Top grammar mistakes that every kid make in English

Our mistakes are our best teachers and childhood is the season of these mistakes and learning. Especially when it comes to learning grammar. It’s a continuous process of learning, understanding, and applying the correct way of a language. These minor mistakes turn into major errors while verbal conversations.

The best way is to let me understand the problem and introduce them to the correct rules and principles of grammar. Let’s count some of the most common grammar mistakes made by kids and how to resolve them.

• Confusion between the words- “than” and “then.”

What it sounds like:

“I’d rather have a banana then an apple.”

Why it happens:

It’s a common mistake of miss-heard. Kids make this mistake due to not hearing the word correctly. The slight difference in the pronunciation can change the meaning of the whole sentence. Or make it meaningless too.

How to fix it:

The easiest way is to make the kid aware of the facts. whether they are comparing two things or talking about time. Give examples and like “than” is used for comparison while “then” is used to express time.

• The logical missteps

What it sounds like:

“I goed to the grocery with an aunt so we could buy some chocolate for me”.

Why it happens:

It’s a common cause of overgeneralizing word rules of grammar in young kids.

While English rules include adding “s” for making a plural. Or add “ed” to make the past tense of a verb. Make them understand the concept

How to fix it:

The best way is to reflect back, with the correct sentence. So the kid will understand their mistakes and correct them easily.

Tell them it seems like you want to say “went” and use “goed” here.

• Changing tense in the middle of a paragraph:

What it sounds like

“The aunt said we should go to the grocery to buy some chocolate for me. Then she says we have to wait until you get home”.

Why it happens:

This type of grammar mistake is more common in writing than it is in verbal communication. Many times when kids are excited about sharing something with others that when they make this kind of mistake.

How to fix it:

You can easily recheck it after your kid is done writing or speaking. You can repeat the sentence that doesn’t sound correct. Then ask them to listen and catch the word that doesn’t sound correct.

• Differentiate the use of “I” and “me.”

What it sounds like:

“Aunt and me went to the grocery to buy some chocolate”

Why it happens:

Sometimes parents encouraged children to use “I“ instead of “me”. When they are repeating me in a single sentence. Due to the overgeneralization of this correction, this mistake happens.

How to fix it:

Ask your kid to take another person out of the scenario. Like “me went to the grocery to buy some chocolate”. Ask them if it sounds correct? then they will understand the use of I and me.