Possessive Nouns: 10 Fun Activities for Elementary

Are you about to teach possessive nouns to your elementary students and stretching your head for ideas? Do you need a refresh on what possessive nouns even are? Let me fill you in and give you some lessons and activities that will help your students master this skill! 

What is a Possessive Noun?

At its simplest, a possessive noun is a word that shows ownership or possession. It tells us who owns what. 

Singular Possessive Nouns (e.g., teacher’s)

Used to express that a single individual has sole ownership of something.

Imagine you, the teacher, own a remarkable pencil. To express this ownership, use a singular possessive noun. Simply add an apostrophe before the possessive “s”, resulting in “teacher’s.”

Example: The teacher’s remarkable pencil is on her desk. 

Plural Possessive Nouns (e.g., students’)

Used to express that multiple individuals collectively own something. 

Now, imagine a group of students collaborating on a fantastic project. To express collective ownership, use a plural possessive noun. Put the apostrophe after the ‘s’ in “students,” resulting in “students'”.

Example: The students’ project showcased creativity and teamwork. 

Possessive Nouns Examples

10 Great Activities to Reinforce Possessive Nouns 

1.) 5-Day Possessive Nouns Lesson

Do you want your students to naturally incorporate possessive nouns into their writing? Try this 5-day possessive nouns lesson that is proven to help your students use possessive nouns correctly in their own writing. Each daily mini-lesson takes only 10 minutes to teach. 

Day 1: Students notice possessive nouns in a mentor sentence.

Day 2: Explain key concepts with a possessive nouns anchor chart.

Day 3: Students practice the skill by writing imitation sentences using a possessive noun worksheet.

Day 4: Students practice the skill more with digital task cards. 

Day 5: Students revise and edit their own writing for possessive nouns.

Also, you can use this FREE grammar routine to teach ANY skill in the context of writing in just 10 minutes a day. It’s proven to be effective!

2.) Show and Tell

• Instruct students to bring in an item from home, like a favorite toy or book. Alternatively, have them use personal items they have at school, like a pencil case. 
• Have “Show and Tell”.
• Encourage students to write sentences on their whiteboards using possessive nouns.
  •  For example, “Naveah’s flute is shiny.”

3.) Classroom Scavenger Hunt

• Create a checklist with classroom items and a blank line for each.
• Before the activity, hide the items around the room.
• Give students the checklist and ask them to find the items.
• When an item is found, students use possessive nouns to state who the item belongs to,
  • e.g., “This is Mrs. Smith’s backpack.” 

4.) Possessive Noun Puzzles

• Prepare puzzles with possessive noun sentences.
  • Make sure that the possessive noun is its own puzzle piece. 
• Students work individually or in pairs to match the missing nouns and complete the puzzle. 

5.) Whiteboard or interactive display sentence choice

• Display sentences with missing possessive nouns.  Utilize images to make it more interactive. 
• Students choose the correct form.
• Make it competitive or collaborative, depending on the class dynamic!

6.) Storytime with Possessives

• Select a story that features possessive nouns.
• Read the story aloud and pause to identify possessives together.
  • Examples: “There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Fly” and other books by Lucille Colandro, and “Chrysanthemum” by Kevin Henkes 

7.) Possessive Noun Bingo

• Create bingo cards with spaces for possessive noun examples.
• Read sentences aloud, and students mark the possessive nouns on their boards.
• The first student to get a line shouts “Bingo!” for added excitement!

8.) Art Gallery

• Have students create artwork illustrating possessive relationships
  • e.g., a picture of a dog with its owner
• Display the drawings around the classroom to create a visually engaging grammar art gallery.
• Have students walk around the gallery and write on a worksheet a possessive noun sentence they see depicted in each picture. 

9.) Possessive Noun Grammar Time Worksheet

• Print this fun worksheet. Easy peasy!
• Students fill in the blanks to reinforce skills.
  • “It’s Grammar Time” Education.com free download

10.) Possessive Noun Story Chain

• Start a story with a sentence containing a possessive noun. Each student adds a sentence, ensuring they use possessive nouns to continue the narrative.
• Write the story as you go, and have a laugh reading it at the end!

Conclusion

With these 10 activities, you’re all set to make teaching possessive nouns easy and fun! To ensure your students have a strong grasp on grammar, try out this free simple authentic grammar routine. It’s proven to work, and you can use it to teach ANY grammar skill in the context of writing in just 10 minutes a day. 

Happy teaching!

Related Resources

A 5-day Grammar Routine Proven to Enhance Writing
Best Practices for Teaching Elementary Grammar