Good Ol’ Apostrophes

A couple days ago I was looking at our blog stats and noticed our blog was being searched for apostrophes. Not just any apostrophes, but someone was specifically looking for “creative use of apostrophes.” Therefore, I thought it might be fitting to write a bit about one of my favorite ways to teach apostrophes from a book.

In 2007 Lynne Truss published The Girl’s Like Spaghetti: Why, You Can’t Manage Without Apostrophes! I purchased it as soon as it came out. I read it to my students soon after the purchase. However, I only read it to them once. Also, I only read it to them as a class. I went wrong in that I didn’t walk around with this book, in-tow, when I conferred with my students. (As you know, most fourth graders have trouble using apostrophes consistently and correctly. To that end, I’ve recently noticed that many adults still have trouble when placing their apostrophes in their sentences.)

Truss’s book is humorous. It contains vivid illustrations created by Bonnie Timmons. Each two-page spread contains two sentences. The sentences are the same (e.g., Those smelly things are my brother‘s. and Those smelly things are my brothers.), but the placement of the apostrophe, along with the illustration truly helps the reader comprehend how the apostrophe makes a difference in the writing (and subsequently to the meaning of the sentence). Finally, on the last two pages of the book, there’s an explanation of how the apostrophe’s placement has an effect on each sentence.

When encountering a child who is having trouble using apostrophes (e.g., using an apostrophe + s to show possession, but they land up misusing it so that the apostrophe + s lands up combining the noun and the word is), this book can be an invaluable resource since you can show your student, through words and illustrations, how the meaning of a sentence changes when an apostrophe is missing or misused.

Looking for another book to help your students correctly use apostrophes? Just click here.