CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.4.1a

ELA4th GradeConventions of Standard English

The Standard

Use relative pronouns (who, whose, whom, which, that) and relative adverbs (where, when, why).

Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts

Teacher's field guide

What Students Need to Do: Students add details about nouns by choosing the correct connecting word. They match the word to a person, thing, place, time, possession, or reason.
What Mastery Looks Like: Students combine two related ideas into one clear sentence. They select a word that correctly refers to a person, thing, place, time, possession, or reason.
Common Misconceptions: Students may use “who” for objects or “where” for times. They often confuse “whose” with “who’s,” avoid “whom,” or create sentence fragments when adding details.
How to Assess It: Give students two sentences: “The librarian helped me. I asked the librarian for a book.” Ask them to combine the ideas using “whom.”

Lesson moves

Give pairs sentence strips and word cards, then have students combine each pair into one sentence using the best card.
Ask students to describe a person, place, object, time, and reason, then explain why they chose each connecting word.
Play a team sorting game where students place example sentences under person, thing, place, time, possession, or reason headings.
Have students write a school announcement that includes details about who attends, where it happens, when it starts, and why it matters.

Free download

A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.4.1a, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.

PDF, US Letter, prints cleanly in black and white.

Learning progression

If students are struggling here, check these first.

Mastery here sets students up for these next.

Keep exploring

Grade, subject, topic, and the complete standard are prefilled. Create one free, no account needed.