Common and Proper Nouns Worksheets
A common noun names any person, place, or thing: girl, city, dog. A proper noun names one specific person, place, or thing and always starts with a capital letter: Maya, Chicago, Rex. Second graders sort words into the two groups and learn which ones earn a capital.
By grade
What students need to know
A common noun names any one (city, girl, day). A proper noun names a specific one and starts with a capital (Chicago, Maya, Monday).
This skill runs from 1st grade through 3rd grade. Pick a grade above for level-matched sentences, teaching notes, and worksheets.
Common and Proper Nouns across the grades
1st Grade
Some nouns name any old thing (dog, park); proper nouns name one special one (Rex, Utah) and wear a capital letter to show it. First graders sort simple words into the two piles, meeting capital letters as a signal rather than a decoration.
2nd Grade
A common noun names any person, place, or thing: girl, city, dog. A proper noun names one specific person, place, or thing and always starts with a capital letter: Maya, Chicago, Rex. Second graders sort words into the two groups and learn which ones earn a capital.
3rd Grade
Common nouns name a general kind (river, holiday, teacher); proper nouns name a specific one and are capitalized (Lake Michigan, Thanksgiving). Third graders sort trickier pairs, including places and holidays from the grade-2 capitalization standard, and explain why each word does or doesn't get a capital.