What Jo Did
Name
DEVELOP
THE CONCEPT
PROOFREAD
Common and Proper Nouns
A noun is a word that names a person, place, or thing.
A common noun names any person, place, or thing.
A proper noun names a particular person, place, or thing. Proper nouns begin
with capital letters.
Common Nouns That girl plays basketball at our school.
Proper Nouns
Sandy will play for Centerville on Friday.
Some proper nouns have more than one word, such as Boston Celtics. Some include
titles that tell what a person is or does, such as Aunt Rosa or Captain Edwards.
Directions One of the underlined words in each sentence is a noun. Circle the noun.
Write C if it is a common noun and P if it is a proper noun.
1. Dr. James Naismith invented the game of basketball.
2. He worked at the YMCA Training School in Springfield, Massachusetts.
3. Naismith wanted to find a game to play inside during the winter.
Directions Underline the three nouns in each sentence. Then write each noun under
the correct heading in the chart.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
The first game of basketball was played in Massachusetts.
Soon people all over the world were playing the sport.
In 1936, basketball was played at the Olympic Games in Berlin.
Today, many cities compete every winter in the National Basketball Association.
I watch our team at the stadium every weekend.
Proper Nouns
Pearson Education
Common Nouns
Home Activity Your child learned about common and proper nouns. Have your child name people,
places, or things around the house and say whether the names are common or proper nouns.
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What Jo Did
Name
APPLY TO WRITING
Common and Proper Nouns
Directions Replace the underlined word in each sentence with a noun from the box that
gives a more exact description. Write the new sentence. Write C if the word you chose
is a common noun. Write P if it is a proper noun.
pizza
roar
fans
December
Mr. Ames
1. He is our basketball coach.
2. I joined the team last month.
3. After each game, the coach takes us out for food.
4. Many people come to our games.
5. I love hearing the sound of the crowd when we score.
Pearson Education
Directions Write several sentences about your school. Mention some of the people
you meet there. Identify the common nouns you used and underline them once.
Underline the proper nouns twice.
Home Activity Your child learned how to use common and proper nouns in writing. Have your child
write a sentence or two describing a place in your community. Ask your child to identify the common
and proper nouns in the sentences.
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What Jo Did
Name
TESTPROOFREAD
PREPARATION
Common and Proper Nouns
Directions Mark the letter of the word that is a common noun.
1. Dr. Naismith wrote thirteen
4. Boston and Chicago have had
rules for basketball.
great teams.
A Dr. Naismith
A Boston
B wrote
B Chicago
C thirteen
C great
D rules
D teams
2. The ball could be thrown in
any direction.
A ball
B could
C thrown
D any
5. Not all basketball players
are Americans.
A Not
B players
C are
D Americans
3. A player must not run with the ball.
A player
B must
C not
D with
6. Basketball is a popular sport in Asia.
A is
B popular
C sport
D Asia
Directions Mark the letter of the word or words that are a proper noun.
Pearson Education
7. The inventor of basketball was born
in Canada.
A The
B basketball
C born
D Canada
8. James Naismith attended a
one-room school.
A James Naismith
B attended
C one-room
D school
9. He went to college in Montreal,
Canada.
A He
B college
C in
D Canada
10. While living in Massachusetts, he
invented the game.
A While
B living
C Massachusetts
D game
Home Activity Your child prepared for taking tests on common and proper nouns. Read a paragraph
to your child from a book, magazine, or newspaper. Ask your child to identify nouns and to explain
whether they are common or proper.
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What Jo Did
Name
CUMULATIVE REVIEW
Common and Proper Nouns
Directions Circle C if the underlined word is a common noun. Circle P if the
underlined word is a proper noun.
1. Theres a girl at Central High who is a basketball star.
2. She plays center on the all-state team for Maryland.
3. She averages 24 points a game.
4. Her name is Toyana Jumper.
5. Thats a great name for a basketball player!
Directions Underline the three nouns in each sentence. They may be common or
proper.
6. The book we are reading is about a girl called Jo.
7. She plays basketball with a group of boys.
8. Jo wore a hat over her long hair.
9. She flew through the air and dunked the ball into the hoop.
10. T. J. told Jo that he had never played with a girl before.
Directions Write one sentence about a place you like to visit and another sentence
about a person you know. Include common and proper nouns in each sentence.
Underline the common nouns once and the proper nouns twice.
11. Place
Pearson Education
12. Person
Home Activity Your child reviewed common and proper nouns. Ask your child to name things, places,
animals, or people he or she passes on the way to school each day. Have your child tell you whether
these names are common or proper nouns
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