20855_Editing_descriptions_Years_4_and_5

Prepositions
Prepositions show the relationship between nouns and/or pronouns in the same sentence.
Common prepositions include: across, about, between, by, during, for, from, in, of, since,
through, until, without, up
Conjunctions
He disappeared during the night.
I’m afraid of spiders.
I enjoy reading books about travel.
Conjunctions are joining words. They can join different language units.
• One word with another .........................e.g. black or white
• One phrase with another........................e.g. on the beach and in the sand
• One clause with another........................e.g. He asked me if I could cook.
• One sentence with another....................e.g. I was hot so I went for a swim.
SPELLING
Singular and plural nouns
Adding ‘s’ and ‘es’
Teacher information
The most commonly used plural is made by adding ‘s’; e.g. books, games.
It is usually necessary to add ‘es’ to nouns ending in ‘ch’, ‘sh’, ‘s’, ‘x’ and ‘z’ to make the
plural easier to pronounce; e.g. washes, dishes, classes, foxes and waltzes.
Words ending in ‘o’ are also often made into a plural by adding ‘es’; potatoes, tomatoes.
There are many exceptions, including radios, merinos, silos, zeros, photos and sopranos.
Students should be encouraged to consult a dictionary if uncertain about the spelling of a
plural.
Changing ‘y’ to ‘i’ and adding ‘es’
Many nouns and verbs ending with ‘y’, change the ‘y’ to ‘i’ before adding ‘es’.
lady (singular noun)................................ ladies (plural noun)
curry (singular noun).............................. curries (plural noun)
I cry........................................................ he cries (verbs)
‘i’ before ‘e’ except after ‘c’
Like most rules, there are many exceptions, but this rule is generally true.
perceive, thief, receive – seize, caffeine (exceptions)
R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au Editing skills xi