Download Signposts Knowledge of Language

Knowledge of Language Signposts
How words are made
This group of signposts should be considered in conjunction with the school’s phonics programme
There are 26 letters in the
alphabet
Vowels & Consonants
The letter y can be a vowel or a
consonant
Syllables
Parts of words
Stem / Prefix / Suffix
Word families
Types of words
Noun
Singular/Plural
P7-13
P9
Common noun
Proper noun
Collective nouns
Abstract nouns
Verb
Stem and suffix
(suffix indicating tense)
Infinitive verb (to__)
Present participle (__ing) past participle (__ed)
‘Shall’ after I/ we
Active/Passive Voice
P16
P17
‘Will’ after he/ she/ you/ it/ they
Positive
Comparative (r/er)
Superlative (st/est)
Adverbs of manner
(-ly)
Personal pronouns
Using comparatives and superlatives to convey tone or
enthusiasm
P7-23
P13-26
Adjective
P26-30
Adverb
P30-33
Pronoun
Adverbs of place, adverbs of time, adverbs of degree
Relative pronouns
(who, which, what, that)
And
But – change/ contrast
Since /because - reason
If - condition
P33-36
Conjunction
And
But
Because
P36-40
Prepositions
Conjunctions can go at the beginning of sentences: e.g. Although
Between (two)
Among (more than two)
P40-42
A sentence is a group of words that make sense
standing on their own
Repeating/ omitting conjunctions for effect
How Words Are Put Together:
Full stops, exclamation marks and question
marks indicate that a sentence has ended
A sentence begins with a capital letter and
ends with a full stop
They also give the added information that the sentence is a statement, question or exclamation
P67
A sentence has a subject and a predicate The
predicate includes verb
P73
Sentences can be joined together with conjunctions
Common conjunctions, e.g.
And
But
Because
P92
Conjunction have different purposes:
And
But – change/contrast
Because - reason
Since – reason
If – condition
The first sentence of a paragraph is typically the
topic sentence
Repeating/ omitting conjunctions for effect
A colon is an ‘introducing pause’
It points forward to a quotation, an explanation
or a more detailed description
A paragraph is a collection of sentences which are all to
do with the same subject
You start a new paragraph when you are
changing to a new topic, a different aspect
of the topic, or the next part in the
sequence
Pausing punctuation
A comma is used as a pause between a
list of items
A comma shows a pause in a sentence
Speech marks
enclose the actual words used by the speaker
Punctuation belonging to the direct speech
goes inside the speech marks
The full stop is replaced by a comma if the direct
speech is followed by a verb of speaking
Apostrophes
An apostrophe can indicate a missing
letter in an abbreviation
An apostrophe is used with the letter ‘s’ to show
that someone or something possesses something
There are 26 letters in the alphabet
Similes
Onomatopoeia
Alliteration
Colloquial language
Specialist vocabulary
Originally developed by Humbie Primary School 2009/10
Complex sentences have two or more verbs
Clauses can be introduced by words such as
who, which, that, when, after
Conjunctions can go at the beginning
of sentences, e.g.
Although, despite
P92
Adding similar points:
Furthermore
In the same way
Similarly
In the singular, apostrophes go before
the s
In plurals, the apostrophe goes after
the s
How words are used
The alphabet is used to organise words
Making different points to the previous
Drawing a conclusion:
one:
As a result of
Nevertheless
Therefore
On the other hand
Consequently
In contrast
Thus
A semi colon is a ‘finishing’ pause. It marks the end of a sentence but less firmly than a full stop. It
often comes between two statements that contrast or are closely connected.
‘ it’s ’ means ‘it is’
We can locate words quickly by using the alphabet
Metaphor
Standard English /Formal English
Page numbers refer to ‘Knowledge about Language’ by Mary M Firth and Andrew G Ralston, published by Hodder Gibson ISBN 978-0-716-96016-4
Knowledge of Language Signposts
Originally developed by Humbie Primary School 2009/10
Page numbers refer to ‘Knowledge about Language’ by Mary M Firth and Andrew G Ralston, published by Hodder Gibson ISBN 978-0-716-96016-4