# Teaching > Lesson Plans >  i find some difficulty in teaching possessive adjective - noun to he students

## danah

Hello,



in the exam there was a question :
what's your ------- name?
a brother's
b brother
c his
d him


the answer is : brother's

But most of the students wrote: brother


i need to explain that to them, but i failed

so can you help my how can i explain it to them since i have no experience in teaching  :Frown:  ?

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## cafolini

> Hello,
> 
> 
> 
> in the exam there was a question :
> what's your ------- name?
> a brother's
> b brother
> c his
> ...


This is a problem that comes up very often. It's due to the possibility of a correct interpretation in using brother rather than brother's. The question is whether or not the name is the possesion of your brother or yours. If it is yours, "your" in "your brother" already implies an "'s." People don't say Peter phone unless it is a Peter Phone, a phone named Peter. They say Peter's phone. But either brother name or brother's name has a correct interpretation in that question.
It is impossible to argue the point with students, unless you can form them to be meticulously stupid and blind rule followers. Their choices make the language richer, not degenerate.

It's a good thing you failed. Besides, it would be petty to pretend not to understand when someone asks you what's your brother name. Oppenheimer and Edward Teller used to do these things on purpose. Ask the Shoguners.

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## billl

> Hello,
> 
> 
> 
> in the exam there was a question :
> what's your ------- name?
> a brother's
> b brother
> c his
> ...


Danah,

Are the students confused about "he" vs. "his" as well? Would they say "What's he name?"

*If so*, you could make a drawing on the board, or find a photo, etc. of a boy and a toy car or something. Then teach them "He has a car. His car is blue." With more pictures, you could add examples (using he/his, I/my, she/her, etc. and possession of toys, bikes, houses, etc.), and let the students try to do it own their own.

_(If you and your students are pretty comfortable with each other, and it's not the first day, and joking around and so on is no problem, you might even talk about one of the students and his/her shoes/pencil, etc., but be careful you don't focus on something the student might be self-conscious about, like cheap shoes, etc. If the class needs practice, they could even take turns talking about each other's things, perhaps in groups. I usually have them choose two or three things from their bookbag/pockets, and then they place the things on their desks, and then they make sentences about other students, like "Tony has an eraser. His eraser is small." A sentence like, "Tony's watch is silver," could also be the goal, later on.)_

After that (or, if the students understand how to use "he" and "his" already...) *you can move on to "brother/friend" vs. "brother's/friend's"*.

###############################################

I would suggest maybe emphasizing the "z" sound at the end of "his". First show a picture or drawing of your "brother" (or "friend", "sister", etc.). Then show them a pencil, or a ball, or whatever. Point to the picture and say, "This is my brother," and also point to this sentence on the board. Then you can write out, "This is my brother's pencil," and then hold up the pencil and say the sentence "This is my brother's pencil."

You could then say, "He is my brother. This is his pencil." Emphasize "his", especially the "z" sound. Make them read/repeat along with you--make sure they get it.

Return to the sentences using the words "brother and brother's". Read them again (and have the class read along with you) after looking at the pictures once more:

"This is my brother." "This is my brother's pencil."

The students might laugh if you hold up the pencil and ask, "Is this my brother?" With luck, they might say, "No, it is your brother's pencil." If they say "No, it is your brother pencil," you should make a funny face like you are confused and make them try again. If they just say, "No, it's a pencil," ask them "Whose pencil? Your pencil? Her pencil?"

Basically, you want to compare these pairs of sentences.

"He is my brother." "This is hi*s* pencil."
"This is my brother." "This is my brother'*s* pencil."

Highlight the "z" sound (underline it on the chalk-board or whatever), to help them figure it out. 

###############################################

Of course, the "z" sound isn't a 100% rule (It doesn't appear in "my" "your" "Phillip's" and many other examples...), but you can explain that later, after they understand what the apostrophe is doing. You can say:

_"This is Phillip's pen." No "z" sound, but that's OK--it uses an "s" sound. And it uses the apostrophe, just like "Tom's", "Jane's", and "brother's"..._

But try to be careful to stay away from this point until they understand about the possessive apostrophe. The "z" sound can help them to hear the connection.

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## elineholst

Give them a clear sample that you think they can understand or even used them as an example (thatll be more effective than just by saying). I recalled my teacher on geometry, to be able for us to remember the vertex he asked one of my classmates to stand up. [giggled]
I presume your referring to children, so I suggest bring a little comic when youre pointing out to something :Iagree: . XD

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## Meta Penguin

> Hello,
> 
> 
> 
> in the exam there was a question :
> what's your ------- name?
> a brother's
> b brother
> c his
> ...


How old are they. If they're young enough, you could try doing a little phonetic game. Like, associating the hissing sounds with a sense of possession.


Another thing you can do is to change 'brother' in a different word; a word in which the lack of a poss. adj. feels odd.

Another thing is to simply explain it to them via a video, or during class, simply.


Of all these, however, do the 'Socrates'; do the method of cross-questioning. Don't make them figure out as if you know the right answer; continually ask them until they give up, and ask another student if they think this student is correct or not. After this, give the right answer.

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## KCurtis

> Hello,
> 
> 
> 
> in the exam there was a question :
> what's your ------- name?
> a brother's
> b brother
> c his
> ...


Where do you teach? This can make a difference- and are you in the U.S.? What kind of population of students do you have? Different ethnic populations can have difficulty with this, I have found, in my teaching experience.

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