Hey there, word collector! Do you know that some action words can wear a special hat? This hat is "-ing". When a verb puts on its "-ing" hat, it becomes a new kind of word. It becomes a Gerund. A Gerund is a verb that acts like a thing. It is the name of an activity. Your friend is Giggly Gerry the Gerund Gnome. Gerry collects "-ing" words. He says they are not actions happening now. They are the names of the activities. Let's help Gerry collect these special Gerunds from home, the playground, school, and nature.
What is a Gerund? A Gerund is an action turned into a thing. Take a verb, add "-ing", and it becomes a noun. "Run" is an action. "Running" is the name of that activity. "I like running." Here, "running" is the thing I like. It is a gerund. Think of it as a snapshot of an action. Gerry says these are some of the most common Gerunds for Kindergarten students. They help us talk about activities as ideas.
Why are Gerunds Your Activity Names? Using Gerunds makes you a great activity talker. It helps your ears listen. You hear names of games and hobbies. It helps your mouth speak. You can say what you enjoy. "I love swimming." It helps your eyes read. You spot "-ing" words that are things. It helps your hand write. You can write lists of your favorite things to do. Gerunds help you talk about activities as ideas, not just actions.
What Kinds of Activity Names Does Gerry Collect? Gerry has two main places where he finds his "-ing" treasure.
The "Love/Like/Enjoy" Collection. These gerunds are the objects of our likes. They come after verbs like love, like, enjoy, hate. At home: "I enjoy reading." At school: "I like coloring." On the playground: "I love swinging." In nature: "I enjoy walking in the park."
The "Subject" Collection. These gerunds are the stars of the sentence. They are the thing we are talking about. They can be the subject. At home: "Eating vegetables is good." At school: "Listening is important." On the playground: "Climbing is fun." In nature: "Swimming is a good skill."
How Can You Spot a Gerund? Gerry has a magic magnifying glass. Look for these clues.
Look for the "-ing" Ending. Find a word that ends with "-ing". Is it the name of an activity? Like "swimming", "reading", "playing"? It might be a gerund.
Ask the "Activity" Question. Ask: "Is this word talking about an activity as a thing?" "My hobby is painting." What is your hobby? Painting. 'Painting' is the thing, the activity. It's a gerund.
The "It" Test. Try to put "It" in front of the word. Does it make sense? "It is fun." Good. Now, put the "-ing" word there: "Swimming is fun." It works! That's a good sign it's a gerund used as a subject.
Check After "Love/Like". The word right after "I like..." or "I love..." is often a gerund. "I like dancing."
How Do We Use These Activity Names? Using a Gerund is simple. Follow Gerry's collection rules.
Formula 1: [I/You/We/They] + [like/love/enjoy] + [Verb-ing]. I like drawing. She loves singing. We enjoy playing.
Formula 2: [Gerund] + [is/isn't] + [adjective]. Running is fun. Eating is good. Sharing is nice.
Formula 3: My favorite thing is + [Gerund]. My favorite thing is sleeping. Her hobby is dancing.
The "-ing" is the Name Tag. The "-ing" ending turns the action into a thing you can talk about, collect, and name.
Let’s Fix Some Collection Mistakes! Sometimes we mix up gerunds with other "-ing" words. Let's help Gerry.
Confusing Gerunds with Present Participles. Wrong: "I am enjoy swim." After 'enjoy', you need the thing (the activity), not the base verb. Right: "I enjoy swimming." ('Swimming' is the gerund, the thing you enjoy). Remember: "I am swimming" is an action happening now. "I like swimming" is talking about the activity in general.
Using the Base Verb After "Like". Wrong: "I like to read books." (This uses an infinitive, 'to read'. It's not wrong, but different. For gerunds, we use the "-ing" form). Right for Gerunds: "I like reading books."
Forgetting the Gerund as Subject. Wrong: "Run is fun." 'Run' is a verb. It can't be the subject, the thing that 'is fun'. Right: "Running is fun." (Now 'Running' is the subject, the thing we are talking about).
Can You Be a Gerund Gnome? Let's play. I will say a sentence start. You finish it with a gerund. "I like..." (what activity?). Good! "I like jumping." "My favorite thing is..." "My favorite thing is painting." "___ is fun." (What activity is fun?). "Swimming is fun." Great job, little gnome!
Giggly Gerry's 100 Common Activity Names. Here are one hundred "-ing" words. They are common Gerunds for Kindergarten students. Gerry loves them all!
Fun Activities We Do: playing swimming running jumping skipping hopping climbing sliding swinging dancing singing reading drawing coloring painting writing counting spelling listening talking
Things We Do Every Day: eating drinking sleeping waking up brushing (teeth) washing (hands) bathing dressing helping cleaning cooking baking shopping walking riding (a bike) watching (TV) looking seeing hearing smelling
Learning and School Activities: learning thinking studying practicing sharing taking turns raising (a hand) asking answering erasing cutting pasting building creating discovering exploring imagining wondering guessing knowing
Feelings and Actions: loving liking enjoying hating helping caring sharing giving getting finding hiding seeking waiting holding carrying pushing pulling throwing catching kicking
Nature and Animal Activities: growing blooming flowering raining snowing shining (sun) blowing (wind) flying swimming (fish) crawling barking meowing chirping buzzing digging planting watering picking climbing (trees) exploring (outside)
More Fun Activities: laughing smiling crying hugging kissing whispering shouting cheering clapping celebrating dreaming wishing hoping trying starting finishing winning losing playing (games) having (fun)
Using Gerunds in Sentences (Love/Like/Enjoy): I love playing with my dog. I like eating apples. I enjoy reading stories. I hate waiting. I love singing songs. I like drawing pictures. I enjoy swimming in the pool. I love dancing to music. I like watching birds. I enjoy helping my mom.
Using Gerunds as Subjects: Swimming is good for you. Reading is fun. Drawing is easy. Sharing is kind. Eating vegetables is healthy. Brushing your teeth is important. Listening is a good habit. Running fast is hard. Playing outside is fun. Learning new things is great.
With "My favorite thing is...": My favorite thing is sleeping. My favorite thing is playing. My favorite thing is eating ice cream. My hobby is drawing. My job is helping.
You Are a Word Collector Now! You did it! You know that a Gerund is a verb with an "-ing" ending that acts like a thing. Giggly Gerry gives you a shiny collector's badge. You have learned one hundred common Gerunds for Kindergarten students. You can use them after "I like..." and as the subject of a sentence. You can name your favorite activities.
Here is what you learned from our collection adventure. You know a gerund is an "-ing" word that names an activity. You know it often comes after verbs like like, love, enjoy. You know it can be the subject of a sentence, like "Swimming is fun." You can spot them by their "-ing" ending. You can use the simple formulas. You can fix common mistakes like using the base verb after "enjoy".
Now, let’s do some life practice! Your mission is today. Be an Activity Namer. Tell your family two things you love doing. Use "I love ___ing." Say: "I love drawing. I love running." Or, tell them what you think is fun. Say: "Playing is fun. Reading is fun." You are a wonderful word collector.