three kilometers is a

requirement to finish the marathon.

C. Controlled Practice

Underline the correct verb to make the subject agree with it.
1. All of us (was, were) ready to leave at five o’clock.
2. Either Ester or her cousins (is, are) mistaken.
3. Twelve inches (is, are) equivalent to1 foot.
4. His pants (is, are) torn.
5. (There is, There are) men who usually smoke.
6. The news (is, are) all about the feast of the Immaculate.
7. He or she (is, are) right.
 8. Peter, as well as Myla, (is, are) afraid.
9. Melai and Mitch (is, are) both actresses in a theater.
10. One-fourth of the pizza (was, were) eaten by Mark.

D. Free Stage

The students will construct a sentence using the proper usage in the
Subject-Verb Agreement. They may use the things inside the classroom as their
subjects.

D. Evaluation

Underline the correct verb to make the subject agree with it.

1. Mr. and Mrs. Jones (commute, commutes) to the city by train.

2. The big oak tree in the front yard (shade, shades) our front porch most of
the day.
3. Sally (run, runs) to the park every day.
4. The dogs (bark, barks,) at strangers.
5. They (worry, worries) too much.
6. The cat or dog (is, are) in the yard.
7. Mumps (is, are) very serious.
8. Black or white (is, are) your choice.
9. Some people (is, are, am) very good at math.
10. Ten pesos (is, are, am) a nice raise.

IV. Assignment
Write one example for each of the nine rules of the subject-verb agreement.

Prepared by:

Juvy Ann D. Ansan