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Literacy
Toolkit
Apostrophes
There are two ways in which apostrophes are used:
To show omission. Apostrophes are used to show that letters have
been missed out when two words have been shortened to one.
e.g
can not
you will
=
=
can’t
you’ll
To show possession. Apostrophes are also used to show that
something belongs to a person or an object.
e.g
John’s book (the book that belongs to John).
The car’s engine.
If the subject of the sentence is plural, the apostrophe comes after the
‘s’, unless the noun is already plural.
e.g
The Boys’ Brigade (the brigade which belongs
to all of the boys)
The children’s father
Special Case. ‘Its’ only has an apostrophe if being used as ‘it is’, not if
used to show belonging.
e.g
It’s a hot day
The dog ate its dinner.
Suggested Activity
Write out the following adding apostrophes where they are required.
When I was nine years old my sisters dog ran away.
“Dont worry,” I said, “its bound to come back for tea. Im sure no dogs
ever missed its dinner.
Lauren wasnt so sure. Shed been trying to remember when Rovers last
escape had been but it wouldnt come to her.
“If hes not home by five then somethings happened,” she said. “Ill wait
until teatime then wed better start searching.”
Capital Letters
There are various places where capital letters are necessary.
At the start of a sentence.
e.g
We climbed the stairs.
With names of people or places.
e.g
Spain
Bath Street
David Cameron
With days of the week and months of the year.
e.g
Wednesday
September
Where initials are used.
e.g
Mr J. Smith
S.F.A. (Scottish Football Association)
With book / film titles.
e.g
‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’
With companies and products.
e.g
Tesco
Coca Cola
When talking about yourself.
e.g
I
At the opening of direct speech.
e.g
She said, “We will not go.”
Suggested Activity
Change small letters to capital letters where necessary in the following
sentences.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
february in new zealand is hotter than in great britain.
i have read the wind in the willows by kenneth graham.
they all shouted at once, “ this is too difficult.”
my favourite places for shopping are silverburn or buchanan street.
the s.q.a are in charge of marking all exam scripts in june and july.
asda has stopped selling kellog’s frosties as they are full of sugar and
extremely unhealthy.
Commonly Confused Words
Many words sound similar but have entirely different meanings so you must
be careful not to mix them up. Here are some examples:
there
their
they’re
a place
belonging to them
they are
your
you’re
to
too
two
which
witch
new
knew
who’s
whose
weather
whether
aloud
allowed
its
it’s
practise
practice
belonging to you
you are
to do something / towards
too much / also
number
were
where
we’re
which is the way to school?
hat, broomstick, cat
specific
Pacific
not old
past tense of ‘to know’
past
passed
who is
belonging to whom
lose
loose
rain, snow, sunshine
if
of
off
out loud
permitted
affect
effect
belonging to it
it is
quiet
quite
were you there?
where are you going?
we are
to be exact
an ocean!
happened previously
went by / through
can’t find / didn’t win
untied
belonging to
down from
to influence something
the result of something
silent
fairly / reasonable
(verb) to repeatedly do in order to become skilled
(noun) something done regularly or habitually / a doctor’s
place of work.
Tenses
Verbs are action words and different forms of the verb indicate whether or
not the action has taken place, is taking place or is still to take place. These
forms of the verb are known as tenses.
Present Tense
Verbs which are in the present tense tell us the action is being done now:
e.g
She is eating a banana.
She eats a banana.
Past Tense
Verbs in past tense tell us that the action has already taken place:
e.g
She has eaten a banana.
She ate a banana.
Future Tense
Verbs in future tense mean that the action is still to take place:
e.g
She will eat a banana.
*
Most books are written in past tense and when you are writing stories
or essays, it is usually easiest to write as if the events you are
describing have already taken place.
*
Whichever tense you choose, you must be consistent and stick to that
tense throughout; the careless mixing of tenses will weaken your
work.
Suggested Activity
The following passage uses a mixture of past, present and future tense and
needs to be corrected. Rewrite it changing all of the verbs to past tense.
I pushed open the door and went inside. The house is in darkness. Upstairs
a door is creaking. I stood still. I take out a match and will strike it but before
I could light the candle a great gust of wind from the doorway blows out the
flame. In the grounds an owl hooted. A shiver runs down my spine and I will
not be able to move or speak.
Sentences
A sentence is a group of words which must make complete sense.
For a sentence to make complete sense you must use a verb.
All sentences start with a capital letter and most end with a full stop.
When writing a sentence which asks a question you must use a question
mark. (?)
A sentence which expresses strong feeling ends in an exclamation mark. (!)
Paragraphs
Paragraphs are a group of sentences about one subject. There is no limit on
how short or long a paragraph should be. Once you have written everything
you can about that subject, you should move on to a new paragraph.
Each paragraph should begin with a topic sentence – the first sentence
which tells the reader what the paragraph is about.
You should demonstrate you are beginning a new paragraph by indenting
the text on the left-hand side. Do not leave a blank line between paragraphs.
Linkage
In an extended piece of writing you should try to create linkage between
paragraphs. This will allow your writing to flow or will help you to build an
argument. To achieve this you could start paragraphs with words/phrases
such as: firstly, later, earlier, however, another, in addition, despite this, finally.
Suggested Activity
Imagine you are on holiday and are writing a postcard home. Draw the
outline of the postcard. On the right hand side, write the address of the
person the card is being sent to. On the left-hand side, write four brief
paragraphs: the first paragraph should be about where you are on holiday,
the second about what you are doing and the final paragraph about the food
you have eaten and the fourth about how long you are going to be there and
when you will be home. Remember to indent when starting each new
paragraph.
Spelling
There are many strategies that can help with spelling:
Word Banks. If you need to use specialist vocabulary for a certain
topic, create a word bank containing those words and always refer to it
before using a word in a piece of written work.
Spell Speak. Break up words into syllables orally, e.g. feb-ru-a-ry
Memory Hooks. Create your own ways of remembering difficult words
by forming a picture in your head. Works equally well as a way of
remembering the ending for words, e.g. o u lucky duck – for words such
as would, could, should.
Word Derivation. Think about how some longer words are built up of
parts that you do know how to spell, e.g. mis-under-stand-ing
Spelling rules. E.g. “i before e except after c”
Words within words. E.g. “rate” can be found within “strategies”
Suggested Activities
1.
Think of 3 commonly used words you mis-spell regularly.
Design an advert for each of these words. Identify the tricky
bit of the word, and use font, colour, images or size to highlight
it.
2.
Create your own memory hooks (see box above) to help you
remember words you mis-spell regularly. E.g. “because” – big
elephants can always understand small elephants.
3.
Using either commonly mis-spelled words or specialist
vocabulary for a topic, create a personal bookmark that you
can keep close to hand for reference.
Web Resources
http://www.bbc.co.uk/skillswise/words/spelling
Informal Language
There is a difference between the type of language that you use with friends
and family, and that which is appropriate to use in written school work. For
example, the following should not be used in the classroom:
Contractions
This is when two words have been shortened into
one, i.e. we’ll, wasn’t, couldn’t. Instead you should
use we will, was not, could not
Exclamation marks
There are clearly times when it is essential to use
an exclamation mark. But over using them is
informal, and their effect decreases when used
frequently
Emotions
These are, for example, smiley faces - , : ) –
used mainly in text message.
Slang/colloquial language These are commonly used words in speech, often
specific to a certain region. Examples include cool
(to describe something that is good) or See ya (for
goodbye) The only exception where these could
be used is dialogue in creative writing.
Lack of punctuation
Most people do not use full punctuation when
writing text messages or emails, mainly because it
is sometimes quicker not to when typing. But you
must continue to follow the rules of punctuation in
your school work (see other help sheets for more
information).
Text speak
This type of language is widely used in text or
instant messaging, though with the advent of
predictive text, it is less necessary than in the past.
Examples include lol (laugh out loud) U (you) or
the use of number digits to replicate sounds (Gr8
meaning “great”)
Conjunctions
These are also known as connectives or linking words. Their purpose is to
link or connect other words or phrases. They can also be used to join two
short, simple sentences.
Think about the direction each word takes you in:
Go words
help the writer to continue a similar point, i.e. and,
secondly
Slow down words allow the reader to slow down and think over what has
been written, i.e. as a result
Stop words
make you stop and take notice of what is coming next,
i.e. without question
Turn words
warn the reader that what follows is a change of direction,
i.e. on the other hand
Wordbank
Go words
Slow down words
Stop words
and
first, second, third
likewise
also
in addition
moreover
next
furthermore
similarly
therefore
consequently
as a result
in brief
in conclusion
accordingly
without question
without doubt
significantly
unquestionably
absolutely
Turn words
on the other hand
nevertheless
on the contrary
otherwise
in spite of
although
yet
despite
however
Use a variety of conjunctions to keep your writing interesting. But remember,
not all conjunctions can be used everywhere – be careful not to change the
meaning of your sentence.