6th grade · English Language Arts · Unit 4 of 14
Agreement
Subjects, verbs and pronouns match
What your child practices
Making verbs agree with their subjects (even with tricky phrases, “each,” “everyone” and “either…or”) and choosing pronouns that clearly match the nouns they replace.
Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) teks student expectation: 6.10(D) · subject-verb and pronoun agreement
How we explain it
Children can open this short lesson before they practice.
- Find the real subject. Ignore phrases in between: “The box of crayons is…”
- Each, everyone and somebody are singular: “Everyone is ready.”
- With either…or, the verb agrees with the closer subject. Pronouns must match the nouns they replace.
Example: “The box of markers ___ on the shelf.” is or are? The subject is “box,” not “markers.” One box takes a singular verb. Answer: is
Agreement in Texas
In the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS), this is unit 4 of 14 in 6th grade English Language Arts, after Make Your Case and before Sentence Repair.
Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.
- 6th grade guide for Texas parents
- Printable 6th grade English Language Arts sheet
- Texas report cards explained
Source: Texas Education Agency (TEA)
Sample questions
A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.
Question 1
Which pronoun correctly completes the sentence?
Ravi and Amir forgot _____ lunches at home.
- there
- their
- its
- they're
their
Hint: “Ravi and Amir” is plural, and the lunches belong to them: their.
Question 2
Which verb correctly completes the sentence?
The dogs in the yard _____ barking at a squirrel.
- was
- are
- be
- is
are
Hint: The subject is “dogs,” which is plural. Plural subjects take plural verbs: the dogs are.
Question 3
Which verb correctly completes the sentence?
Everyone in the stands _____ cheering.
- was
- be
- were
- are
was
Hint: “Everyone” is singular, even though it refers to many people.
Question 4
Which pronoun correctly completes the sentence?
When the bike got a flat tire, Leo fixed _____ before school.
- its
- them
- it
- they
it
Hint: The pronoun stands for “the bike,” which is one thing: it.
Question 5
Which verb correctly completes the sentence?
One of my friends _____ a pet snake.
- has
- are having
- having
- have
has
Hint: The subject is “one,” not “friends.” One has.
Question 6
Which verb correctly completes the sentence?
Mathematics _____ my favorite subject.
- were
- is
- have been
- are
is
Hint: Some subjects end in -s but are singular, like mathematics.