eduKatePunggol · Follow the word, keep the meaning

Keep hold of who and what.

You can read every word in a passage and still lose track of the story. A box becomes it. Two damaged labels become them. A decision becomes this. If the reference changes in your mind, the next sentence can appear to describe something the writer never meant.

This English practice companion gives you three original passages about a reading corner, a rehearsal and a collection table. Identify exactly what each highlighted word refers to, then explain the clue that helped you decide. Keep the first attempt, try different work after teaching, and return on another day.

Starting point: you can read a short narrative and follow its main events, with your usual reading support where needed. This is a focused reading exercise for upper-primary or early-secondary learners. Choose by the skill required. All passages and family examples on this page are fictional.

Before opening an answer

Take a sheet of paper. Write the date, the task code and any help you expect to use. Read the whole passage once. On the second reading, look closely at the sentence named in each question. The sentence numbers make it easier to discuss the same word.

For each answer, write the person, object, group or event in full. Follow it with one short explanation. For example, “the blue bag, because the next sentence describes its broken zip” tells a teacher more than “the thing before it”. You do not need a long paragraph for a small reference question.

Leave the worked-answer panel closed until the first attempt is finished. If you cannot decide, keep the two possibilities you considered. Record the uncertainty instead of borrowing the model wording. A teacher can use that choice to see what needs explaining.

Reading aloud, discussing an unfamiliar word or using agreed accommodations can be part of the attempt. Write down the support used. If someone identifies the reference for you, keep that answer as supported work and choose another example for an independent attempt.

R1: The reading corner

(1) Mira placed a cardboard box beside a pile of storybooks. (2) It had a torn lid, but the books were in good condition.

(3) Ben checked six labels for the shelves and found that two had faded. (4) He put them in his bag to replace the next day.

(5) Mira and Ben checked the remaining labels. (6) They agreed to open the reading corner a day later so the faded labels could be replaced. (7) This disappointed Jo, who had planned to bring a reading group that afternoon.

1. R1a. What does “It” in sentence 2 refer to? Which detail helps you choose?
2. R1b. What does “them” in sentence 4 refer to? Be precise about which items.
3. R1c. Who does “They” in sentence 6 refer to? Explain why the remaining labels do not fit.
4. R1d. What does “This” in sentence 7 refer to? Give the decision or situation, rather than one person’s name.

Open R1 worked answers after your attempt

R1a: the cardboard box

“It” refers to the cardboard box. The torn lid is the useful detail: a box can have a lid. The storybooks are mentioned nearer to the pronoun, but the sentence is describing the box. Check the meaning of the whole description, including the information that the books are in good condition.

R1b: the two labels that had faded

“Them” refers to the two faded labels. Ben checked six labels, then identified a smaller set that needed replacing. “The labels” shows part of the link, but leaves the size of that set unclear. “All six labels” changes what the passage says. Carry the selecting detail, “two had faded”, into the answer.

R1c: Mira and Ben

“They” refers to Mira and Ben. Both the people and the labels are plural, so counting alone does not settle this reference. The action “agreed” belongs to the two people making a decision. Replacing the pronoun with “Mira and Ben” keeps the events coherent.

R1d: opening the reading corner a day later

“This” refers to the decision to delay opening the reading corner by a day. Jo had expected to bring a group that afternoon, so the delay explains her disappointment. “The labels” identifies an object involved in the situation, but does not state the decision being referred to. An answer about postponing the opening until the next day expresses the same meaning.

Keep your original answers beside these explanations. Circle the first reference that changed your understanding of the passage. That is a useful place to begin the teaching discussion.

A small routine for following the link

Use this routine while the skill is unfamiliar. You can shorten the written steps once you can explain the link reliably.

1. Locate the exact word. A passage may use “it” several times. Start with the occurrence named in the question.
2. Read around it. Include the previous sentence and enough earlier text to recover the people, objects or events being discussed. A paragraph break does not erase a reference.
3. Name a possible reference. Decide whether you need an individual, a group, a selected part of a group, or an action described earlier.
4. Try the meaning in place. Read the sentence with your proposed reference. Check the action, number and surrounding events. You may need to reshape a phrase when an entire decision is being named.
5. Keep the necessary detail. “The two faded labels” and “all six labels” give different accounts. Your answer should preserve the distinction the writer made.

Distance is a clue to investigate. It does not settle the answer by itself. In R1, the nearest plural words before “They” describe labels, but the agreement is made by Mira and Ben. A useful explanation joins the reference to the action in the sentence.

Similarly, the same pronoun can have a different reference later in a passage. A writer may introduce a replacement object, then use “it” for the replacement. Keep reading the events instead of carrying the first answer automatically into every later sentence.

When the sentence itself leaves a choice

Consider this separate teaching example: “Mira told Jo that she had found the missing label.” With no further context, “she” could refer to Mira or Jo. A reader should acknowledge both possibilities. Choosing a nearby name does not remove the ambiguity.

If the writer means that Mira found it, the sentence can become: “Mira had found the missing label and told Jo about it.” If Jo found it, the writer could say: “Mira told Jo, ‘You found the missing label.’” These versions make different claims. The writer must choose the intended one.

When you revise your own writing, repeating a name can help a reader follow the intended person. Purdue University’s guidance on pronoun clarity explains this practical response to competing references.

R2: The rehearsal plan

Use this passage after discussing R1. Close the earlier answers. Keep only the support you have agreed to use, and record it. The setting and some reference patterns have changed, so read the whole passage before answering.

(1) The drama group left a speaker beside a crate of costumes. (2) It would not play any sound when switched on.

(3) Aisha and Noor borrowed a smaller speaker from the office. (4) They tested it before moving any of the costumes.

(5) The group then chose two scenes that needed music. (6) These would be rehearsed first, while the other scenes could wait.

(7) The teacher moved the rehearsal to the hall so the class next door could read in quiet. (8) That gave the group more space to arrange the costumes.

1. R2a. What does “It” in sentence 2 refer to? Explain the clue.
2. R2b. What does “it” in sentence 4 refer to? Explain why the answer has changed.
3. R2c. What does “These” in sentence 6 refer to? Identify the selected set.
4. R2d. What does “That” in sentence 8 refer to? Describe what happened.

Open R2 worked answers after your fresh attempt

R2a: the original speaker beside the costumes

“It” refers to the speaker the drama group left beside the crate. Being switched on to play sound identifies the speaker. The crate is also one object, but its role in the passage is holding costumes. The passage does not describe a sound-playing crate.

R2b: the smaller speaker borrowed from the office

“It” now refers to the smaller speaker Aisha and Noor borrowed. Sentence 3 introduces that replacement, and sentence 4 describes testing it. The first speaker’s failure explains why another was needed. Writing only “the speaker” for both questions hides the change that the reader needs to track.

R2c: the two scenes that needed music

“These” refers to the two selected scenes that needed music. The phrase “the other scenes could wait” confirms that only part of the programme will be rehearsed first. An answer naming the costumes or the whole programme loses that selection.

R2d: moving the rehearsal to the hall

“That” refers to the teacher’s move of the rehearsal to the hall. The move gives the group more space. “The teacher” names the person responsible, while “the hall” names the destination; the question asks for the event to which the word points. Equivalent wording such as “relocating the rehearsal to the hall” is suitable.

If R2a was secure but R2b was not, discuss the point where the replacement speaker entered the story. Practise following that change with a new pair of sentences before adding a longer passage.

R3: The collection table

Return to this passage on another day. Write the actual date and avoid reopening the previous models first. If you have already studied these answers, ask a teacher to choose another unfamiliar passage for the later check.

(1) Two volunteers set a collection tray beside a basket of envelopes. (2) It was too shallow to hold the donations securely, so the volunteers fetched a deeper tray. (3) They placed it at the centre of the table.

(4) Mira laid out eight information cards. (5) Three gave the wrong collection date. (6) She set these aside and wrote the correct date on a fresh set.

(7) The team decided to check every remaining card before inviting visitors over. (8) This kept visitors waiting, but it prevented the incorrect date from being passed on.

1. R3a. What does “It” in sentence 2 refer to? Use the description and the next action to explain.
2. R3b. Which tray does “it” in sentence 3 refer to? Give the detail that distinguishes it.
3. R3c. What does “these” in sentence 6 refer to? State which cards.
4. R3d. What does “This” in sentence 8 refer to? Explain why “the team” is incomplete.

Open R3 worked answers after your later check

R3a: the original collection tray

“It” refers to the collection tray first placed beside the basket. The volunteers replace it with a deeper tray because the original is too shallow. That connected action helps settle the reference. The basket holds envelopes; the text does not say that the volunteers replaced it.

R3b: the deeper replacement tray

“It” refers to the deeper tray the volunteers fetched. Sentence 3 follows the arrival of the replacement. “The original tray” would undo that sequence. Include “deeper” or “replacement” so your answer makes the change visible.

R3c: the three cards with the wrong collection date

“These” refers to the three information cards that gave the wrong collection date. The eight cards are the larger set; sentence 5 selects three with a particular problem. “The cards” is less precise, and “all eight cards” is unsupported.

R3d: checking the remaining cards before inviting visitors over

“This” refers to the team’s check of every remaining card before inviting visitors over. That action accounts for the wait and the prevention of further incorrect information. Naming only the team leaves out what the team did. You do not need to claim that every remaining card was wrong; the passage describes a precautionary check.

Compare your explanation with the text, not just with the wording above. Accept another phrasing when it identifies the same reference and keeps the necessary detail.

What changed between the attempts?

At the Punggol dining table in this fictional example, Ben writes “the labels” for R1b. Jo asks which labels. Ben adds “the two faded ones”. She keeps both versions and notes the prompt. The revision is useful teaching evidence; the later task will show whether Ben selects the smaller group without the same question.

Mira has a different difficulty. She notices the first speaker but keeps naming it after the replacement arrives. Adrian asks her to point to the sentence that introduces the second speaker. On fresh work, they will look for whether she notices the change herself.

Record the task, date, original response and help used. Write one next action with a return date. These passages differ in length and context, so a simple total does not show everything that changed. Compare the kinds of references understood and the support needed to explain them.

Use the weekly practice record to fit that return into the family week. For a marked school question, the returned-paper review helps you keep the original response beside the next attempt.

Carry the skill into reading and writing

Find a short paragraph in a book you are already reading. Choose one reference word and explain its link aloud. If the paragraph is genuinely unclear, discuss the possible readings. If the vocabulary or sentence structure prevents you from following the events, ask for help with that earlier difficulty before increasing the passage length.

Then look at a paragraph of your own writing. Check whether every “it”, “they” or “this” leads your reader to the intended person, object or event. The existing sentence coherence guide develops that writing work. For the wider reading process, continue with Primary English comprehension and evidence.

If the references are clear but an answer still makes a claim the passage cannot support, try Evidence to Explanation. If the question asks you to explain two people’s responses, use Compare Two Responses. Choose the next task from the work you can see.