As a second-grade teacher, I've seen my students make a variety of grammar mistakes. It's a normal part of their learning journey, but it can sometimes be frustrating for both them and me. Over the years, I've come to recognize some common grammar mistakes that most young students make, and I’ve learned some helpful ways to guide them in the right direction. Here are the top 10 grammar mistakes, along with personal tips and insights from my classroom!


1. Subject-Verb Agreement One of the most common mistakes I see in my classroom is subject-verb agreement. Students often mix up singular and plural subjects with the verbs. For instance, I hear sentences like “He walk to school” instead of “He walks to school.” I usually remind my students that if the subject is singular (like “he” or “she”), the verb needs to end in “-s,” and if it’s plural, the verb stays as it is. A little trick I use is to ask, “Does the subject sound like it needs help?” If it does, it needs an “-s”!


2. Capitalization Another frequent issue is forgetting to capitalize the first letter of a sentence, proper nouns, and the pronoun "I." It’s an easy mistake to make, especially when students are focused on getting their ideas down on paper quickly... I love using visual cues like putting a big star next to the first word of a sentence. It serves as a reminder to them to start with a capital letter. When they start practicing this regularly, it becomes second nature!


3. Tense Confusion Verb tenses can be tricky for young students. I’ve often heard “I am go to the store” instead of “I am going to the store.” I try to explain to my students that verbs need to show the right time. If they’re talking about something happening now, they need to add “-ing” to the verb. This simple rule has helped my students understand the difference between “am go” and “am going.”


4. Pronoun Usage Proper pronoun usage is something my students continue to struggle with. I often hear, “Me and my friend went to the park” when it should be “My friend and I went to the park.” I remind my class that “I” is always first, and “me” follows. I also use a little song about pronouns to make this rule stick, which the kids love :)


5. Punctuation Using punctuation marks correctly - commas, periods, question marks, and exclamation points can be a challenge. I’ve seen students end questions without a question mark, or leave out periods at the end of sentences. One thing I do to help my students is give them punctuation challenges. For example, I’ll ask them to “read the sentence like a robot” to see if it sounds incomplete or if it needs a pause. It’s a fun way to keep them engaged and focused on punctuation.


6. Run-on Sentences Run-on sentences are a big problem in my classroom. Young students tend to write long sentences that run together with no punctuation or conjunctions.. It can be tricky to teach them when to stop and start a new sentence. I encourage my students to read their sentences aloud and take a breath where they would naturally pause. It’s helped many of my students break up their thoughts into more manageable chunks.


7. Fragments On the flip side, students also write incomplete sentences, known as fragments, that lack a subject or verb. For example, I’ve had students write “Jumping on the trampoline” without saying who is jumping. I teach them to always ask themselves, “Who or what is doing the action?” This has really helped them turn fragments into full sentences with both a subject and a verb.


8. Homophones Homophones - words that sound the same but have different meanings - are another area where many young students often make mistakes. I’ve heard “their” when they meant “there,” or “its” when they meant “it’s.” I try to use visuals and simple stories to illustrate the difference between words like “to” and “too” or “there” and “their.” This usually clicks for most students after a bit of practice.


9. Double Negatives Double negatives are quite often used incorrectly, like saying “I don’t have no pencil” instead of “I don’t have a pencil.” I explain to my students that two negatives make a positive, so they need to avoid double negatives when speaking and writing. I often use examples from real-life situations to make this concept clearer, such as, “If you don’t have no homework, what does that mean?”


10. Incorrect Word Forms Last but not least, one thing I see students do often is use the wrong form of a word, such as “runned” instead of “ran,” or “swimmed” instead of “swam.” I try to emphasize the irregular forms of verbs in our daily routines as much as possble, like, “Yesterday, we went to the park, and I swam in the pool.” This repetition has helped my students internalize the correct word forms.


Hope this helps you guys implement some simple strategies to help your students with common grammar mistakes. Happy teaching 😊