Question Words in English: Who, What, Where, When, Why, How

How to teach it

1. 1. Answer cards

   Make a card for each question word with a simple picture: a person for who, a house for where, a clock for when. Say a sentence, such as "Mia is at school at nine," and ask the child to hold up the card for the question you can answer.

2. 2. Ask about a picture

   Look at a busy picture and take turns asking questions about it: "Who is that?" "Where is the cat?" The child answers, and then asks you one. Start with who, what and where, and add when and why later.

3. 3. Twenty questions

   Think of an animal or an object. The child asks questions to find out what it is: "Is it big? Where does it live? What does it eat?" You can answer only yes or no at first, and then give short answers with the harder question words.

4. 4. Interview game

   Give the child a toy microphone, a spoon or a roll of paper and let them interview a family member: "What is your name? How old are you? Where do you live? Why do you like cats?" Write the answers down and read them back.

5. 5. Question dice

   Write one question word on each side of a paper cube. Throw the cube, and the child makes a question with the word that shows: "Why is the sky blue?" Help with the first words. It is fine if the questions are silly.

6. 6. Mystery bag

   Put an object into a bag. The child asks questions to find out what it is: "What color is it? What is it for? Where do we use it?" Answer each question in a full sentence, so the child hears good examples.

Common mistakes

• Putting the verb in the wrong place

  In a question, the verb comes before the subject: "Where is my backpack?" Wrong: "Where my backpack is?" The question word comes first, then the verb, then the subject.

• Leaving out do or does

  With most verbs, a question needs do or does: "What do you want?" "Where does she live?" Wrong: "What you want?" Wrong: "Where she lives?" After does, the main verb has no -s: "Where does she live?", not "lives."

• Mixing up how many and how much

  Use how many with things you can count: "How many apples are there?" Use how much with amounts and prices: "How much water?" and "How much is this book?" Wrong: "How much apples?" Right: "How many apples?"

• Asking "How is your name?"

  Ask a name with what: "What is your name?" Wrong: "How is your name?" Use how for the way or the condition: "How are you?" "How do you make a cake?" Learn What is your name? as a whole phrase.

• Confusing what and which

  Which is for choosing from a known group of things: "Which bag is yours?" What is for open questions: "What is in your bag?" Children can use what first and learn which later, when the group is clear.