Possessive Nouns for Kids

What are Possessive Nouns?
Possessive nouns show ownership or belonging. They tell us who or what something belongs to. It’s like saying “this belongs to…”

The Apostrophe’s Job:
We use a special mark called an apostrophe (’) to show possession. Sometimes we also add an “s” after the apostrophe.

1. Singular Possessive Nouns (One Owner):
   Rule: Add an apostrophe and an “s” (’s) to the end of the noun.
   Examples:
   The dog’s bone (The bone belongs to the dog.)
   The girl’s hat (The hat belongs to the girl.)
   The car’s wheels (The wheels belong to the car.)
   Tom’s toy (The toy belongs to Tom.)
   

Activities:
“Whose is this?” Game: Show a picture of an object and a person/animal. Ask, “Whose is this?” The child answers using a possessive noun. For example, show a picture of a cat and a ball. The child says, “It’s the cat’s ball."
Object and Owner Matching: Create cards with pictures of objects and people/animals. Have the child match them and then write the possessive noun phrase. For example, a picture of a boy and a bike would match with “the boy’s bike.”

2. Plural Possessive Nouns (More Than One Owner):
   There are two rules for plural possessives:
   

• Plural nouns ending in “s”: Add only an apostrophe (’) after the “s."
  Examples:
  The dogs’ bones (The bones belong to the dogs.)
  The girls’ hats (The hats belong to the girls.)
  The cars’ tires (The tires belong to the cars.)
  

• Plural nouns not ending in “s” (Irregular plurals): Add an apostrophe and an “s” (’s).
  Examples:
  The children’s toys (The toys belong to the children.)
  The men’s shoes (The shoes belong to the men.)
  The women’s bags (The bags belong to the women.)
  

Activities:
Group Ownership: Talk about things that belong to a group. “The students’ classroom,” “The birds’ nest."
Comparing Singular and Plural Possessives: Show examples of both singular and plural possessives to emphasize the difference in spelling. “The dog’s bone” vs. “The dogs’ bones.”

The following diagram gives the three general rules for possessive nouns suitable for kids. Scroll down the page for more examples and rules.

Important Points:

• Possessive nouns show who or what owns something.
• We use an apostrophe (’) to show possession.
• For singular nouns, we add ’s.
• For plural nouns ending in s, we just add ‘.
• For plural nouns not ending in s, we add ’s.

Learn more rules for Possessive Nouns

Possessive Nouns for Kids

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Possessives Song, Possessive Nouns, Apostrophe Usage

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Learning Phonics

Short Vowels
Short A	Short E	Short I
Short O	Short U	Short Vowels

Long Vowels
Long A	Long E	Long I
Long O	Long U	Y (vowel)
Long Vowels	Short, Long Vowels	Rhyming Words

Short & Long Vowels
Short & Long A	Short & Long E	Short & Long I
Short & Long O	Short & Long U	Short I & Long E

Consonant Sounds
B Sound	Hard C	Soft C
D Sound	F Sound	Hard G
Soft G	H Sound	J Sound
K Sound	L Sound	M Sound
N Sound	P Sound	Q Sound
P Sound	S Sound	T Sound
V Sound	W Sound	X Sound
Y Sound	Z Sound	S & Z Sounds

The following printable worksheets can be used to practice writing CVC words while reinforcing reading.

Free Printable Worksheets (CVC Words)
Set 1 Match CVC Words Write CVC Words Match & Write Spell CVC Words Sort CVC Words	Set 2 Match CVC Words Write CVC Words Spell CVC Words Sort CVC Words Match Phrases
Set 3 Match CVC Words Write CVC Words Spell CVC Words Sort CVC Words Match Phrases	CVC, CCVC or CVCC Match Words Write Words

Consonant Digraphs
CH Sound	SH Sound	Soft TH
Hard TH	WH Sound	PH Sound
GH Sound	NG Sound	Consonant Digraphs

Free Printable Worksheets for Consonant Digraphs

These worksheets focus on the consonant digraphs: ch, sh, th, qu and ng.

Printable Worksheets (Consonant Digraphs)
Learning "ch"	Learning "sh"
Learning "th"	Learning "qu"
Learning "ng"

Free Printable Worksheets for Digraphs

Printable Worksheets (EE, OO, OU, OI, AW)
EE Words	OO Words
OI Words	AW Words

Consonant Blends
BL Sound	CL Sound	FL Sound
GL Sound	PL Sound	SL Sound
BR Sound	CR Sound	DR Sound
FR Sound	GR Sound	PR Sound
TR Sound	SK Sound	SN Sound
SP Sound	ST Sound
3-letter Blends Str, Spr, Scr, Str, Shr, Spl, Thr	Ending Blends Nd, Nt, Nk, St, Ft, Lp, Ld, Lt, Mp, Sk

Types of Verbs
Action Verbs
Is, Am, Are
Has, Have

Spelling Rules for Verbs
Adding -ed
Irregular Verbs
Adding -ing

Others
Rhyming Words
Sentence Types
Contractions
Possessive Nouns

Try the free Mathway calculator and problem solver below to practice various math topics. Try the given examples, or type in your own problem and check your answer with the step-by-step explanations.

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