01
Family Vocabulary
Common Family Members
Before talking about your family, it is important to know the basic vocabulary.
These are some of the most common words you will use.
Immediate Family
Mother / Mom
Your female parent.
Father / Dad
Your male parent.
Brother
A male sibling.
Sister
A female sibling.
Extended Family
Grandmother / Grandma
Your mother’s or father’s mother.
Grandfather / Grandpa
Your mother’s or father’s father.
Son
Your male child.
Daughter
Your female child.
02
Pronouns and Possessives
He, She, They, It / His, Her, Their, Its
When we talk about another person, several people, or even a pet, we need to choose
the correct pronoun and possessive word. Use he / his for a male person,
she / her for a female person, they / their for two or more people,
and it / its for animals, pets, or things.
| Subject |
Possessive |
Use |
Example |
| He |
His |
For a male person |
He is my brother. His name is Daniel. |
| She |
Her |
For a female person |
She is my mother. Her name is Patricia. |
| They |
Their |
For two or more people |
They are my parents. Their names are Luis and Ana. |
| It |
Its |
For a pet, animal, or thing |
It is my dog. Its name is Toby. |
Teacher's Tip
Do not usually use it or its for people.
For people, use he / his, she / her, or
they / their.
03
Grammar Focus
The Third Person Switch
When you talk about yourself, you use I, my,
am, have, and live.
When you talk about another person, some words change.
| Topic |
Talking about me |
Talking about him / her / them / it |
| Name |
My name is Ana. |
His name is Luis.
Her name is Laura.
Their names are Luis and Ana.
Its name is Toby.
|
| Age |
I am 20 years old. |
He is 10 years old.
She is 18 years old.
They are 40 and 42 years old.
It is 3 years old.
|
| Possession |
I have one brother. |
He has two children.
She has one daughter.
They have three children.
It has a blue collar.
|
| Location |
I live in Medellín. |
He lives in Bogotá.
She lives in Cali.
They live in Colombia.
It lives in our house.
|
Teacher's Tip
With he, she, and it, many verbs add
-s: he lives, she lives, it lives. With they,
do not add -s: they live.
04
Useful Structures
How to Describe Family Members
When describing family members, you can follow a simple structure:
relationship, name, age, location, and one extra detail.
One Male Person
This is my brother.
Say the relationship.
His name is Daniel.
Use “his” for his name.
He is 15 years old.
Use “he is” for age.
He lives in Medellín.
Use “lives” with he.
One Female Person
This is my sister.
Say the relationship.
Her name is Sofia.
Use “her” for her name.
She is 12 years old.
Use “she is” for age.
She lives in Bogotá.
Use “lives” with she.
Two or More People
These are my parents.
Use “these are” for two or more people.
Their names are Ana and Luis.
Use “their” for their names.
They live in Cali.
Use “they live”, not “they lives”.
A Pet or Animal
This is my dog.
Use “this is” to present one pet.
Its name is Toby.
Use “its” for a pet or animal.
It is 3 years old.
Use “it is” for age.
05
Model Examples
Example Presentations
Read these examples and notice how the information is organized clearly and simply.
Example 1: One Female Person
“This is my mother. Her name is Patricia. She is 45 years old.
She lives in Medellín. She is very kind.”
Example 2: One Male Person
“I have one brother. His name is Andrés. He is 12 years old.
He lives in Bogotá with my family.”
Example 3: Two People
“These are my parents. Their names are Ana and Luis.
They live in Colombia. They are very loving.”
Example 4: A Pet
“This is my dog. Its name is Toby. It is 3 years old.
It lives in my house.”
06
Guided Practice
Questions You Can Answer
Use these questions to prepare a short presentation about one family member,
several family members, or a pet.
Practice Questions
01
Who is the person or animal?
02
What is his, her, their, or its name?
03
How old is he, she, or it? / How old are they?
04
Where does he, she, or it live? / Where do they live?
