Nouns/Verbs (Simple)

Word Safari: Let's Find Naming and Doing Words!

Habari Mwanafunzi! Hello, bright student! Welcome to a fun adventure with words. Today, we are going on a safari, not to find animals, but to find two very special types of words that make our stories exciting. Are you ready? Let's go!

What are Naming Words (Nouns)?

Imagine you are looking around your home or school. Everything you can see has a name. A Noun is a word that names a person, a place, an animal, or a thing. They are "naming words"!

• A Person: Wanjiku, Ali, a teacher, a doctor.
• A Place: Nairobi, our school, the shamba (farm), a shop.
• An Animal: A simba (lion), a kuku (chicken), a dog, a twiga (giraffe).
• A Thing: A book, a kiti (chair), a mango, the sun.

Image Suggestion: A colourful and cheerful cartoon illustration of a bustling Kenyan market. In the scene, a boy named 'Ali' is buying a 'mango' from a friendly lady ('mama mboga'). In the background, there is a 'matatu' and a 'cat' sleeping near a basket of 'maize'. Key nouns are clearly visible.

Let's Practice!
Read this short sentence: Maria kicked the ball in Nakuru.
Can you spot the three naming words (Nouns)?
(Answer: Maria, ball, Nakuru)

What are Doing Words (Verbs)?

Now for the exciting part! Naming words are great, but they don't do much on their own. They need "doing words" to make things happen! A Verb is a word that shows action. It tells us what the noun is doing.

Think about what you do all day:

• You eat your breakfast.
• You run in the field.
• You read a book.
• You sing a song.
• You laugh with your friends.

All those bold words are Verbs! They are full of action!

    Look! The person is running!
      O
     /|\
     / \
    RUN! JUMP! PLAY!

Image Suggestion: A bright, sunny illustration of children in a Kenyan schoolyard playing the game 'kati'. One child is in the middle, jumping to avoid a ball. The style should be dynamic and full of movement to show the 'action' of the verbs 'play', 'jump', and 'throw'.

Making Sentences: Nouns and Verbs Working Together!

A Noun and a Verb are best friends. When they come together, they make a sentence. It's like a magic recipe for telling stories!

Here is our secret formula for a simple sentence:

    *****************************
    *   SENTENCE FORMULA        *
    *****************************
    *                           *
    * (Naming Word) + (Doing Word) *
    *   [  Noun   ] + [  Verb  ]   *
    *                           *
    *   Example:                *
    *   The bird    +   sings.  *
    *                           *
    *****************************

Story Time!
Let's find the action words (Verbs) in this little story. They are in bold.
The sun shines. A monkey climbs the tree. The children laugh. The teacher writes on the board.

Your Turn! Let's Be Word Detectives!

Great work! Now it's time for you to try. Let's see how many you can get right.

Activity 1: Noun or Verb?

Is the word a Naming Word (Noun) or a Doing Word (Verb)?

• table - (Is it a name of a thing or an action?)
• jumps - (Is it a name or an action?)
• ugali - (Is it a name of a thing or an action?)
• dances - (Is it a name or an action?)

Activity 2: Word Counting Challenge!

Let's count the Nouns and Verbs in this sentence. This is like maths, but with words!

    Sentence: The farmer plants maize.

    Step 1: Find the Naming Words (Nouns).
    Answer: farmer, maize

    Step 2: Find the Doing Words (Verbs).
    Answer: plants

    Step 3: Do the final calculation!
    --------------------------------
    Total Nouns: 2
    Total Verbs: 1
    --------------------------------

    Wow! You did it!

Well Done, Super Student!

Amazing work today! You have learned about the two most important types of words: Nouns (naming words) and Verbs (doing words). Remember, nouns name things, and verbs make them move!

Keep looking for them in your storybooks, on signs, and when you talk with your friends and family. You are a true Word Detective! Kwaheri!