RIC-20808_Teaching_Strategies_for_Writing_BkF_punctuation

Your partner in education 

BOOK F 

TEACHING 

STRATEGIES 

FOR WRITING 

Punctuation 

Australian Primary Publisher 

of the Year 2015 and 2016

Teaching strategies for writing (Book F) 

Published by R.I.C. Publications ® 2018 

Copyright © Diane Henderson and Bruce Tuffin 2018 

RIC–20808 

Titles in this series: 

Teaching strategies for writing (Book A) 

Teaching strategies for writing (Book B) 

Teaching strategies for writing (Book C) 

Teaching strategies for writing (Book D) 

Teaching strategies for writing (Book E) 

Teaching strategies for writing (Book F) 

Copyright Notice 

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In some instances, websites or specific URLs may be recommended. While these are checked and rechecked at the time of 

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PO Box 332 Greenwood Western Australia 6924 

Website: www.ricpublications.com.au 

Email: mail@ricpublications.com.au

FOREWORD 

Teaching strategies for writing is series of six books using modelling, guided and independent practice to teach 

students strategies they can use to improve the clarity, correctness and richness of their writing. The focus is on 

sentences, their structure, punctuation and word choices and on developing editing and proofreading skills and their 

habitual use. 

Titles in this series: 

• Teaching strategies for writing (Book A) • Teaching strategies for writing (Book D) 

• Teaching strategies for writing (Book B) • Teaching strategies for writing (Book E) 

• Teaching strategies for writing (Book C) • Teaching strategies for writing (Book F) 

TABLE OF CONTENTS 

Teacher notes ........................................................................................................................ iv–v 

Class recording sheets 

Assessment activities ..................................................................................................... vi–ix 

Assessment writing tasks ................................................................................................ x–xi 

Student writing checklist ........................................................................................................ xii 

Student writing task – self-evaluation .................................................................................. xiii 

WORD CHOICES 

Unit 1 Nouns, noun groups and adjectives ............................................................ 2–7 

Unit 2 Pronouns, confusing pronouns (me/I), which pronoun? ........................... 8–13 

Unit 3 Verbs, descriptive and overused verbs, adverbials ................................. 14–19 

Unit 4 Choosing correct verbs: tense, consistency, 

subject, regular, irregular ......................................................................... 20–25 

Assessment................................................................................................................... 26–29 

SENTENCE STRUCTURE 

Unit 5 Sentences, word order, statements, questions ....................................... 30–35 

Unit 6 Sentence beginnings ............................................................................... 36–41 

Unit 7 Conjunctions ............................................................................................ 42–47 

Unit 8 Paragraphs ............................................................................................... 48–53 

Assessment................................................................................................................... 54–57 

PUNCTUATION 

Unit 9 Using punctuation in sentences .............................................................. 58–63 

Unit 10 Full stops, capital letters, commas, direct speech ................................. 64–69 

Unit 11 Apostrophes in contractions ................................................................... 70–75 

Unit 12 Apostrophes for possession .................................................................... 76–81 

Assessment................................................................................................................... 82–85 

EDITING AND PROOFREADING 

Unit 13 

Unit 14 

Unit 15 

Unit 16 

Spelling (vowel sounds), sentence structure, 

punctuation, word choices, editing ........................................................ 86–91 

Spelling (dictionary), sentence structure, 

punctuation, word choices, editing ......................................................... 92–97 

Spelling (suffixes, root words), sentence structure, 

punctuation, word choices, editing ....................................................... 98–103 

Spelling (homophones), sentence structure, 

punctuation, word choices, editing ..................................................... 104–109 

Assessment............................................................................................................... 110–113 

TEACHING STRATEGIES FOR WRITING (Book F) 

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iii

TEACHER NOTES 

ABOUT WRITING 

A good writer is not simply one who knows about and can 

use text types. A good writer is one with the capacity to 

produce interesting, informative, grammatically correct 

text, for a specific purpose, that achieves any writer’s 

intent – clear, precise communication. 

TEACHING WRITING 

Students can and should be taught strategies that will 

help them to write better. These include improvements 

in word choices, sentence structure, punctuation and 

editing and proofreading. Writing strategies taught 

should be modelled, discussed and then applied, firstly 

with teacher support and then independently. However, 

the emphasis should always be on the writing process, 

which requires forethought, planning and a rational, 

measured approach in order to produce the desired 

outcome. Editing and proofreading are essential 

components of any writing. It is important that students 

edit and proofread habitually, with a specific purpose, 

and concentrate on the careful consideration of each 

sentence, one at a time. Activities provided in this series 

encourage students to think about appropriate aspects 

of their writing before, during and after the process. 

LESSON PROCEDURE 

Introduction 

Discuss the text title with students. Ask for their 

interpretations of what the title could mean. 

Discuss the text type. Why does it fit into this category? 

What are the specific features of this type of text? 

Guide the discussion to introduce the teaching points/ 

strategies to be covered during the course of the unit. 

For example, check they understand terms such as noun 

group, adverbial, sentence, paragraph and comma. 

Development 

Read and discuss the text, either in groups or as a 

class. Assist students with any unfamiliar vocabulary or 

expressions. 

Differentiation 

Work through the introductory activities with the class 

as a whole, ensuring students understand what is 

required of them. 

Work with those requiring additional assistance while 

the remainder of the class work independently on the 

activities. 

ASSESSMENT 

An assessment is included for each unit in the book. 

Because of the way it is structured, this assessment 

will allow you to see individual student’s understandings 

as well as any common points of weakness which may 

require further assistance. 

FORMAT 

Teaching strategies for writing is organised into four 

sections: 

Word choices 

Punctuation 

Sentence structure 

Editing and proofreading 

Each section has four units of work and one assessment 

unit. 

Teaching units 

Each six-page unit of work has a specific focus, two 

teacher pages and four activity pages. 

Assessment units 

• Following each section is a four-page unit of 

assessment activities–one page for each unit. 

• Answers are provided in the teachers pages for that 

unit. 

• Teacher record sheets – see pages vi–ix. 

Assessment writing tasks 

• A suggested paragraph writing topic for each unit is 

provided on the teachers pages. 

• Teacher recording sheet – see pages x–xi. 

• Student writing checklist – see page xii. 

• Student self-evaluation – see page xiii. 

Review 

In pairs or small groups, students review their answers, 

giving their reasoning where required and critiquing the 

longer sentence or paragraph responses. 

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TEACHER NOTES 

Sample open pages 

TEACHER INFORMATION 


SENTENCES, WORD ORDER, 

STATEMENTS, QUESTIONS 

UNIT 5 

SENTENCES, WORD ORDER, 

STATEMENTS, QUESTIONS 

UNIT 5 

Focus 

Sentence structure — sentences, word order, statements to 

questions 

Progression 

Recognise 

Students will recognise a sentence from modelled examples. 

Choose 

Students will choose a variety of sentences from given examples, 

with teacher support. 

Use 

Students will use sentences in self-written sentences and 

paragraphs. 

Definition of terms 

A sentence is a set of words that makes sense by itself. It may be 

a statement, a question, an exclamation or a command. 

Nouns are words used to name people, things and feelings. 

An antonym is a word which has the opposite meaning to another 

word. 

A rhetorical question is one which is making a point rather than 

seeking an answer. 

Introduction 

Good writers improve their writing by planning sentences and 

paragraphs. 

LESSON NOTES AND PLANS 

Introduction 

• Discuss the text title with the class. 

• Explain the ‘real’ meaning of the word ‘fantastic’; that is, based in 

fantasy; not real. 

• What do they think the text may be about? 

• What type of text do students think this is? Why? (Discuss the 

features of informative texts.) 

• Identify the number of paragraphs and discuss why they have 

subheadings. 

• Discuss why organising text in this way is important. (It helps the 

reader to organise the information.) 

• Read the text with the class. 

Sentences – Changing sentences – Page 33 

• Read and discuss the definitions at the top of the page. 

• Explain that sentences can be either long or short and that the 

number of words in a set of words is unrelated to whether or not it 

qualifies as a sentence. 

• Discuss different types of sentences—statements, questions, 

commands and exclamations—and how each is punctuated. 

• Explain that a small change in a sentence can make a big difference 

to its meaning or give the opposite meaning; for example, adding 

suffixes, the word ‘not’ or by writing an antonym. 

• Explain the terms ‘positive’ and ‘negative’. 

• Read through the activities with the class as a whole, ensuring they 

understand what is required of them. 

• Work with those requiring additional assistance while the remainder 

of the class work independently on the activities. 

Word order – Page 34 

• Explain that word order can make a difference. 

• Discuss some of the reasons students gave to Question 2(a) (sounds 

funny, harder to say etc.). 

• Read through the activities with the class as a whole, ensuring they 

understand what is required of them. 



Questions – Page 35 

• Discuss with students the definition at the top of the page. (Ignore 

rhetorical questions.) 

ANSWERS 

Sentences, changing sentences – Page 33 

1. (a)–(d) Teacher check 

2. (a) The griffin is not a curious creature. 

(b) Dugongs would not make ugly mermaids. 

(c) There are not thousands of creatures in the world’s folklore. 

(d) It is impossible that Bigfoot really exists./It is not possible 

that Bigfoot really exists. 

3. (a) unreal 

(b) no 

(c) a difficult 

Word order – Page 34 

1. (a) pen (b) spaghetti 

(c) back 

(d) bolts 

(e) eggs/green eggs (f) later 

(g) key 

(h) fro/from 

2. (a)–(c) Teacher check – should all relate to word order 

helping to make sense 

3. (a) There have always been mythical creatures in the world’s 

folkore. 

(b) Stories of the kraken were based on a real giant squid. 

(c) Fans of the Harry Potter films would know of a griffin. 

(d) Surely dugongs are too ugly to be mistaken for mermaids! 

(e) I think if I was a creature I would be Bigfoot! 

(f) Mermaids in tales are said to lure sailors to their death. 

Questions – Page 35 

1. (a) full stop 

(b) full stop 

(c) question mark 

(d) question mark 

(e) full stop 

(f) question mark 

2. (a) Teacher check: What is Bigfoot and where is it found? 

(b) what, where 

(c) it 

(d) to avoid reptition (Bigfoot) 

3. (a)–(d) Teacher check 

4. Teacher check – Example: Is a griffin a beast to be feared? 

ASSESSMENT ANSWERS 

Assessment activity – Page 54 

1. (a)–(b) Teacher check 

2. Teacher check – Example: Remains of Bigfoot have never/not 

been found. 

3. (a) Even today, many cultures have a belief in fantastic 

creatures. 

(b) Mermaids are said to be half woman and half fish. 

4. Teacher check – Example: What is a griffin and how far back 

does it date? 

5. (a)–(c) Teacher check 

6. Teacher check – Example: Is the kraken based on the giant sea 

squid? 

Class record sheet – Page vii 

ASSESSMENT WRITING 

• Paragraph topic – Nightmare creatures 

• Focus: Sentence structure – Sentences, changing sentences, word 

order, questions 

Self-evaluation – Page xiii 

• Work with the class as a whole, demonstrating methods of changing 

statements to questions. Ensure students are comfortable with this 

concept. 

5. Teacher check 



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Teacher page 1 Teacher page 2 

31 

UNIT 5 

UNIT 5 

FANTASTIC OR REAL? 

SENTENCES, CHANGING SENTENCES 

1. By definition, something that is fantastic is based on fantasy; it’s not real. Every culture on Earth, from the 

earliest times to the present, has fantastic creatures in its folklore. But are they all fantasy, or could some be 

based in reality? Let’s explore some and see for ourselves. 

Mermaid/Merman 

2. With so much of the earth covered by water, it’s no wonder that tales of fantastic sea 

creatures exist. In some form or another, stories of mermaids and mermen (called merfolk 

collectively) are told around the world. Usually, they are portrayed as being human from 

the waist up, but a fish from the waist down. They also don’t have a very good reputation, 

being responsible for luring ships onto the rocks and sailors to their death! Some 

historians say the legends arose when people saw dugongs. If you’ve seen a picture 

of dugongs, you know they would make pretty ugly mermaids! 

Sasquatch/Bigfoot 

3. Bigfoot is a legendary creature of the North Americas. He is described as being two to 

three metres tall, weighing well over 200 kilograms, with a flat, moon-shaped face, small 

ears and covered entirely in hair. Native Americans told stories of him from the earliest 

times. ‘Sightings’, whether real, fake or just mistaken identity, have also been made since 

Europeans arrived on the continent. Strangely enough, even today, the creature has managed 

to never be captured, nor have any remains been found. I wonder why? 

Kraken 

4. The kraken is a gigantic sea monster to be found off the coasts of Norway and Greenland. 

It was said to attack sailing ships, dragging them and their helpless crews underwater. 

Stories tell of it fighting—and defeating—the largest of whales. It is described as 

having many arms, with spiked suckers on them, and a giant beaked mouth to tear flesh. 

Sound familiar? It should. Some scientists now believe that the kraken was ‘real’. They think 

that it was based on sightings of a giant squid that is known to grow up to 15 metres long! 

Griffin 

5. If you’re a fan of Harry Potter, you’ve seen a griffin. It is a curious creature, combining a lion’s back legs 

and body, and an eagle’s head, claws and wings. It’s origins may date back 5000 years! But why those two 

creatures? Well, the lion is said to be the king of beasts, so that choice is easy. And the eagle? To many people, 

it is the king of the air. Put the two together and you have a very powerful beast, one to be 

feared. So it’s not surprising that griffins in mythology were often shown as being guardians 

of treasure or kings. Even today, griffins feature on flags and army pennants. (Oh, Harry 

Potter, you ask? Dumbledore has a griffin for a door knocker. And Gryffindor is a version of 

the French griffon d’or, which means golden griffon. Now you know.) 

6. So there you have just a tiny few of the many fantastic creatures in folklore. How many are there, you ask? 

Hundreds, if not thousands. But how many are based on real life? The answer to that I’m afraid would take 

a lifetime.There is the vampire, unicorn, naiad, dragon, centaur, leprechaun, werewolf, bunyip, cerberus, 

chupacabra, fairy, faun, gorgon, satyr, sphinx, loup-garou ... 

A sentence is a set of words that makes sense by itself. 

An antonym is a word which has the opposite meaning to another word. 

1. A sentence must make sense on its own. Rewrite the statements to make complete 

sentences. 

(a) Stories of fantastic sea creatures 

(b) Bigfoot has never 

(c) Guardians of treasure 

(d) A giant beaked mouth 

Writers can give a new meaning to a sentence by making small changes. 

For example: by adding words like ‘not’ or by adding a prefix — ‘likely’ to ‘unlikely’ — or by 

writing an antonym. 

2. Change the sentence from a positive to a negative by adding a word or prefix. 

(a) The griffin is a curious creature. 

(b) Dugongs would make ugly mermaids. 

(c) There are thousands of creatures in the world’s folklore. 

(d) It is possible that Bigfoot really exists. 

3. Change the meaning by writing an antonym of the underlined word. 

(a) Some scientists today believe the kraken may have been real. 

(b) There have been some recorded sightings of Bigfoot by early settlers. 

(c) Choosing a lion for the griffin was an easy task. 

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Activity page 1 Activity page 2 

33 

UNIT 5 

UNIT 5 

WORD ORDER 

QUESTIONS 

1. Complete the pairs. 

(a) and paper (b) and meatballs 

(c) forth and 

(d) nuts and 

(e) ham and 

(f) sooner or 

(g) lock and 

(h) to and 

2. Word order makes a difference. 

(a) What did you notice about the pair in Question 1 (c)? 

A question needs an answer and is followed by a question mark. 

1. Add question marks at the end of questions and full stops after any statements. 

(a) I don’t believe in monsters 

(b) Please tell me you don’t believe in them 

(c) Where is Bigfoot found 

(d) Why do mermaids have a bad reputation 

(e) I always get asked about griffins (f) Don’t you know about the kraken 

2. Bigfoot is a giant ape-like creature found throughout North America. 

(a) Write the question that is answered by the statement. 

(b) Why do you think that was ? 

(c) What does that tell you about word order? 

(b) Which two question words did you use? 

3. Change the order of the words so the sentence makes sense. 

(a) creatures have been the in mythical world’s There always folklore. 

(c) What pronoun did you need to add to your question? 

(d) Why did you need the pronoun? 

3. Write a question about: 

(a) mermaids and dugongs 

(b) squid the of on based kraken were a real Stories giant. 

(b) lion and eagle 

(c) know the of a Harry films would griffin Potter Fans of. 

(c) giant squid 

(d) Norway and Greenland 

(d) for are to too Surely mermaids! dugongs ugly be mistaken 

4. Change the statement to a question. 

A griffin is a beast to be feared. 

(e) be I I I a think if was creature would Bigfoot! 

5. Complete the questions about the text. 

(a) When 

(f) to to said sailors Mermaids their tales are lure death in. 

(b) Where 

(c) What 

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Activity page 3 Activity page 4 

35 



v

ASSESSMENT ACTIVITIES 

CLASS RECORD 

Date: 

Name Unit 9 Unit 10 Unit 11 Unit 12 

viii 




CLASS RECORD 

Unit: Focus: Date: 

Paragraph topic: 

Name 

Comment 

x 



STUDENT WRITING CHECKLIST 

Name: 

Date: 

Assessment writing topic: 

Paragraph 

I have read the paragraph and it makes sense. .......................................................... 

I have read it to check for spelling errors. .................................................................. 

I have made corrections. ............................................................................................ 

Punctuation 

I have checked the sentences one at a time for: 

• capital letters to start sentences and proper nouns. ........................................... 

• full stops, question marks, exclamation marks. ................................................. 

• commas. ................................................................................................................ 

• apostrophes for contractions and ownership. ...................................................... 

• speech marks. ....................................................................................................... 

I have made corrections. ............................................................................................ 

Sentences 

I have checked the sentences one at a time for: 

• sense – Does each sentence make sense by itself? ............................................ 

• length – Are any sentences too long? ................................................................... 

Should they be separated? ..................................................................... 

Should some be joined? .......................................................................... 

• beginnings – Have I used interesting beginnings? ............................................... 

Word choices 

I have made changes. ...................................................................... 

verbs – Are they informative and different? ............................................................... 

Have I used the correct verb tense? ............................................................... 

Are there too many boring verbs? .................................................................. 

adverbials – Do some verbs need adverbials to tell how, 

when or where something happened? ................................................... 

noun groups – Are the noun groups descriptive? ...................................................... 

Can I add some descriptive adjectives to tell 

more about nouns and pronouns? ...................................................... 

pronouns – Have I used the correct pronouns? ......................................................... 

I have made changes and corrections. .................................................... 

xii 



STUDENT SELF-EVALUATION 

Name: Unit: Date: 

I wrote a paragraph about: 

My goal was to focus on: 

How well did I achieve my goal? 

Three things I did well in my writing were: 

• 

• 

• 

Next time I write a paragraph I will try to: 

STUDENT SELF-EVALUATION 

Name: Unit: Date: 

I wrote a paragraph about: 

My goal was to focus on: 

How well did I achieve my goal? 

Three things I did well in my writing were: 

• 

• 

• 

Next time I write a paragraph I will try to: 



xiii


USING PUNCTUATION IN 

SENTENCES 

UNIT 9 

Focus 

Punctuation – using punctuation in sentences 

Progression 

Recognise 

Students will recognise specified punctuation from modelled 

examples. 

Choose 

Students will choose appropriate punctuation for sentences with 

teacher support. 

Use 

Students will correctly punctuate supplied and self-written 

sentences. 



Capital letters are used at the beginning of a new sentence and 

for proper nouns. 

Proper nouns are nouns used for naming a particular person, 

place or thing. 

A full stop is used at the end of a sentence. 

A question mark is used at the end of a question. 

An exclamation mark is used at the end of an exclamation. 

Introduction 

Good writers improve their writing by using correct punctuation. 

Teacher information 

Punctuation enables a writer to more fully and accurately 

communicate with the reader by making the writing more 

understandable. 


Introduction 

• Read a teacher-selected short passage to the class, ignoring the 

punctuation and exaggerating the effects. 

• Ask students if they had difficulty understanding the passage. 

• Elicit from students the reason(s) why it was hard to understand. 

• Question how punctuation makes text easier to understand. List 

student responses and discuss. 

Do we need it? – Page 60 

• Set students to work in pairs to complete Question 1. 

• In small groups, discuss their answers. How similar were they? Why? 



• Encourage students to share with the class and discuss their 

answers to Question 4. 

Understanding punctuation – Page 61 

• Read and discuss the text. 

• Ask ‘What is missing?’ and list answers. 

• Emphasise that a capital is needed for proper nouns; for example, 

Eiffel Tower, France, Paris. 

• Explain that mum and dad only need a capital letter when used 

instead of their names; for example, My mum and dad love Paris — I 

asked Dad if we could go up the Eiffel Tower. 

• Review any further known punctuation. 



• Encourage students, in small groups or as a class, to discuss their 

responses to Question 4(c). 

Short sentences – Page 62 

• Read the text at the top of the page. 

• Ensure students are familiar with the features of a sentence, a 

command, an exclamation and a question, including their specific 

punctuation. 

• Provide opportunities for students to discuss in pairs the validity of 

their answers to Question 3. 

Is it correct? – Page 63 

• Revise with students the punctuation required for beginning and 

ending a sentence, proper nouns, questions, exclamations and 

commands. 



58 




USING PUNCTUATION IN 

SENTENCES 

UNIT 9 

ANSWERS 

Do we need it? – Page 60 

1. (a) It has no punctuation. 

(b) makes it harder to read and understand 

(c) Answers will vary. 

(d) no 

2. (a) Teacher check 

(b) 4 

(c) places 

(d) full stop 

(e) 7; 3 x sentence beginnings and 4 x proper nouns 


4. Teacher check. Discuss answers. Students should appreciate the 

need for punctuation. 

Understanding punctuation – Page 61 


(b) 8 

(c) 5 

(d) France, Eiffel Tower, Paris, Seine River, Arc de Triomphe 

2.–4. Teacher check 

Short sentences – Page 62 

1. (a) a capital letter; they start a new sentence 

(b) no; they’re not all the same form 

(c) question mark, full stop, exclamation mark 

2. (a) Beat the eggs./Off you go./Here comes the bus./Just eat it. 

(b) Duck!/Get rid of it!/Jump out of the way!/Just do it!/Get 

down!/Don’t stop now!/Kick it! 

(c) Teacher check 

(d) Teacher check – Example: Tell me who said that. 


4. Teacher check – along the lines of: ‘Peter said, “Duck” and all 

you could say was, “What’s the matter?”’ 

Is it correct? – Page 63 

1. (a) The Eiffel Tower is in Paris. 

(b) I don’t like heights. 

(c) Isn’t the Grand Canyon huge?/huge! 

(d) Paris is the capital of France. 

(e) Do heights scare you? 

(f) Get back from the edge./edge! 

(g) He said not to go in winter. 

(h) Your mother is going to Europe. 

2. Teacher check. Full punctuation: 

The observation deck at Rockefeller Centre in New York City is 

called ‘Top of the Rock’. When I was there it was freezing cold 

and the wind was howling, but the view was worth it. You can see 

Central Park and the Hudson River. 

3. (a) false (b) false 

(c) true (d) false 

(e) false (f) false 

(g) true 

4. (a) ✓, Niagara Falls, ✓ 

(b) Empire State Building, New Zealand, ✓ (some students may 

write J.K. with full stops; this is also correct) 

(c) Great Wall of China, Duke of Edinburgh, the universe 




(b) It’s, Las Vegas, Grand Canyon 

(c) sentence beginning and proper nouns 

(d) 1, after ‘Canyon’ 


6. (a) Las Vegas is also called ‘Lost Wages’ (or ‘lost wages’). 

(b) Can we see the Statue of Liberty? 

(c) Get away from the edge./edge! 

(d) Times Square is amazing./amazing! 

7. (a) the Mona Lisa 

(b) Dr Indiana Jones 

(c) San Francisco 

(d) Apple Macintosh 

(e) ✓ 

(f) Mediterranean Sea 

Class recording sheet — Page viii 


• Paragraph topic – My special holiday place 

• Focus: Punctuation – using punctuation in sentences 




59

UNIT 9 

DO WE NEED IT? 

In high places 

For someone who doesn’t like high places I sure have been in a lot of them 

i’ve even been on the grand canyon skywalk which is a glass ‘bridge’ over 

the canyon you can look down through the floor and see the ground over 

1200 metres below it’s scary but they say the bridge can hold the weight of 

70 boeing 747 jets 

1. Read ‘In high places’ with a partner. Read it aloud to each other. 

(a) What is the problem with this text? 

(b) What effect does that have? 

(c) Why? 

(d) Was it easy to understand? 

2. (a) Add the missing full stops and capital letters using a red coloured pencil or pen. 

(b) How many full stops did you add altogether? 

(c) Add one comma in the first sentence. What word is before it? 

(d) What other punctuation mark did you add in the first sentence? 

(e) How many capital letters did you add altogether? 

What did you need them for? 

3. Read the text to a partner again, after adding your punctuation. 

(a) Did you find it easier to read this time? 

(b) Explain your answer. 

(c) Do you think your partner found it easier to understand this time? 

4. Write two sentences about punctuation. Is it something we need or just an old-fashioned 

waste of time and effort? 

60 



UNIT 9 

UNDERSTANDING PUNCTUATION 

Capital letters are used at the beginning of a new sentence and for proper nouns. 

Proper nouns are nouns used for naming a particular person, place or thing. 

For example: Captain James Cook Statue of Liberty St Patrick’s Day 

The tower 

in france, I went to the top platform of the eiffel tower. There I was, 325 metres 

above the ground—and I could feel the platform sway! Far below me, paris 

was spread out. I could see the tourist boats on the seine river. our next stop 

was the famous Arc de Triomphe. 

1. (a) Use a red pencil or pen to put capital letters in the text. 

(b) How many capital letters did you need to add? 

(c) How many sentences are in the text? 

(d) Write the proper nouns from the text. 

2. (a) Write two sentences about a place someone you know likes to go to for holidays. Use 

capital letters to name the place and the person who enjoys going there. 

(b) How many proper nouns did you use in your sentences? 

3. Write a proper noun that tells you: 

a river 

a make of mobile phone 

an ocean 

a landmark 

a lake 

a continent 

4. (a) Write three sentences telling about three places in the world you would most like to 

visit. Remember the rule about proper nouns. 

(b) When using SMS, people often don’t use capitals for proper nouns. Do we still need 

them? Why do you think that? 



61

UNIT 9 

SHORT SENTENCES 

Duck! What’s the matter? Get rid of it! 

Jump out of the way! Just do it! Beat the eggs. 

Off you go. Get down! Who said that? Here comes the bus. 

Just eat it. Don’t stop now! Kick it! 

1. Read the short sentences. They are all sentences because they make sense. 

(a) What do they all start with? 

Why? 

(b) Do they all use the same punctuation mark at the end? 

Why not? 

(c) What are the three punctuation marks used at the end of these sentences? 

2. (a) Write the commands. 

(b) Write the exclamations. 

(c) Write any which could be both. 

(d) Change one of the questions to a statement. 

3. (a) Write a question of your own with fewer than six words. 

(b) Write an exclamation with five words. 

(c) Write a command with four words. 

4. Challenge: Write a sentence which has both a question and an exclamation in it. 

Hint: Direct speech—and you may like to work with a partner. 

62 



UNIT 9 

IS IT CORRECT? 

1. Find the punctuation error(s) in each sentence. Write the sentence correctly. 

(a) the Eiffel tower is in paris. 

(b) I don’t like heights? 

(c) Is the grand Canyon huge! 

(d) paris is the Capital of france 

(e) do heights scare you. 

(f) get back from the edge. 

(g) he said not to go in Winter? 

(h) your Mother is going to europe 

2. Read the paragraph. Find and circle the punctuation errors. Write the paragraph correctly. 

the observation deck at rockefeller centre in new york city is called ‘top of 

the rock’ when i was there it was freezing cold and the wind was howling 

but the view was worth it you can see central park and the hudson river 

3. Write ‘true’ or ‘false’ after each statement. 

(a) Capital letters are needed for the seasons. 

(b) The word ‘tiger’ needs a capital letter. 

(c) The word ‘queen’ when in a title needs a capital letter. 

(d) The words ‘aunty’ and ‘uncle’ always need a capital letter. 

(e) Always use a capital when you write the word ‘doctor’. 

(f) Always use a capital for ‘river’. 

(g) ‘Christmas’ and ‘Halloween’ both need capitals. 

4. Tick the box if the punctuation is correct. If it’s wrong, correct it. 

(a) Venus Niagara falls Yellowstone National Park 

(b) Empire State building new Zealand JK Rowling 

(c) great Wall of China duke of Edinburgh the Universe 



63


FULL STOPS, CAPITAL LETTERS, 

COMMAS, DIRECT SPEECH 

UNIT 10 

Focus 

Punctuation – full stops, capitals, commas, direct speech 

Progression 

Recognise 

Students will recognise specified punctuation from modelled 

examples. 

Choose 

Students will choose appropriate punctuation for sentences with 

teacher support. 

Use 

Students will correctly punctuate supplied and self-written 

sentences. 



Quotation marks are used to set off the actual words said or 

thought. 

A clause is a group of words that contains a verb and a subject; 

e.g. He (subject) walks (verb). 

A main clause is one which stands as a simple sentence in its own 

right; e.g. If it rains, you will get soaking wet. 

Introduction 

Good writers improve their writing by using correct punctuation. 



communicate with the reader. 

Note: There is more than one method of punctuating direct speech. 

(Two different methods are given in the Answers.) Whichever 

method is chosen, it must be consistently used. 

A comma is used before the coordinating conjunction (the Oxford 

comma or serial comma) in some publications. It is not incorrect 

to use it this way, but it is more common to not include the comma; 

e.g. I bought potatoes, tomatoes, beans and sprouts, rather than 

I bought potatoes, tomatoes, beans, and sprouts. However, it is 

acceptable in cases where there may be ambiguity or a need for 

clarification; e.g. My heroes are my parents, Iron Man and Batgirl. 

Since it is unlikely the writer really means ‘my parents’ are Iron 

Man and Batgirl, it can be rewritten as My heroes are my parents, 

Iron Man, and Batgirl. 


Introduction 

• Discuss the text title. Ask why it has an exclamation mark. 

Full stops – Page 66 

• Read the text with the class. 

• Ask students to identify the text type and discuss the features of 

narrative text. 

• Discuss the punctuation used. 

• Discuss how difficult it would be to read without punctuation. 

• Read and discuss the definition of full stops. 

• Discuss why the definition is so short in this instance. 



Capital letters – Page 67 

• Read and discuss the information at the top of the page about the 

use of capital letters. 

• Revise the definition of a sentence with students. 

• Read with the class the statement about proper nouns. Ask for 

further examples and list them on the board. 

• Emphasise that a capital is needed for names; hence ‘my doctor’ but 

‘Doctor Stephens’. 

• Explain that mum and dad only need a capital letter when used 

instead of their names; for example, My mum and dad love Scotland 

— I asked Mum and Dad if we could go to the Edinburgh Military 

Tattoo. 

Commas – Page 68 

• Read the information at the top of the page. 

• Provide opportunities for students to read aloud and discuss in pairs 

the sentences in Question 2. Reading aloud will provide the natural 

pauses indicating the need for a comma. 

• In pairs, students read and discuss their answers to Question 3. 

Direct speech – Page 69 

• Discuss the information given about direct speech. 

• Emphasise that it is the actual words used. Elicit further examples. 

• Discuss with the class the placement of punctuation in the example 

given. Ask why the punctuation is placed where it is. 

64 






UNIT 10 

ANSWERS 

Full stops – Page 66 


2. Mrs O’Brien gave Caleb his word to spell. He didn’t know it. 

3. (a) Caleb didn’t know the answer so he asked for the 

definition, word origin and a sentence. 

(b) Even though Old MacDonald had a farm, it didn’t help 

Caleb to spell the word. 

Capital letters – Page 67 

1. (b) Could you give me a definition, please? 

(c) The teacher is not happy. 

(d) Now I know. 

2. (a) While in Italy, we visited the Leaning Tower of Pisa and 

the Trevi Fountain in Rome. 

(b) The George Washington Bridge crosses the Hudson 

River between Manhattan and New Jersey. 

(c) When we go to Singapore in March, I really want to see 

Sentosa and Universal Studios. 

(d) The headquarters of the United Nations are in 

Manhattan, New York City. 

(e) Harry Potter’s school, Hogwarts, is on the shore of Black 

Lake. 

(f) Uncle Harry, Aunty Kath, Mum, Dad and I saw the Royal 

Edinburgh Military Tattoo on TV. 

Commas – Page 68 

1. (a) Helen’s favourite fruits are apples, grapes, pears, 

oranges and strawberries. 

(b) Birds of prey include eagles, hawks, falcons, harriers 

and owls. 

(c) I like hip hop, reggae and pop, but not classical, jazz, 

folk or country music. 

2. (a) With a mighty leap, Jerry caught the ball. 

(b) Caleb, looking blank and puzzled, couldn’t understand 

Mrs O’Brien. 

(c) Before your test tomorrow, you’ll need to study your 

spelling, science and maths. 


2. (a) ‘Why, oh why, can’t Caleb spell such a simple word?’ Mrs 

O’Brien thought. 

(b) Mrs O’Brien asked, ‘Jill, can you help Caleb to spell “farm”, 

please?’ 

(c) In his mind, Caleb thought, ‘Please, please, someone tell me 

how to spell it!’ 

(d) ‘Caleb!’ Mrs O’Brien snapped. ‘Why on earth can’t you spell the 

word?’ 

3. Teacher check. Answers will vary. 




2. I went to New York City. It was below freezing. I have never been so 

cold. 

3. When I visit Ireland in May, I want to see Dublin, Belfast and 

Kilkenny. 

4. (a) On our cruise we visit India, Jordan, Greece, Italy, France and 

finish in Southampton. 

(b) If the sea gets too rough, I think I will be heading for my cabin. 

(c) We will need US dollars, euros, dirhams, rupees and British 

pounds on our holiday. 

5. (a) No 

(b) He asked, ‘Can you please tell me the word origin, too?’ 

6. (a) ‘Dad! Dad!’ Caleb shouted. ‘I had a great day at school today!’ 

(b) ‘That’s wonderful, son. What happened?’ Dad asked. 

Class recording sheet – Page viii 


• Paragraph topic – My favourites 

• Focus: Punctuation – full stops, capital letters, commas, direct speech 


Direct speech – Page 69 

1. (a) ✓ 

(b) ✘ – ‘Well done, son’, said his father. ‘What 

happened?’/’Well done, son,’ said his father. 

(c) ✘ – ‘The teacher asked a question and I was the only 

one who knew the answer!’ 

(d) ✓ 

(e) My teacher asked, ‘All right. Who put the drawing pin on 

my chair?’ 



65

UNIT 10 

FULL STOPS 

Spellcheck! 

Mrs O’Brien is giving the class a spelling test. 

‘Caleb,’ she says, ‘your word is “farm”.’ 

Caleb looks thoughtful but puzzled. ‘May I have a definition, please?’ 

‘Certainly. It’s an area of agricultural land for growing crops or raising stock.’ 

Caleb still looks blank. He asks for the word’s origin. That’s no help. The 

teacher is getting a little annoyed. Finally, Caleb asks if he can have the word 

in a sentence. 

Mrs O’Brien almost shouts, ‘Old MacDonald had a FARM!’ 

‘Oh,’ says Caleb, much relieved, ‘now I know!’ 

‘E–I–E–I–O’ 

A full stop (.) is used to show the end of a sentence. 

1. Rewrite the following so they make complete sentences. 

(a) An area of agricultural land 

(b) Finally, he asks 

(c) Giving the class 

2. Rewrite the sentence. Put full stops and capital letters where needed. 

mrs o’brien gave caleb his word to spell he didn’t know it 

3. Rewrite the sentence. Put full stops, capital letters and commas where needed. 

(a) caleb didn’t know the answer so he asked for the definition word origin and a sentence 

(b) even though old macdonald had a farm it didn’t help caleb to spell the word 

66 



UNIT 10 

CAPITAL LETTERS 

A capital letter is used to start a sentence. 

1. Use a red pen to write capital letters where needed. 

(a) for growing crops 

(b) could you give me a definition, please? 

(c) the teacher is not happy 

(d) now I know 

(e) not a farmer 

Proper nouns are names for particular people, places or things. They need a capital letter. 

For example: Ashley, Norway, World Health Organisation, Golden Gate Bridge. 

2. Rewrite the sentence using capital letters where needed. Add commas if necessary. 

(a) while in italy we visited the leaning tower of pisa and the trevi fountain in rome. 

(b) the george washington bridge crosses the hudson river between manhattan and new 

jersey. 

(c) when we go to singapore in march I really want to see sentosa and universal studios. 

(d) the headquarters of the united nations are in manhattan, new york city. 

(e) harry potter’s school, hogwarts, is on the shore of black lake. 

(f) uncle harry, aunty kath, mum, dad and I saw the royal edinburgh military tattoo on tv. 



67

UNIT 10 

COMMAS 

A comma is used to separate items in a list. 

For example: ‘On Monday we have reading, spelling, maths, science and art’. 

There is no comma needed before the conjunction (‘and/or’) in a list. 

1. Rewrite the sentence, putting in commas where needed. 

(a) Helen’s favourite fruits are apples grapes pears oranges and strawberries. 

(b) Birds of prey include eagles hawks falcons harriers and owls. 

(c) I like hip hop reggae and pop, but not classical jazz folk or country music. 

A comma is used to separate the main clause in a sentence from a helper clause. The main 

clause makes sense on its own. 

For example: If you go to the shop (helper clause), don’t forget to buy more milk (main 

clause): The boy, feeling very happy, turned on the TV. 

2. Add commas to the sentences. 

(a) With a mighty leap Jerry caught the ball. 

(b) Caleb looking blank and puzzled couldn’t understand Mrs O’Brien. 

(c) Before your test tomorrow you’ll need to study your spelling science and maths. 

3. Write a sentence of your own, using a comma to separate the main and helper clauses. 

68 



UNIT 10 

DIRECT SPEECH 

Direct speech is the actual words or thoughts used by people. Direct speech must be 

enclosed with quotation marks. 

For example, ‘What is the matter?’ asked Maureen. ‘You’re very grumpy.’ 

1. Read the sentence. If it is correct as written, put a tick in the box. If it’s incorrect, put a cross 

in the box and make the corrections using red pen. 

(a) Caleb said he’d had a great day at school. 

(b) Well done, son, said his father. What happened? 

(c) The teacher asked a question and I was the only one who knew the answer! 

(d) ‘That’s wonderful. What was the question?’ 

(e) My teacher asked, All right. Who put the drawing pin on my chair? 

2. Rewrite the sentence adding quotation marks where needed. 

(a) Why, oh why, can’t Caleb spell such a simple word? Mrs O’Brien thought. 

(b) Mrs O’Brien asked, Jill, can you help Caleb to spell “farm”, please? 

(c) In his mind, Caleb thought, Please, please, someone tell me how to spell it! 

(d) Caleb! Mrs O’Brien snapped. Why on earth can’t you spell the word? 

3. Write Caleb’s answer to Mrs O’Brien. Use direct speech. 



69


APOSTROPHES IN CONTRACTIONS 

UNIT 11 

Focus 

Punctuation – apostrophes in contractions 

Progression 

Recognise 

Students will recognise apostrophes in contractions in modelled 

examples. 

Choose 

Students will write contractions correctly with teacher support. 

Use 

Students will write contractions correctly in supplied and selfwritten 

sentences. 


Contractions are new words made by joining two words and 

leaving out some letters. 

Apostrophes are punctuation marks used to show where letters 

are missing in contractions. (They are also used to show 

possession.) 

Introduction 

Good writers improve their writing by using apostrophes correctly. 




Contractions in most cases only present difficulty in writing, 

the exception being could’ve, would’ve and should’ve which are 

often pronounced as though followed by ‘of’ instead of ‘have’ and 

subsequently written that way. 


Introduction 

• Discuss apostrophes—what they are, where they are placed and why 

they are used; i.e. in contractions (and to indicate possession). 

• Explain that the focus in this section will be on apostrophes in 

contractions and give some examples. 

• Explain that contractions are quicker and easier to say, and discuss 

and model a variety of examples. 

Apostrophes in contractions – Page 72 

• Read and discuss the definitions at the top of the page. 

• Read the phrases and ask the class to expand each contraction. 

• Read through the activities with the class, ensuring they understand 

what is required of them. 

• Ask students to explain their answers to Question 3. 

Using contractions – Page 73 

• Explain that answers to Question 1 may not all be the same, but that 

they must fit in the sentence. 

• Explain that some different words used in contractions are shortened 

in the same way; for example, It is (it’s) a pleasure — It has (it’s) 

been a pleasure. 

• Provide opportunities for students to share their sentences from 

Question 4. 

• Before completing Question 5, remind the class that apostrophes are 

used to show missing letters. 

It’s or its? – Page 74 

• Read and revise with the class the information given at the top of the 

page. 

• Emphasise that it’s easy to work out which to use by asking the 

simple qustion, ‘Can I say “it is” or “it has” here?’ If the answer is 

‘yes’, an apostrophe is needed. 

• Discuss students’ answers to Question 1. 

• Students can share the sentences they wrote in Questions 4, 5 and 6. 

Could have, would have and should have – Page 75 

• Discuss the illustration at the top of the page and explain that would, 

could, might, must and should must be followed by the verb have and 

must never be shot down by the enemy (of). 

• Share the sentences written in Question 1. The three words are all to 

be followed by ‘have’, but what word comes next? Is it a verb? (Yes.) 

Why? (Because would, could, should, might and must are modal 

auxiliaries and require a main verb with them.) 

• Students should share their sentences for Question 2. 

70 





UNIT 11 

ANSWERS 

Apostrophes in contractions – Page 72 

Contraction Two words Missing letters 

I’ve I have h, a 

might’ve might have h, a 

would’ve would have h, a 

needn’t need not o 

they’d they would w, o, u, l 

You’re you are a 

1. (a)–(c) See chart 

I’ll I will w, i 

2. (a) Who’d have thought I’d ever see Paris? 

(b) They’ll be on time. 

(c) I’d already said, ‘Don’t throw rocks or you’ll regret it’. 

(d) She would’ve come if you’d asked. 

3. (a) less formal 

(b) imaginative/narrative – Teacher check: It’s a less formal 

format, may contain slang, jargon, direct speech. 

(c) Teacher check: Hear — they are less formal. 

Using contractions – Page 73 

1. (a) she’d 

(b) You’ve 

(c) should’ve (hasn’t) 

(d) There’s 


5. Teacher check: 

(a) o’clock 

(b) man-o’-war 

(c) rock’n’roll/ rock ’n’ roll (watch apostrophe direction) 

(d) ma’am 

(e) shan’t 

(f) wouldn’t’ve 

Could have, would have and should have – Page 75 

1. (a) I could have done it. 

(b) I might have been wrong. 

(c) He mustn’t have closed the gate. 

(d) That wouldn’t have been possible. 

(e) You shouldn’t have gone. 


3. If you could have seen the accident, you would have felt the same 

way, I would have thought. 



1. (a) shouldn’t’ve – should not have 

(b) What’d – What would 

2. (a) What’s been the problem? 

(b) I couldn’t understand it. 

3. would’ve/might’ve/should’ve/could’ve 

4. (a) is (b) has 

5. (a) It’s, it’s (b) its, it’s 


8. You mustn’t have been listening when the teacher said we 

shouldn’t have gone home. 


Class recording sheet — Page viii 


• Paragraph topic – I should have done better! 

• Focus: Punctuation – apostrophes in contractions 


It’s or its? – Page 74 

1. (a) writing 

(b) Teacher check – wrong written usage could cause 

comprehension problems 

2. (a) has (b) is 

(c) is (d) has 

(e) has 

3. (a) It’s, its (b) it’s, it’s 

(c) It’s, it’s, its (d) its, it’s 

4. (a) it’s, it’s (b) it’s, its 

(c) It’s, its (d) It’s, its 

5.–7. Teacher check. Answers will vary. 



71

UNIT 11 


Contractions are new words made by joining two words and leaving out some letters. 

An apostrophe is used in a contraction to show that some letters are missing. 

What’d he been doing? She’s cross! I won’t forget! 

Rhythm ’n’ blues We’re going now. She’d be lucky! 

What’d he want? Where’ve you been? What’ll I do? 

Contraction Two words Missing letters 

I’ve I have h, a 

1. Circle all the contractions and add them to the chart above. An example has been given. 

(a) I might’ve broken the plate, but it would’ve been an accident. 

(b) You needn’t ask them what they’d like. 

(c) You’re all working very well and I’ll happily give you a reward. 

2. Rewrite the sentences using contractions. 

(a) Who would have thought I would ever see Paris? 

(b) They will be on time. 

(c) I had already said, ‘Do not throw rocks or you will regret it’. 

(d) She would have come if you had asked. 

3. (a) Are the sentences you wrote in Question 2 more or less formal? 

(b) In which text form would you be more likely to use contractions? Why? 

(c) Are you more likely to read or hear contractions? Why? 

72 



UNIT 11 

USING CONTRACTIONS 

1. Use a suitable contraction to complete the sentence. 

(a) Mary would have given it back if 

(b) My teacher said, ‘Well done. 

known it was yours. 

worked very hard today’. 

(c) She 

(d) 

worn a hat in the sun today. 

been some sort of mix-up in the bookings. 

2. ‘He’s’ could mean ‘he is’ (He’s a good boy) or ‘he has’ (He’s been naughty today). Write 

sentences showing each meaning of: 

(a) That’s 

(b) It’s 

That’s 

It’s 

(c) Who’s 

Who’s 

3. Write a sentence using a contraction of: 

(a) is 

(b) has 

4. The contraction ‘what’s’ can be used for ‘what is’, ‘what has’ and ‘what does’. Write a 

sentence for each meaning. 

(a) what is 

(b) what has 

(c) what does 

5. Challenge: Unusual contractions. Write a sentence using the contracted form. Work with 

a partner and a dictionary. 

(a) of the clock 

(b) man of war 

(c) rock and roll 

(d) madam 

(e) shall not 

(f) would not have 



73

UNIT 11 

IT'S OR ITS? 

The word ‘it’s’ only needs an apostrophe if it is a contraction. 

For example: ‘It’s warm today’ (It is warm today); ‘It’s been a pleasure’ (It has been a pleasure). 

1. (a) When would confusion between it’s and its cause more problems: when you are 

speaking or when you are writing? 

(b) Explain your answer. 

2. Write ‘is’ or ‘has’. 

(a) It’s been fun. (b) It’s not fair! (c) It’s OK. 

(d) It’s got everything! 

(e) It’s become worse. 

3. Circle the correct words. 

(a) (It’s, Its) been so hot today my dog hasn’t left (it’s, its) kennel. 

(b) I don’t know if (it’s, its) going to rain, but (it’s, its) certainly cloudy enough. 

(c) (It’s, Its) been a long winter, but (it’s, its) drawing to (it’s, its) close. 

(d) If you listen to (it’s, its) lyrics closely, (it’s, its) not a sad song. 

4. Add ‘it’s’ or ‘its’. 

(a) My dad said been a long day and he’ll be glad when over. 

(b) That chicken doesn’t think right to take eggs. 

(c) fun to watch my puppy chasing tail. 

(d) a full moon tonight, so you can see entire face. 

5. Use ‘its’ in a sentence about: 

(a) a goldfish 

(b) a kite 

6. Use ‘it’s’ (it is) in a sentence about: 

(a) a winter’s day 

(b) a sports car 

7. Use ‘it’s’ (it has) in a sentence about: 

(a) this year 

(b) holidays 

74 



UNIT 11 

COULD HAVE, WOULD HAVE, SHOULD HAVE, MIGHT 

HAVE, MUST HAVE – BEWARE! TAKE CARE! 

The words ‘would’, 

‘could’, ‘should’, 

‘must’ and ‘might’ can 

only be followed by a 

verb. ‘Have’ is a verb; 

‘of’ is NOT a verb. 

1. Correct the sentence. 

(a) I could of done it. 

(b) I might of been wrong. 

(c) He mustn’t of closed the gate. 

(d) That wouldn’t of been possible. 

(e) You shouldn’t of gone. 

Question: Why do so many people use would, could, might, must and should followed by ‘of’? 

Answer: If you say ‘would’ve’, ‘could’ve’, ‘must’ve’, ‘might’ve’ and ‘should’ve’ fast, the 

‘-ve’ SOUNDS like ‘of’. 

Your ears may be fooled, but not your eyes. These words are NEVER followed by ‘of’! 

2. Write interesting sentences using: 

(a) must 

(b) should not 

(c) might not 

(d) would 

(e) could 

3. Write the sentence correctly. 

If you could of seen the accident, you would of felt the same, I would of thought. 



75


APOSTROPHES FOR POSSESSION 

UNIT 12 

Focus 

Punctuation – apostrophes for possession 

Progression 

Recognise 

Students will recognise possessive apostrophes from modelled 

examples. 

Choose 

Students will choose appropriate possessive apostrophes for 

sentences with teacher support. 

Use 

Students will correctly use possessive apostrophes in supplied 

and self-written sentences. 


A possessive apostrophe is a punctuation mark used to show 

ownership. 

Introduction 

Good writers improve their writing by using apostrophes correctly. 




Possessive apostrophes show who or what possesses the noun 

referred to; e.g. The Smith family’s home – the Smith family own it. 


Introduction 

• Discuss apostrophes—what they are, where they are placed and why 

they are used; i.e. to indicate possession and in contractions. 

• Explain that the focus in this section will be on apostrophes to show 

ownership and give some examples. 

• Explain that apostrophes to show ownership are quicker and easier 

to say; e.g. Brown and Sons’ (company) rather than ‘the company 

belonging to (Mr) Brown and his sons’. 

• Discuss and model a variety of examples. 

Apostrophes for ownership – Page 78 

• Discuss the rules for ownership and apostrophe placement. 

• Work with the class as a whole to ensure these concepts are fully 

understood. 

• Work through the examples with the class. 

• Allow more capable students to work in small groups or pairs to 

create further examples, while directly assisting those who need 

greater explanation and help. 

Who owns what? – Page 79 

• Revise with the class the two rules of apostrophe placement for 

possession. 

• Revise how ownership can be deduced from the placement of the 

apostrophe. 

• Work Question 1(a) as a group, with teacher support, to ensure 

understanding. 



How many owners? – Page 80 

• Read the information at the top of the page. 

• Work through an example on the board with the class as a whole. 

• Work through questions 1(a) and 1(b) with students, providing 

support or additional information where needed. 

• Continue to work with those requiring additional assistance while the 

remainder of the class work independently on the activities. 

Practise using apostrophes – Page 81 

• Read and revise with the class the two rules of apostrophe 

placement for possession. 

• Revise the concept of ownership as a pair—e.g. Jock and Donna’s 

homework—and the placement of the apostrophe. 

• Allow students to work through the exercises, assisting as required. 

• In pairs or small groups, encourage students to discuss their 

answers to Question 8, since these will vary. 

76 





UNIT 12 

ANSWERS 

Apostrophes for ownership – Page 78 

1. All examples should have ‘Yes’ marked. 

2. (a) Mr Smith’s (b) Max and Sue’s 

(c) boys’ 

(d) girl’s 

(e) family’s 

(f) Jean’s 

(g) Laura and Ben’s (h) chemist’s 

(i) houses’ 

(j) dog’s 

(k) Moses’s OR Moses’ (l) Jess’s 

Who owns what? – Page 79 

1. (a) Smith and sons (b) the armies 

(c) the princesses (d) the Jones family 

(e) Mark and Shayna (f) Jones and son 

2. (a) our family ✘ ✓ 

(b) the witches ✓ ✓ 

(c) Grandad ✘ ✓ 

(d) Moby Dick ✘ ✓ 

(e) Mickey ✓ ✓ 

(f) my tablet ✘ ✓ 

3. (a) Mrs Brown and daughters’ company ✓ ✓ 

(b) the farmers’ tractors 

✓ ✓ 

(c) Mr Jones’s/Jones’ class ✓ ✓ 

(d) the soldiers’ guns 

✓ ✓ 

(e) the supermarket’s trolleys ✓ ✓ 

How many owners? – Page 80 

1. (a) the cities – p 

(b) the circuses – p 

(c) the prince – s 

(d) my father – s 

(e) the horses – p 

(f) the bird – s 

(g) the lawyers – p 

(h) ants – p 

2. (a) boys’ 

(b) gardens’ 

(c) children’s 

(d) ladies’ 

(e) girls’ 

3. (a) baby’s 

(b) school’s 

(c) actor’s 

(d) witch’s 


Practise using apostrophes – Page 81 


4. (a) Sue and Blane’s 

(b) sons’ 

(c) Meghan and Harry’s 

5. Teacher check. Answers will vary. 



1. Rule 1: after Rule 2: before/after 

2. (a) Yes 

(b) No (should be ‘sister’s’, singular) 

3. (a) neighbours’ 

(b) Jon and Mae’s 

(c) boys’ 

(d) girl’s 

(e) family’s 

(f) Mavis’s 

4. (a) Simon and Simon 

(b) the babies 

(c) the princesses 

5. (a) Vincent and sons’ grocery shop 

(b) the gardeners’ shovels 

6. (a) chickens’ 

(b) army’s 


Class recording sheet – Page viii 


• Paragraph topic – Zoo animals 

• Focus: Punctuation – apostrophes for possession 




77

UNIT 12 

APOSTROPHES FOR OWNERSHIP 

Apostrophes can be used to show ownership. Some people find it difficult to know where 

the apostrophe should go. But, if you follow the simple rules, it’s easy! 

Rule 1 An apostrophe is placed after the owner or owners. 

Rule 2 There must be an ‘s’ before or after the apostrophe. 

1. Check the last sentence in each example. Does it follow Rules 1 and 2? 

The pencil belongs to Eamonn. 

Eamonn owns the pencil. 

It is Eamonn’s pencil. Yes No 

The bags belong to Chloe and Sarah. 

The girls own the bags. 

They are the girls’ bags. Yes No 

The footballs belong to the boys. 

The boys own the footballs. 

They are the boys’ footballs. Yes No 

The games belong to Josh and Tim. 

Josh and Tim own the games. 

They are Josh and Tim’s games. Yes No 

2. Complete the sentences. 

(a) The car belongs to Mr Smith. It is 

car. 

(b) That is the house of Max and Sue. It is 

house. 

(c) Those marbles belong to the boys. They are the 

marbles. 

(d) The cap belongs to that girl. It is that 

cap. 

(e) That is the home of the Smith family. It is the Smith 

home. 

(f) Jean sits in that chair. It is 

chair. 

(g) Those books belong to Laura and Ben. They are 

(h) Those tablets are from the chemist. They are the 

(i) Those flags are on the houses. They are the 

flags. 

books. 

tablets. 

(j) That dog has a collar. It is the 

collar. 

(k) Those stones belong to Moses. They are 

stones. 

(l) The party is for Jess. It is 

party. 

78 



UNIT 12 

WHO OWNS WHAT? 

Rule 1 

Rule 2 

An apostrophe is placed after the owner or owners. 

There must be an ‘s’ before or after the apostrophe. 

1. Write the name of the owner or owners. 

(a) Smith and Sons’ company 

(b) the armies’ cannons 

(c) the princesses’ ball gowns 

(d) the Jones family’s house 

(e) Mark and Shayna’s garden 

(f) Jones and Son’s law firm 

2. Write the name of the owner or owners. Put a tick or cross to show if it follows both rules. 

(a) our familys’ holiday Rule 1 Rule 2 

(b) the witches’ wands Rule 1 Rule 2 

(c) Grandads’ hat Rule 1 Rule 2 

(d) Moby Dicks’ spout Rule 1 Rule 2 

(e) Mickey’s ears Rule 1 Rule 2 

(f) my tablets’ mouse Rule 1 Rule 2 

3. Use an apostrophe to show the owners. Check and tick the rule boxes. 

(a) the company belonging to (Mrs) Brown and her daughters 

Rule 1 Rule 2 

(b) the tractors belonging to two farmers 

Rule 1 Rule 2 

(c) the class belonging to Mr Jones 

Rule 1 Rule 2 

(d) the guns of the soldiers 

Rule 1 Rule 2 

(e) the trolleys from the supermarket 

Rule 1 Rule 2 



79

UNIT 12 

HOW MANY OWNERS? 

It is easy to work out if there is only one single owner or if there are plural owners. Just 

follow the steps. 

Step 1 Find the apostrophe. 

Step 2 Find the owner. (What is written just before the apostrophe?) 

Step 3 Ask yourself if there is one or more than one of them. 

1. Underline the owner or owners. How many owners are there? Write ‘s’ for one and ‘p’ for 

more than one. 

(a) the cities’ roads (b) the circuses’ clowns 

(c) the prince’s sword (d) my father’s razor 

(e) the horses’ saddles (f) the bird’s nest 

(g) the lawyers’ firm (h) ants’ nests 

2. Change one owner to more than one owner by moving the apostrophe. You may need to 

change words. 

(a) one boy’s brothers 

(b) one garden’s blooms 

(c) one child’s books 

(d) one lady’s coats 

(e) one girl’s blouses 

3. Change a number of owners to one owner by moving the apostrophe. You may need to 

change words. 

(a) the babies’ nappies 

(b) the schools’ books 

(c) the actors’ films 

(d) the witches’ spells 

4. Write an interesting sentence showing one owner of ‘video games’. 

5. Write an interesting sentence showing many owners of ‘smartphones’. 

80 



UNIT 12 

PRACTISE USING APOSTROPHES 

Rule 1 

Rule 2 

An apostrophe is placed after the owner or owners. 

There must be an ‘s’ before or after the apostrophe. 

1. (a) Write the name of a favourite male singer. 

(b) What is something he uses to sing? 

(c) It is . 

2. (a) Write the name of a female actor. 

(b) What is something she uses in films? 

(c) It is . 

3. (a) Write the names you call your parents. 

(b) Write one thing they own together. 

(c) It is . 

4. (a) Sue and Blane buy a house together. 

It is 

house. 

(b) Mr Kelly and his two sons own a grocery shop. 

It is Kelly and 

shop. 

(c) Meghan and Harry have a new baby. 

It is 

baby. 

5. (a) Write an interesting sentence telling about some tractors 

owned by the farmers. 

(b) Write an interesting sentence telling about buying a present for Mum and Dad. 

(c) Write an interesting sentence telling about the lights on a Christmas tree. 



81

ASSESSMENT UNIT 9 

USING PUNCTUATION IN SENTENCES 

Name: 

Date: 

it’s quite amazing to drive from the flat desert of las vegas and find yourself 

just a little later in the magnificent grand canyon 

1. (a) Use a red pen or marker to add the missing capital letters and full stops. 

(b) Where did you place the capital letters? 

(c) Why did you place them there? 

(d) How many full stops did you need? 

Where? 

2. Write a proper noun that tells you: 

(a) a cartoon character 

(b) a country 

(c) a TV show 

(d) an organisation 

3. Write two short exclamations telling someone to hurry. 

4. Write two short questions to ask someone from France. 

5. Write two short commands a sheriff might use. 

6. Correct the punctuation error(s). 

(a) las vegas is also called ‘lost wages’. 

(b) can we see the statue of liberty. 

(c) get away from the edge? 

(d) times square is amazing 

7. Put a tick in the box if the punctuation is correct. If it’s wrong, correct it with a red pen. 

(a) the Mona lisa (b) dr Indiana Jones 

(c) san Francisco (d) Apple macintosh 

(e) SS Enterprise (f) Mediterranean sea 

82 






Name: 

Date: 

1. Rewrite the statement to make a complete sentence. 

Thinking to himself, 

2. Rewrite the sentence. Put full stops where needed. 

I went to New York City it was below freezing I have never been so cold 

3. Rewrite the sentence. Put capitals where needed. 

when i visit ireland in may, i want to see dublin, belfast and kilkenny. 

4. Rewrite the sentence. Put commas where needed. 

(a) On our cruise we visit India Jordan Greece Italy France and finish in Southampton. 

(b) If the sea gets too rough I think I will be heading for my cabin. 

(c) We will need US dollars euros dirhams rupees and British pounds on our holiday. 

5. Does the sentence need quotation marks? If yes, add them in red pen. 

(a) Caleb asked if he could please hear the word in a sentence. Yes No 

(b) He asked, Can you please tell me the word origin, too? Yes No 

6. Rewrite the sentence. Add quotation marks where needed. 

(a) Dad! Dad! Caleb shouted. I had a great day at school today! 

(b) That’s wonderful, son. What happened? Dad asked. 



83



Name: 

Date: 

1. Circle the contractions. Write them as separate words. 

(a) I shouldn’t’ve have eaten that cake! 

(b) What’d you do in his situation? 

2. Rewrite the sentences using contractions. 

(a) What has been the problem? 

(b) I could not understand it. 

3. Use a suitable contraction to complete the sentence. 

That 

happened no matter what you did to stop it. 

4. Which verb has been used in the contraction? Write ‘is’ or ‘has’ on the line. 

(a) It’s a real problem. 

(b) It’s grown a lot since then! 

5. Circle the correct words. 

(a) (It’s, Its) been a great holiday, but now (it’s, its) time to go home. 

(b) Give the puppy (it’s, its) food before (it’s, its) time for us to go. 

6. Use both it’s (it is) and its in a sentence about a whale. 

7. Use both it’s (it has) and its in a sentence about a giant. 

8. Rewrite the sentence correctly. 

You mustn’t of been listening when the teacher said we shouldn’t of gone home. 

9. Use the contractions in a short sentence. 

(a) would have 

(b) could have 

(c) should have 

(d) might have 

84 





Name: 

Date: 

1. Complete the rules: 

Rule 1: An apostrophe is placed the owner or owners. 

Rule 2: There must be an ‘s’ or the apostrophe. 

2. Tick yes or no. 

(a) That house belongs to Mum and Dad. 

Mum and Dad own the house. 

It is Mum and Dad’s house. Yes No 

3. Complete the sentences. 

(a) The car belongs to our neighbours. It is our 

(b) That is the house of Jon and Mae. It is 

(b) That bike belongs to my sister. 

My sister owns the bike. 

It is my sisters’ bike. Yes No 

car. 

house. 

(c) Those pencils belong to the boys. They are the 

pencils. 

(d) The puppy belongs to that girl. It is that 

puppy. 

(e) That is the home of the Brown family. It is the Brown 

home. 

(f) Mavis sits in that chair. It is 

chair. 

4. Write the name of the owner or owners. 

(a) Simon and Simon’s company 

(b) the babies’ bootees 

(c) the princesses’ crowns 

5. Use an apostrophe to show the owners. 

(a) the grocery shop belonging to (Mr) Vincent and his two sons 

(b) the shovels belonging to two gardeners 

6. Change one owner to more than one owner by moving the apostrophe. 

one chicken’s eggs many eggs 

7. Change more than one owner to one owner by changing a word. 

the armies’ cannon one cannon 

8. Write a sentence telling about some pets owned by two sisters. 



85

RIC-20808_Teaching_Strategies_for_Writing_BkF_punctuation

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