English might be a tough language to learn, but at least all words have a specific purpose! A handout from The Writing Center at UNC outlines the purposes of articles in the English language. Discover which types of nouns need articles and whether pupils use them to mean all of them everywhere, one of many, or this one exactly.

Concepts

indefinite articles, definite articles, proper nouns, countable nouns

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Additional Tags

english language arts

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Instructional Ideas

• Create a bookmark outlining the key points so writers can reference them quickly
• Find an entertaining piece with a lot of nouns or pronouns to read alongside the handout

Classroom Considerations

• The reference sheet discusses articles as parts of speech, not informational texts

Pros

• Includes a flow chart to provide a visual point of reference for learners
• Adds information to address uncountable nouns and proper nouns, which may come with rules of their own

Cons

• Uses long bulleted lists that become difficult to follow while scrolling

Common Core

W.9-10.4 W.9-10.5 W.11-12.4 W.11-12.5