Pick the Punctuation (Period, Exclamation Point, & Question Mark)

The kids in my youngest son's kindergarten class are working hard on their writing skills. The teacher has been talking a lot about end punctuation and reading with fluency (i.e. NOT like a robot). 

I thought it would be fun to test my son with a quick game to see if he could pick the right punctuation for sentences I read to him.

I made some fun cards with visual cues for him to use.

Want to play this? Here's what you need:
the 4-page PDF (download it free from Google Drive here)
heavyweight card stock to print the PDF on
scissors/paper cutter
time

To play, simply put the three punctuation cards in front of the child. Now mix the assorted sentence cards. Read them to your child with inflection and intonation. When the statement should have an exclamation, proclaim it excitedly. When your asking something, make sure the pitch of your voice goes up at the end. Sentences ending in a period should be read with a flat tone.

If the child holds up the correct punctuation card for the sentence you read, they get to keep the sentence card. They can add up their score at the end and play with different sentences the next day to try and beat their personal best.

The sentence cards are just to get you started. Make up your own. Change them to reflect your child's interests and family. Get creative! Get silly! Make it personal.

For as simple as this was, my son really enjoyed it. I hope your kiddos will too!

What Gets a Capital Letter? (Board Game)

It can be a real struggle to remember what to capitalize when you're eight years old. And since grammar doesn't stick like math does for my son, I wanted to find a fun way to help him learn.

The What Gets a Capital Letter game is a sneaky way to trick kids into remembering that the following are always capitalized:

Days of the Week.

Months.

Names of holidays.

Names of people and pets.

Names of places.

The beginning of a sentence.

The letter "I" when it is a word.

Download a PDF of the game for free on Google Docs here.

It's an easy game with very few rules. Game pieces (we used laminated photos inside binder clips) are placed on the START. The youngest player starts the game by drawing a card from the deck. He/she reads the card and identifies what in the sentence needs to be capitalized and why. Then, the player moves his game piece to the first occurrence of that reason on the game board.

For example, a player might draw the following card:

kiwi fruit is so delicious.

He/she would then say "kiwi needs to be capitalized; it's the beginning of a sentence," then move their game piece to the first blue box on the game board that reads "beginning of a sentence."

Now it's the opponent's turn. Play alternates between players.

If a player draws a "GO BACK" card, he/she must draw another card and instead of advancing based on the reason for capitalization, they'll retreat. If the player is too close to the start and there's no "months" box, for example, to move back to, their game piece remains in its place.

If players are near the end and draw cards with reasons for capitalization without any remaining boxes, they must still say aloud the correction and reason, but do not advance. The first player to land their game piece on the final "days of the week" box wins the game!

To accompany this game, my son read Kick Ball Capitalization by Michael Ruscoe. It covers many more reasons for capitalization in a very fun way!

Pasta Apostrophe Catastrophe

Say that three times fast.

The apostrophe is SUCH a hard working piece of punctuation. To review how it's used in contractions and to show possession my son and I grabbed a great book and some elbow macaroni.

I wrote a fun story for my son about Punctuation Pete who acts out by stealing apostrophes from Marley's town. By showing kindness to him, the apostrophes are returned and grammar is restored to the city. Friendship mends the apostrophe catastrophe!

The story was segmented into 15 cards and the apostrophes were eliminated from the text. A number (i.e. 1, 2, or 3) was added to each card to indicate the number of apostrophes that are missing. I printed, cut apart, and scrambled the order of the cards.

Download a 5-page PDF of these segmented
story cards from Google Drive here.

Before all this grammar greatness could ensue, we read an incredible book, which served as the inspiration for this activity.

The Girl's Like Spaghetti: Why You Can't Manage With Apostrophes! shows kids how the use (or lack of) an apostrophe changes the meaning of a sentence.

For example, one 2-page spread shows the difference between "Those smelly things are my brother's", where children stare and point to a pair of filthy sneakers, and "Those smelly things are my brothers", where a group of children with clothespins clipped on their noses run away from two young boys playing among dirty trash.

My son spent a long time studying the pictures and the sentences to really understand the way one simple punctuation mark could make such a huge difference.

After we were finished reading Lynne Truss' book, I pulled out the segmented story cards. With some school glue and dried elbow macaroni (the pasta apostrophes), my son added the missing punctuation. 

And then put the story in order as best he could.

This was a simple review of one very important piece of punctuation. It was fun too!

Proofreading with DIY Punctuation Stamps

What is it about stamps? I've known for years that the most mundane learning activities seem less of a chore when there's an ink pad involved (for evidence, check out our Missing Letters Mystery). Don't ask me why.

To practice punctuation, we reviewed seven punctuation marks: apostrophe, comma, exclamation point, period, colon, and semicolon.

In order to do this, we read Punctuation Takes a Vacation, a clever book about a classroom of students that get a taste of life without any punctuation. This is my favorite kind of children's book - non-fiction disguised as fiction with playful graphics and a creative storyline. I enjoyed it as much as my son did.

And just as importantly, it was the perfect complement to this activity.

I printed two pages of sentences with missing punctuation. Download them here.

Then I made some punctuation stamps.

These were surprisingly easy. I used six wine corks that I'd been saving for ages (a friend mailed me a gift and used them as packaging), six 1-inch wooden discs, 3mm craft foam, and a low-temp glue gun.

I cut the punctuation marks out of the foam, using a hole punch when possible to get perfect circles, and glued them to the wooden discs. Then, I glued each disc to a cork. NOTES: Make sure your stamps are the mirror image of your punctuation marks. Also, you only need one stamp for the comma and apostrophe.

When it came time to fix the missing punctuation on the sentences I'd prepared, my son was ready. He moved through them quickly, only stopping a few times to ask questions for help.

He happily stamped and stamped and stamped.

There, Their, or They're: You Be the Judge

My son got off the bus last week with a long face. He'd failed the pre-test and came home with the easy list of spelling words. I was surprised; he's good at spelling. As soon as he handed me the list, I understood.

There. Their. And they're. That's what had happened.

Not only had his teacher expected him to spell them right, but he needed to know when to use which one in a sentence. My son had totally botched it up.

Those three words sound EXACTLY the same but are used COMPLETELY differently. How confusing!!

To help him study, I gave him a little lesson with some tips and tricks.

There

Within this word is another word: here. There usually represents a place.

Very often, if you can substitute here in place of there, you've used it correctly.

Their

This is a possessive pronoun. I reminded my son that "I" was also a pronoun, which was a hint to help him remember that this their is the only one spelled with an i.

If you can replace their with our and the sentence still makes sense, you've used it correctly.

They're

Among these three words (there, their, and they're), this is the only one that is a contraction. It's an abbreviation for they are.

If you can put they are in place of they're, you used the right word.

Now it was time to put his knowledge to the test.

Download a 1-page PDF of this worksheet here.

"You be the judge," I said. "Read the sentences on the post-it notes and decide if the correct there, their, or they're was used."

I reminded him that the scale on my DIY worksheet needed to be balanced, so an equal number of sentences should be on the incorrect side as the correct side.

This took LOADS of thought and he referenced the cheat sheet of hints I made several times. I was so proud when he caught two misplaced sentences moments before handing me the worksheet to check. He'd sorted all the sentences correctly!

I gave him eight sentences to sort. Here they are, along with some extras we'll be using for future practice:

Correct:

I put my shoes right there.

It was their team's turn to answer.

They're my favorite band!

There is the book I lost.

Their car is blue, not grey.

I asked, but they're out of town that day.

Let's go there.

Their house is the one with the picket fence.

They're too short to ride the roller coaster.

Incorrect:

Their are no cookies left!    <<should be there>>

There excited for the party.   <<should be They're>>

Why didn't they listen to they're teacher?   <<should be their>>

Are we almost they're?  <<should be there>>

Their daydreaming, instead of listening. <<should be they're>>

There project was the winner. <<should be Their>>

My favorite pizza place is right their.  <<should be there>>

I can't see them; there too many people here.  <<should be they're>>

Lots of people are stopping at there lemonade stand. <<should be their>>

Run-On Repair [a Grammar Activity]

My son has been known to forget end punctuation. Hence, the run-on sentence occurs. To give him a little grammar lesson on why run-ons are bad, I grabbed a roll of register tape and an Easy Reader Level 1 book.

I copied the words from the book onto the register tape omitting end punctuation and capital letters. I stuck with a fairly short book, as the text gets kind of long regardless.

When my son got home from school, I was ready with the register tape, scissors, pencil, and the stapler. Before he did our language arts activity, though, I pulled out a Grammar Tales book to help me explain just why run-ons are so troubling.

This is our third experience with a book from the series and The No-Good, Rotten, Run-On Sentence didn't disappoint. It's the story of Kevin Crabtree whose great idea for a story became the longest run-on sentence in the history of writing (okay, I might be exaggerating just a bit). The first sentence ran and ran, right off the page and all over town.

Finally, after many feeble attempts to catch the sentence, dear Miss Bartlebine comes to the rescue with her red pencil. The ridiculously long run-on was finally tamed into perfectly polite sentences with punctuation or by adding words like but, yet, for, because, or and.

Now it was time to apply what he'd learned. 

I handed him the run-on story I'd copied and reminded him that sentences contain both subjects and verbs and always have complete ideas (i.e. no fragments). 

He worked his way through reading the register tape, stopping to analyze where adding punctuation would make the most sense and capitalizing the first word of the new sentences. 

Snip! He cut the register tape into shorter sentences that we kept in order and stapled together when he was done.

This was a fair amount of reading since it often required rereading passages again and again until fixing the run-ons made sense. My son hung with it and when he was all done, I had him check his work by handing him the book from which I'd copied the text.

He did a GREAT job!

Missing Punctuation Board Game [printable]

It's not exactly a secret; the English language is confusing. If I'm saying this after spending the last 12 years writing professionally, I can only imagine what it's like for a second grader! To help my son understand what punctuation to use when, I grabbed an amazing book and created a fun board game for us to play and practice.

Before we got our game faces on, we read Elsa Knight Bruno's book Punctuation Celebration. This book is to kids what the AP style guide is to grown-up journalists (only WAY more whimsical). This is the most interesting reference book I've ever read!

The book explains in rhyming text how 12 pieces of punctuation are used. The explanations are simple and examples are included. Illustrations are playful (Is there anything more cute than a smiling semicolon jumping rope?), making the weighty topic less intimidating. Whether your child is showing a natural talent or interest in writing or not, this book is worthy of checking out from the public library or adding it to your own shelves at home!

Once we were done reading, I got out the Missing Punctuation board game I'd made.

You can download a PDF of the 2-page game board and game cards here. You'll need to tape the game board together and cut out the cards. Find a few buttons, magnets, LEGO minifigures, or anything else that's small to use as game pieces (each player needs one to mark their progress moving around the board). NOTE: I created the game for two players. If there are more, you may need to make additional game cards.

The game cards each contain a sentence or two with missing punctuation. It's up to the player to figure out which one is missing among the following:

Period.

Exclamation Point.

Question Mark.

Comma.

Apostrophe.

Quotation Marks.

Colon.

Semicolon

Parentheses.

Hyphen.

Once they have figured out what punctuation is absent, they move their game piece to the space where that punctuation occurs on the game board. NOTE: You may need to remind players of the difference between an apostrophe and a comma. Play alternates between players.

I gave my son loads of hints (e.g. for quotation marks, I asked, "Is someone talking?" and for parentheses, I posed the question, "Is there any information in the sentence that could be removed and it would still make sense?"). We referred to Bruno's book a lot and it was slow-going but my son had lots of fun and when he got a card with the final answer of exclamation point and won the game, he was elated!

"Can we play again sometime?" I asked.

"You bet!" he answered enthusiastically.

Here are the answers:

"I would like a turn," said John.   Quotation Marks

"Pass the ball," yelled the coach.   Quotation Marks

"Thirty-six," answered Julie.   Quotation Marks

"Write your name on the paper," said the teacher.   Quotation Marks

Are you okay?   Question Mark

Do you want a cookie?   Question Mark

Dogs are furry.    Period

Ethan is sad.   Period

His t-shirt was red.   Hyphen

I am very thirsty; I need a drink of water.   Semicolon (or Period)

I can't find my hat, coat, or mittens.   Commas

I can't swim.   Apostrophe

I don't care.   Apostrophe

I have a dog, cat, and hamster.   Commas

I like blue.   Period

I went to sleep at 8:35.   Colon

If I was older, I could drive.   Comma

I'm allergic to nuts; they make me sick.   Semicolon (or Period)

In my bag are three things: a pen, pencil, and eraser.   Colon

It is cold outside; I'm shivering.   Semicolon (or Period)

It was a part-time job.   Hyphen

Katie's nose is running.   Apostrophe

My cousins are leaving; I am sad.   Semicolon (or Period)

My sister wants four things: a doll, book, crayons, and a dress.   Colon

My umbrella is broken.   Period (or Exclamation Point)

One-fourth of the pie is gone.   Hyphen

OUCH!   Exclamation Point

Pickles (that I hate) are too sour.   Parentheses

Somebody help me!   Exclamation Point

The doctor took x-rays of my finger.   Hyphen

The milk (that was sour) spilled all over.   Parentheses

The radio (that was too loud) was playing my favorite song.   Parentheses

The school is on fire!   Exclamation Point

These cupcakes (from the bakery) are yummy!   Parentheses

This is my dad's hammer.   Apostrophe

Watch out!   Exclamation Point

We didn't eat lunch until 1:00 p.m.   Colon

What's your favorite color?   Question Mark

Where were you?   Question Mark

While I was sleeping, the tooth fairy came.   Comma

Top 10 Favorite Language Arts Activities of 2012

This mama is a word nerd ... and proud of it. These activities were created to help develop my son's reading and writing skills. Who knew language arts could be so fun?!?

No.1    Proofreading Police

Your child joins the proofreading police squad and examines evidence of grammar crimes. This activity has four great downloads and a must-read book recommendation. Find it all here.

No.2    Homophones Memory Game

Words that sound the same but mean very different things can certainly trip kids up. A fun game of memory makes matching homophones a blast. Two of the best children's fiction to pair with this activity are also recommended. Free printable game cards here.

No. 3    Compound Word Card Game

Compound words are especially fun when you learn them while playing a card game! Free printable game cards and instructions here.

No.4    Race Around the Nouns, Verbs, & Adjectives Game

Toss out the worksheets! Kids can test their understanding of nouns, verbs, and adjectives by playing a fun board game. Directions and downloads here.

No. 5    Word Dominoes

Children LOVE dominoes! Why not make some to have them practice matching words with their respective parts of speech: nouns, adjectives, pronouns, and nouns? Free download, DIY instructions, and game directions here.

No. 6    Word-Eating Whale

Turn an empty milk jug into a whale that's hungry for nouns, verbs, or other parts of speech. Kids will love scooping up bottle-cap words with their whale! Directions here.

No. 7     Pronoun Practice to the Moon and Back

Capitalize on kids' love of space, by challenging them to replace nouns with the correct pronoun in a race to the moon. The more right answers, the closer your child gets to the moon. Keep going and the rocket on his/her scorecard will come all the way back to earth! Everything you need - plus a great book recommendation - is here.

No. 8    Adjective Detective

Time for some super sleuthing with two amazing adjective detective activities: a treasure hunt and an adjective search-and-solve code story. Instructions, a printable, and cool adjective detective spy "glass" download are here.

No. 9    DIY Newspaper

EXTRA! EXTRA! Kids put on their reporter hats and record all the big stories in their lives with this fill-in newspaper template. Free printable here.

No. 10    Alphabetical Adjectives

Put the adjectives in alphabetical order by connecting the dots! Head here for a great book recommendation and free printable.

Proofreading Police

My son’s first-grade teacher is working hard to help the students, my son included, understand the writing process and the importance of proofreading. To reinforce her efforts, I created a fun activity to give my son some practice editing.

Having spent much of my professional career as a writer and editor, this activity is close to my heart.

To start, we read a book from the Grammar Tales series. Francine Fribble, Proofreading Policewoman by Justin Martin was the perfect book to illustrate just how important proofreading is.

The story follows Francine on her beat as she heads through town correcting bad grammar (improper or forgotten capitalization, bad spelling, and lack of apostrophes and other punctuation). My son loved it!

When he was done, I told him it was time for him to join the proofreading police squad. He was excited!

I gave him four cases to review. Each profiled one kid (Too Busy Tina, Careless Kyle, Unsure Ursula, and Forgetful Frank). Download them here.

                                      

It was up to him to review their crimes against grammar and help correct the errors (i.e. to proofread)!

He did a wonderful job (this mama-writer was SO proud!), missing a few of the edits and struggling a bit with the use of the apostrophe, but was eager to get through all the “evidence.”