Go Get ‘em Outta Here

for elementary students

             I work on eradicating all forms of go and get right from the get go. These verbs are students' go-to words used so incredibly often that it really gets to me; using them is my pet peeve. I can go on and on about them, and when I do my students go bonkers until they get it. All it takes is thinking a minute for a substitute or going to the dictionary/thesaurus and getting a good synonym.
              By the third week of fall semester, I become dictatorial with a handout and a declaration, “From now on, you can’t use go or get in your papers!”  Stunned faces stare at me. We work on replacing these words and their tense forms on the handout. Then we work on NOT using them in the assignment of the day, whatever that might be, usually paragraphing writing.
             To extend their disbelief, each week when I hand back papers, every go, get, went and got is circled, and I ask students to replace them on the spot.  It takes a few years, seriously, to rid them of the go, get habit.  Nevertheless whenever I hand back a paper with these words circled, they roll their eyes, replace the words, and poof! they are better writers in my book.
             I create the silly handouts, and here are a few samples. I use a different one every year or semester.


                                                 GO, GET

1. You got a crazy raccoon in your room!


2. Get the raccoon out of this house!


3. The raccoon went to the tree and climbed to the top.


4. Foo Foo is barking at the raccoon, which gets a smile on its face.


5. Mary got a Rockin’ Raccoons song stuck in her head.


6. Sarah goes out every morning to feed the raccoon.


7. Michael, go get the chili pepper spray for your dad.


8. Do you get that science problem?


9. The raccoon went bonkers after the pepper spray went up its nose.


10. Dad goes crazy when he gets pepper spray.


11. Mary got a good photo of Dad chasing the rascal raccoon.


12. Go get ‘em, Ranger Raccoon!



Sample 2:

                                                              GO, GET

1. I got a dollar coin for my tooth from the tooth fairy.


2. Scruffy, you dirty doggy, go outside this instant!


3. Joe and Sam went to the Fun Zone and got frozen bananas.


4. The tooth fairy got my tooth and went to the Cloud of Baby Teeth.


5. Dad got us burritos for dinner at Los Locos Taco Shop.


6. Sherri goes bananas for strawberry ice cream.


7. Lucy, go get the bananas from our tree for banana splits.


8. Do you get the meaning of the word, hullabaloo?


9. Mittens, get away from my banana split!


10. Cinderella went down the staircase and got into the pumpkin carriage just in time.


11. He got the biggest banana split with 6 scoops, 8 toppings, and 10 cherries.


12. Go get ‘em, Angels!