direct object pronouns

The Comprehensible Classroom’s
DIRECT OBJECT PRONOUNS
a focused grammar study by
Martina Bex
Copyright © 2014 Martina Bex ● www.martinabex.com ● The Comprehensible Classroom
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direct.object.pronouns.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE TEACHER
Thank you so much for purchasing this product! I hope that it will help your students to
better interpret and produce Spanish as they learn the definition and rules of usage for
those funny little words that they have seen and heard many times before you use
these guided notes. Please read and implement these tips and considerations in order
to use the notes as they were intended:
1. I recommend that grammar notes be given after students are already familiar with
whatever you are trying to expose. In this case, I recommend that students have
already been exposed to DOPs in context in readings so that these notes are more
of a way to organize or expand their knowledge of DOPs than to establish it. For
many examples of stories that include DOPs, visit www.martinabex.com/teachertraining/curriculum-map/
2. Keep the focus on MEANING, and always read the full example sentences in
context and then ask what the DOP means (what it is referring to).
3. When you give the reading, discuss it! Milk the life out of the text so that students
hear many repetitions of the verb forms. Ask expository and personalized questions
to engage the students in the content.
4. After you have finished the post-reading activities, consider allowing students to
share their free writes with each other, and take some time to watch some of the
videos in Spanish about Dusty that are available online. I recommend this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dk5UvCzfEV8 . The first time, mute the volume
and use the “MovieTalk” strategy (see www.martinabex.com/teacher-training/
movietalk/ for an explanation), and include as many DOPs as possible. Take time to
stop and ask students comprehension questions about the DOPs to see whehter or
not they are interpreting them correctly or can produce them on their own
• Ex 1: Point at the screen and say, “¡Lo lleva en su boca! -- What does that “lo”
refer to?”
• Ex 2: “Dusty robó un dinosaurio. What DOP would replace “dinosaurio”?
• Ex 3: “How would you say “Dusty stole it (the dinosaur)?”)
Then, watch the video again and listen to the audio. See if students can identify any
DOPs in the audio! Finally, discuss any new reactions that students have after
seeing Dusty “live” on camera.
-Martina Bex
Copyright © 2014 Martina Bex ! www.martinabex.com ! The Comprehensible Classroom
Nombre y apellido __________________________________ Fecha ____________________
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P
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direct.object.pronouns.
With a complicated, grammatical-sounding name like “direct object
pronouns’, it’s common to feel stressed out just thinking about them. So forget
you ever read about that term. Let’s just focus on Spanish for a minute:
Mi hermano ve un perro y lo quiere. ¡Es adorable!
What does that sentence mean in English? Translate it here:
_____________________________________________________________________
Yo envío textos a mis amigos durante la clase, pero ¡el profesor me ve!
What does that sentence mean in English? Translate it here:
_____________________________________________________________________
Una chica tiene una foto de Justin Timberlake y la mira mucho.
What does that sentence mean in English? Translate it here:
_____________________________________________________________________
Were you able to understand those sentences? Each of those sentences
contains a direct object pronoun, but you were probably able to understand
them anyway. Because of context clues and common sense, our brains often
‘cover’ for us, filling in information that we don’t know.
::definition::
A pronoun is a word that replaces a _________________. A direct object
pronoun is a word that replaces a noun that is ______________
_______________ in an action. It is actually a part of the action, because the
action simply could not happen without the object.
Copyright © 2014 Martina Bex ! www.martinabex.com ! The Comprehensible Classroom
Nombre y apellido __________________________________ Fecha ____________________
::English DOPs::
Here are some examples in English of sentences that contain direct objects. In
the right-hand column, the direct object, which is underlined, is replaced with
a direct object pronoun. Underline the direct object pronouns on the right!
I read the book.
I read it.
We write letters.
We write them.
I eat the hamburger.
I eat it.
He loves Mariah Carey.
He loves her.
::Spanish DOPs::
Spanish
subject
English
DOP
Spanish
DOP
Spanish
subject
English
DOP
yo
me
nosotros
us
tú
you
vosotros
y all
él, ella, Usted
him, her, it
ellos/as, Uds.
Spanish
DOP
them
Circle the direct object pronoun in each of these sentences, then translate
the sentence into English:
Mi mamá hace hamburguesas y yo las como.
_____________________________________________________________________
La chica ve un iPhone y lo quiere.
_____________________________________________________________________
El autobús nos lleva a la escuela.
_____________________________________________________________________
Copyright © 2014 Martina Bex ! www.martinabex.com ! The Comprehensible Classroom
Nombre y apellido __________________________________ Fecha ____________________
::placement::
Look at the three sentences on the previous page and at the three examples
on the first page of notes. What do you notice about where the direct object
pronouns are located in the sentence?
A direct object pronoun is almost always placed immediately
______________ the verb.
::reading::
Read this article, then respond to the questions about it on the following page.
DUSTY, EL CLEPTÓGATO DE SAN MATEO
Típicamente, un cleptómano es una persona con una adicción a robar
objetos. Sin embargo, el cleptómano más famoso de San Mateo, California
no es una persona...¡es un gato! El gato cleptómano se llama Dusty, y su
dueña1 lo rescató de un refugio de animales.
Dusty visita las casas de sus vecinos2 mucho, pero no
las visita para ver a sus vecinos...¡las visita para robar
sus posesiones! Durante tres años, Dusty robó más de
600 objetos de sus vecinos. Los robó por las noches,
mientras dormían sus vecinos. En una sola noche,
¡Dusty robó once objetos! Los agarró y los llevó a su
casa. Robó objetos muy diversos, como zapatos, ropa
interior, gafas y más.
El canal de televisión “Animal Planet” instaló una cámara de visión
nocturna frente a la casa de Dusty. La instaló para capturar las actividades
ilegales de Dusty en video. En una noche en particular, ¡la cámara lo filmó
robando un total de 11 objetos de varios vecinos! Cuando los vecinos de
Dusty lo miraron, fueron a la casa de Dusty para reclamar sus posesiones
robadas. La dueña de Dusty las devolvió, pero unos objetos no fueron
reclamados, y ella los sacó a subasta3.
1
dueña - owner 2
vecinos - neighbors
3
sacó a subasta - auctioned off
Copyright © 2014 Martina Bex ! www.martinabex.com ! The Comprehensible Classroom
Nombre y apellido __________________________________ Fecha ____________________
::reading activities::
1. Circle each of the direct object pronouns in the reading (there are 10).
2. Write each of the direct object pronouns on these lines, and beside them
write the name of the object (in Spanish) that they replace (to which they
refer):
_____ - ____________________
_____ - ____________________
_____ - ____________________
_____ - ____________________
_____ - ____________________
_____ - ____________________
_____ - ____________________
_____ - ____________________
_____ - ____________________
_____ - ____________________
3. Imagine that you are Dusty. Write a paragraph in Spanish explaining what
you did, why, and how you felt when you discovered that you had been
filmed and then had to return everything you’d stolen. Use at least FIVE
direct object pronouns in your writing!
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
Copyright © 2014 Martina Bex ! www.martinabex.com ! The Comprehensible Classroom
Nombre y apellido __________________________________ Fecha ____________________
D
.
O
.
P
.
direct.object.pronouns.
With a complicated, grammatical-sounding name like “direct object
pronouns’, it’s common to feel stressed out just thinking about them. So forget
you ever read about that term. Let’s just focus on Spanish for a minute:
Mi hermano ve un perro y lo quiere. ¡Es adorable!
What does that sentence mean in English? Translate it here:
My brother sees a dog and wants it. It’s adorable!
Yo envío textos a mis amigos durante la clase, pero ¡el profesor me ve!
What does that sentence mean in English? Translate it here:
I send texts to my friends during class, but the teacher sees me!
Una chica tiene una foto de Justin Timberlake y la mira mucho.
What does that sentence mean in English? Translate it here:
A girl has a photo of Justin Timberlake and she looks at it a lot.
Were you able to understand those sentences? Each of those sentences
contains a direct object pronoun, but you were probably able to understand
them anyway. Because of context clues and common sense, our brains often
‘cover’ for us, filling in information that we don’t know.
::definition::
A pronoun is a word that replaces a NOUN. A direct object pronoun is a word
that replaces a noun that is DIRECTLY INVOLVED in an action. It is actually a
part of the action, because the action simply could not happen without the
object.
Copyright © 2014 Martina Bex ! www.martinabex.com ! The Comprehensible Classroom
Nombre y apellido __________________________________ Fecha ____________________
::English DOPs::
Here are some examples in English of sentences that contain direct objects. In
the right-hand column, the direct object, which is underlined, is replaced with
a direct object pronoun. Underline the direct object pronouns on the right!
I read the book.
I read it.
We write letters.
We write them.
I eat the hamburger.
I eat it.
He loves Mariah Carey.
He loves her.
::Spanish DOPs::
Spanish
subject
English
DOP
Spanish
DOP
yo
me
ME
tú
you
TE
him, her, it
LO, LA
él, ella, Usted
Spanish
subject
English
DOP
Spanish
DOP
nosotros
us
NOS
vosotros
y all
OS
them
LOS, LAS
ellos/as, Uds.
Circle the direct object pronoun in each of these sentences, then translate
the sentence into English:
Mi mamá hace hamburguesas y yo las como.
My mom makes hamburgers, and I eat them.
La chica ve un iPhone y lo quiere.
The girl sees an iPhone and wants it.
El autobús nos lleva a la escuela.
The bus brings us to school.
Copyright © 2014 Martina Bex ! www.martinabex.com ! The Comprehensible Classroom
Nombre y apellido __________________________________ Fecha ____________________
::placement::
Look at the three sentences on the previous page and at the three examples
on the first page of notes. What do you notice about where the direct object
pronouns are located in the sentence?
A direct object pronoun is almost always placed immediately
BEFORE the verb.
::reading::
Read this article, then respond to the questions about it on the following page.
DUSTY, EL CLEPTÓGATO DE SAN MATEO
Típicamente, un cleptómano es una persona con una adicción a robar
objetos. Sin embargo, el cleptómano más famoso de San Mateo, California
no es una persona...¡es un gato! El gato cleptómano se llama Dusty, y su
dueña1 lo rescató de un refugio de animales.
Dusty visita las casas de sus vecinos2 mucho, pero no
las visita para ver a sus vecinos...¡las visita para robar
sus posesiones! Durante tres años, Dusty robó más de
600 objetos de sus vecinos. Los robó por las noches,
mientras dormían sus vecinos. En una sola noche,
¡Dusty robó once objetos! Los agarró y los llevó a su
casa. Robó objetos muy diversos, como zapatos, ropa
interior, gafas y más.
El canal de televisión “Animal Planet” instaló una cámara de visión
nocturna frente a la casa de Dusty. La instaló para capturar las actividades
ilegales de Dusty en video. En una noche en particular, ¡la cámara lo filmó
robando un total de 11 objetos de varios vecinos! Cuando los vecinos de
Dusty lo miraron, fueron a la casa de Dusty para reclamar sus posesiones
robadas. La dueña de Dusty las devolvió, pero unos objetos no fueron
reclamados, y ella los sacó a subasta3.
1
dueña - owner 2
vecinos - neighbors
3
sacó a subasta - auctioned off
Copyright © 2014 Martina Bex ! www.martinabex.com ! The Comprehensible Classroom
Nombre y apellido __________________________________ Fecha ____________________
::reading activities::
1. Circle each of the direct object pronouns in the reading (there are 11).
2. Write each of the direct object pronouns on these lines, and beside them
write the name of the object (in Spanish) that they replace (to which they
refer):
lo - Dusty
la - la cámara
las - las casas
lo - Dusty
las - las casas
lo - el video
los - los objetos
las - las posesiones
los - los objetos
los - los objetos
los - los objetos
3. Imagine that you are Dusty. Write a paragraph in Spanish explaining what
you did, why, and how you felt when you discovered that you had been
filmed and then had to return everything you’d stolen. Use at least FIVE
direct object pronouns in your writing!
answers will vary ________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
Copyright © 2014 Martina Bex ! www.martinabex.com ! The Comprehensible Classroom