Plural Nouns — Regular and Irregular
Flashcards for plural noun forms.
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
Sort before producing. The es group all end in a hissing sound already — box, bus, dish, glass — which is why they need the extra syllable, and pointing that out turns four separate facts into one rule. Then use a number: three boxes, five feet, two sheep, since the number forces the plural and stops the student answering with the singular. Eight minutes covers the fourteen.
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 regular and irregular plurals 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
Fourteen plurals covering three patterns: cat, dog, cup and book take a simple s; box, bus, dish and glass take es; foot, tooth, mouse, child and man are irregular; and sheep does not change at all. Putting all three in one deck is deliberate, because the difficulty is choosing between them rather than producing any one.
What to listen for
Listen for the es rule being applied by ear rather than by spelling. A student who says boxs is not hearing that the word already ends in a hiss, and asking them to say it fast usually makes the problem audible. Watch sheep, which is the hardest here because it requires suppressing the rule rather than applying one.
Carrying it home
Counting things gives plurals constantly. Two feet, three dishes, five children — the number is what forces the form, and the child hears the correct version in a real sentence.
What's in this activity
- cat → cats
- dog → dogs
- cup → cups
- book → books
- box → boxes
- bus → buses
- dish → dishes
- glass → glasses
- foot → feet
- tooth → teeth
- mouse → mice
- child → children
- man → men
- sheep → sheep
Questions
- What grades is this for?
- Kindergarten through third, and older students learning English as an additional language.
- Do I need an account?
- No, all fourteen pairs play free.
- Why do some words add 'es'?
- Because the word already ends in a hissing or hushing sound — box, bus, dish, glass — and an extra syllable is needed to hear the plural at all. It is a rule the ear can check.
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.