BASIC PUNCTUATION AND

GRAMMARENGLISH REVISION SESSION

REMEMBERO In order to get a C or above in your

English exam, you must use 5 different types of punctuation in your written paper( unit 2) other than a full stop or comma.

O In order to get a B-A*, you must use punctuation to craft your writing for audience and purpose.

Common mistakesO Apostrophes- forgotten or misused.O Paragraphs- forgottenO Commas- over usedO Exclamation marks- over usedO Inverted commas around titles-

forgottenO Capital letters- under usedO Colons and semi colons- hardly used

APOSTROPHESO Apostrophes are used to show

ownership of something and to indicate that some letters are missing.

FOR OWNERSHIPO When you are writing about a belonging, add an

apostrophe + ‘s’ to the name of the owner. David’s dog was missing.

O If the name ends in ‘s’ you can choose to stick it on the end of the s James’ suitcase or add another ‘s, James’s suitcase.

O For groups of people of things- O If the group already ends in s, add the apostrophe

on the end. Words like men, women and mice follow the same rules. They found the killer eels’ during the men’s swimming championships.

FOR MISSING LETTERS-

O You must use an apostrophe when you are using the shortened version of two words such as he’s instead of he is.

O The following are all shortened versions and must have an apostrophe

O I’m- I am I won’t – I will notO I’d- I would or I had I’ve- I haveO they’re- they are who’s – who isO don’t- do not doesn’t- does notO can’t- can not we’re – we are

Correct these sentences

1. I cant go with you to James house.2. Wheres the magazine I was reading?3. I borrowed Kates skirt for Brads party.4. Theyre really annoying me today.5. Were not going to Mrs Watts detention6. The womens football team was rubbish7. She said it was hers but actually it was

Beths idea. 8. It was Kate and Simons wedding.

AnswersO I can’t go with you to James’ house.O Where’s the magazine I was reading?O I borrowed Kate’s skirt for Brads party.O They’re really annoying me today.O We’re not going to Mrs Watts’ detentionO The women’s football team was rubbishO She said it was hers but actually it was

Beth’s idea. O It was Kate and Simon’s wedding

COMMAS

O Commas break up lists, add ideas and keep sentences clear.

Commas for lists

O I love cake, ice cream, sweets and chocolate.

O Don’t forget- when you write a list, put a comma after each thing.. except the last two.

Commas to make the meaning clearer

O Tom told her to be quiet, but she started to scream.

O The sentence contains two pieces of information so we need a comma to make it clearer.

O Remember, you must use a comma in sentences with two clear points.

COMMAS FOR EXTRA INFORMATION

O When adding extra information to a sentence, you must use a comma.

O With a growl, the tiger pounced on the poodle.

O Sometimes the extra information is added to the middle of the sentence, so you need two commas.

O The twins, who were confused by the event, were sitting on the grass.

COLONS

are used for lists and explanations

Colons for listsO The colon is used to let you know

that a list is about to begin. O You will need the following

ingredients: a large egg, 200grams of flour, 250 ml of milk

Colons for explanationsO Colons are also to introduce an

explanation. Colons are used to divide a sentence where the second part of the sentence explains the first part, or tells you more about it.

O The office was empty: everyone had finished their work and gone home.

SEMICOLONS.divide clauses in a sentence and

break up lists.

DIVIDING CLAUSES-O semicolons are used to turn two

sentences into one. O The two sentences must be about

the same thing and they must be of equal importance to one another.

O The door creaked open; the girl tiptoed shyly into the room.

BREAKINGS UP LISTS-O Semicolons are used to break up lists

when the items in the list are long phrases or clauses.

O If the items in the list have their own punctuation, you must use a semicolon.

O At the fete there were stalls selling cakes; a ‘guess the weight of a pig’ competition; children bouncing on a bouncy castle; and an egg and spoon race.

(BRACKETS)O Brackets, commas and dashes can all be

used to separate extra pieces of information from the main body of the sentence.

O Brackets are used to bring something extra into a sentence. The extra something can be an explanation, an interruption, or something that occurred to the narrator as an afterthought.

O Sarah and Jodie (the twins) have just learnt ballet

Dashes - O Use dashes to link two ideas in one

sentenceO Wayne Rooney is a famous

footballer- he has scored lots of goals.

Question marks

O Always remember a question mark when you are waiting for an answer. How can I get an A in my GCSE?

‘INVERTED COMMAS’

WHEN SHOUD YOU USE THEM?

INVERTED COMMASO Inverted commas can be used to

report direct speech ( like speech marks).In school, we usually advise using double inverted commas “ x” for speech marks and single inverted commas for thoughts ‘x’ to avoid confusion.

O Inverted commas can also be used to indicate titles of books, plays and poems when writing about them.

Direct speechO Direct speech is when someone is

actually talking. Speech marks go before and after the spoken words. You must always use a capital letter when someone starts to speak and a comma to separate the speech from the rest of the sentence.

O Jack said, “ Don’t do that, you’ll wake him.” The comma goes before the speech mark and the full stop in front of the speech marks as it is the end of the sentence.

Reported SpeechO Reported speech does not use speech

marks. This means, if you write about what someone has said in your own words, you do not need speech marks. Speech marks are only needed for the exact words spoken.

O Harry said, “ I hate cabbage” = direct speech

O Harry said that he hated cabbage. = reported speech

When writing about a book

O When referring to the title of a book or play in your essay, always remember to put the title in inverted commas.

O Shakespeare wrote ‘Romeo and Juliet’

O ‘Of Mice and Men’ is set in America during the Great Depression.

Quoting ideas

We also use inverted commas to mark off a word or phrase that’s being discussed, or that’s being directly quoted from somewhere else:O He called this process, ‘memory

recall’O What does ‘integrated circuit’ mean?

Quoting within a quoteO If you find that you need to enclose quoted

material within direct speech or another quotation, use the style you haven’t used already. So, if you’ve been using single inverted commas, put any further quoted material within double ones and vice versa

O She still sounds amazed when she says: “We were turned down because ‘we represented too small a minority of the population’. They could still get away with saying things like that then.”

CAPITAL LETTERS

WHEN SHOULD YOU USE THEM?

CAPITAL LETTERSO We all think capitals are basic, but if

you forget them too often, you could drop down a whole grade

7 places you should use capital letters

1. People’s names and titles- Mr Terry Brown2. Names of towns and places- Sprowston,

Norwich3. Things to do with countries- I am French. I

come from France and I speak French.4. Names of companies and organisations-

the Ministry of Transport5. Titles of books, films, programmes etc-

Eastenders6. Days of the week and months of the year-

Monday 5th September7. And of course, at the start of a sentence.

Correct these sentences

O I told you jamie was going to australia in may.

O I love the only way is essex, amy childs is my favourite.

O I’m going to see steve on mondayO I like shopping at tescos.O My friend camilla is from sweden.

AnswersO I told you Jamie was going to

Australia in May.O I love ‘The Only Way Is Essex’, Amy

Childs is my favourite.O I’m going to see Steve on MondayO I like shopping at Tescos.O My friend Camilla is from Sweden.

PARAGRAPHSWhen to start a new paragraph

ParagraphsO The golden rule for paragraphs is that you

should start a new paragraph every time something changes. For example, if you start to write about a new person, new place, new time or new development, you should use a new paragraph.

O Always check your work, if you forget to write in paragraphs add // to indicate where you would like a new paragraph and you will still be marked for this.

EXCLAMATION MARKS

Exclamation marks are like strong full stops

When to use exclamation marks

DO USE THEM:O If the sentence is a command- Go Away!O When someone is shouting- I’m over here!O To show surprise or anger- I’ve won the

lottery!DON’TO Use them all the time- We couldn’t hear

anything! Jack opened the door! It was gone!O Never use more than one in a sentence-

Ouch!!!!!!!!

Punctuate this passage with CAPITAL LETTERS and FULL

STOPSO last week i went to london zoo i saw

elephants and tigers i ate lunch in the restaurant the best thing about the day was going to the gift shop i bought a poster and a keyring i can’t wait to go again

Punctuate this passage with CAPITAL

LETTERS, COMMAS, and FULL STOPS.O when you have a bad day at school it

can seem like everybody is against you especially the teachers being a teenager can be tough but you need to remember that everybody has their ups and downs and you can improve things by having a positive attitude to your work and trying your hardest in every subject

Punctuate this passage with CAPITAL LETTERS,

COMMAS, FULL STOPS and QUESTION MARKS.

O are you environmentally friendly do you recycle all your plastic and paper if you don’t then you have a big problem the world is currently suffering from the effects of global warming you might think that you can’t make a difference but every single can or bottle creates a change for the better have you checked that the light-bulbs in your house are energy efficient make sure you do and ask your parents to replace the old type with these new ones

Punctuate this passage with CAPITAL LETTERS, EXCLAMATION MARKS,

QUESTION MARKS and FULL STOPS.

O have you asked him out yet she asked no way she replied i don’t fancy him