Lesson 18: Statements & Questions with "Was" and "Were" — Teacher Guide
Core Linguistic Concepts & Objectives
• Pronoun-Verb Concord: Singular pronouns (I, he, she) pair with was. Plural pronouns (we, they) pair with were.
• Interrogative Inversion: Questions invert the order into Was / Were + Subject. Capitalize the initial verb and end with a question mark (?).
• Open Composition: Students compose original sentences. Any semantically sound sentence obeying concord and punctuation is correct.
| # |
Type |
Pronoun |
Verb |
Model Sentence (Exemplary Solution) |
Grammatical Concord & Syntactic Analysis |
| 1. |
Statement |
I |
was |
I was reading a story quietly. |
1st person singular; requires was. Capital "I" always capitalized. Period at end. |
| 2. |
Statement |
we |
were |
We were playing in the garden. |
1st person plural; requires were. Capitalize "We" as first word. Period at end. |
| 3. |
Statement |
he |
was |
He was helpful to his teacher. |
3rd person singular masculine; requires was. Capitalize "He". Period at end. |
| 4. |
Statement |
she |
was |
She was singing a sweet song. |
3rd person singular feminine; requires was. Capitalize "She". Period at end. |
| 5. |
Statement |
they |
were |
They were glad to see their friends. |
3rd person plural; requires were. Capitalize "They". Period at end. |
| 6. |
Question |
I |
was |
Was I right about the answer? |
Inversion: Was + I. Capitalize initial verb "Was". Capitalize pronoun "I". Question mark (?) at end. |
| 7. |
Question |
we |
were |
Were we early for school? |
Inversion: Were + we. Capitalize initial verb "Were". Lowercase "we". Question mark (?) at end. |
| 8. |
Question |
he |
was |
Was he asleep in his bed? |
Inversion: Was + he. Capitalize initial verb "Was". Lowercase "he". Question mark (?) at end. |
| 9. |
Question |
she |
was |
Was she ready for the game? |
Inversion: Was + she. Capitalize initial verb "Was". Lowercase "she". Question mark (?) at end. |
| 10. |
Question |
they |
were |
Were they listening carefully? |
Inversion: Were + they. Capitalize initial verb "Were". Lowercase "they". Question mark (?) at end. |
🗣 Choral Chant & Auditory Memory
Conduct rapid rhythm drills with the class:
"I was! We were! He was! She was! They were!" Repeat in reverse for questions:
"Was I? Were we? Was he? Was she? Were they?"
✍️ Mechanics of Inversion
Point out to students that in questions, the pronoun does not come first. The linking verb
Was/Were moves to the front, which changes what gets capitalized!
🔍 The Pronoun "I" Rule
Remind students that the pronoun
I is ALWAYS capitalized, whether it begins a sentence (
I was...) or sits inside a question (
Was I...?).
🌟 Open Sentence Evaluation
Since Lesson 18 invites original sentence formulation, evaluate student submissions based on: (1) correct concord, (2) proper capitalization, (3) correct end punctuation, and (4) complete thought.
Pedagogical Standard
Aligned with Classical Trivium Grammar Stage & CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.1.1.C, L.1.1.J, L.1.2.B