Article Use Practice
Practice correct selection of definite and indefinite articles a/an/the.
Session summary (SOAP)
Stays on this screen. Nothing is saved or sent.
Mark a card Correct, Correct with cue or Incorrect and the summary writes itself here.
How to run it
Split the task. Do the a-or-an sentences first, because that choice depends only on the sound that follows, then do the ones needing the, which depend on whether the listener already knows what is meant. Can you pass the salt? works because there is one salt on the table, and that is worth saying out loud. Save honest for last: it starts with a vowel sound despite starting with a consonant letter, and it will trip a student who has learned the rule as a spelling rule.
Cueing ladder
Start at the top. Add support one step at a time.
- IndependentPresent the item and wait 5 seconds of quiet before helping.Log as correct
- HintStress the part of the sentence that changes, or point to the word ending.Log as cued
- Sentence starterSay the first half of the sentence and let the student finish it.Log as cued
- ModelSay the correct form in the whole sentence; the student repeats it.Log as cued
Adjust it
Give a sentence starter every time, and do fewer cards.
Ask for a new sentence of the student's own with the same form, with no card to lean on.
Matching IEP goal
Given sentence cards, Student will produce the target grammatical form in sentences in 8 of 10 opportunities across 3 consecutive sessions, given no more than an indirect cue.
Send it home through the parent portal →About this activity
Twelve sentences that turn on one small word: I saw ___ elephant at the zoo. She has ___ dog. Can you pass ___ salt? He is ___ honest boy. Articles sit in the middle of Brown's fourteen grammatical morphemes and are among the first things a listener notices missing, and the set covers all three of the decisions involved — a against an, and both against the.
What to listen for
Listen for omission rather than substitution. Many students do not choose the wrong article; they leave it out, and I saw elephant is a different pattern from I saw a elephant. Watch for over-use of the, which is the usual default when a student knows an article is required and has not sorted out which. Both are normal stages and worth recording separately.
Carrying it home
Recasting works better than correcting here. When the student says I want apple, say do you want an apple? and carry on. The article is heard in the right place without the conversation stopping, which is the only way this particular target ever generalises.
What's in this activity
- She has ___ dog. (a)
- Can you pass ___ salt? (the)
- He wants ___ apple. (an)
- I need ___ pencil. (a)
- That is ___ umbrella. (an)
- He is ___ honest boy. (an)
- +6 more
Questions
- What grades is this for?
- Kindergarten through third, and older students learning English as an additional language, where articles are a long-standing difficulty.
- Do I need an account?
- No, it plays free with no login.
- Is article omission always a concern?
- Not always. It is a normal stage in early development and a normal feature of some language backgrounds and dialects. What matters is whether it is unexpected for this student's age and language history.
Use this board with your caseload
With a free account, every correct, cued and incorrect mark is saved to the student and scored against their IEP goal, with the data written up for you. Assign it as home practice through the parent portal.
Track progress freeFree for SLPs. No card, no trial clock.