Emphasizing the Wee Apostrophe

Apostrophe comes from Greek, according to Etymology Online:

apostrophe(n.1)

"mark indicating an omitted letter," 1580s, from French apostrophe, from Late Latin apostrophus, from Greek apostrophos (prosoidia) "(the accent of) turning away," thus, a mark showing where a letter has been omitted… In English, the mark often represents loss of -e- in -es, possessive ending. By 18c. it was being extended to all possessives, whether they ever had an -e- or not.

Thats not boring, is it? Its interesting! Wouldnt you folks’ like to hear more?

Some students struggle mightily with apostrophes in possessives and contractions, etc. Where does that pesky apostrophe go?? Which letter(s) does it replace?? To say nothing of whether or not the word even needs an apostrophe. Mistakes can create misunderstandings, a comprehension glitch.  It is common for writers to mistake a plural (boys) for a possessive (the boy's backpack) for a contraction (this boy's so hungry).  Writing aside, some readers do not know how to interpret the apostrophe.

To complicate the issue, an apostrophe has multiple uses: In addition to possessives and contractions, an apostrophe goes after a lowercase letter to make it plural. Watch your p’s and q’s. And don’t forget to dot your t’s! See the wise old Owl at  Purdue’s writing lab for an interesting backstory on those p’s and q’s. 

Note also the use of an apostrophe to hold the place of omitted numbers, as in '60s for 1960s, and the television program That '70s Show. 

But the possessives and the contractions are paramount in terms of writing competency. Teachers must be very clear about the apostrophe. They must explicate the whys and the wherefores. That tiny notation has to pop! 

Harvesting a Bumper Crop of Vocabulary

Hello and happy harvest season. Educators know that vocabulary develops not only through dedicated lessons but also through reading, and thoughtfully chosen daily language. Expand vocabulary by using new words and synonyms for known concepts in discussions at home and school. Add that to wide reading and word study, including morphology lessons, and new vocabulary will take root, eventually leading to a plentiful harvest.  Persist in this and over time a bumper crop will surely manifest in speech and writing and —even better — in understanding. It doesn’t happen overnight. Vocabulary is a growth construct, developing  across the years, and hopefully never quite coming to an end.

As a little holiday bonus, check out this fun video. It’s bound to appeal! Compliments of Elle Cordova, The Grammarian. 

 

Cheers,

Susan

Announcement

Announcement! Hot off the press! The root CRED (to trust, to believe) and its morphological derivatives illustrate the cover of the newly published 3rd edition of Vocabulary Through Morphemes: Suffixes, Prefixes, and Roots for Intermediate and Secondary Grades, student book (Ebbers, 2025). This is published by Silvereye Learning Resources .

Established in 1992, Silvereye Learning Resources is the best place in Australia to find resources to help those with learning difficulties, special needs, and various emotional and developmental challenges. Check them out! Silvereye can ship orders overseas from their US and UK distribution centers so buyers in the USA, Canada, and Great Britain will only pay local freight. 

This curriculum is a boost for vocabulary as well as reading and spelling. It begins with an overview of the English language, followed by a quick lesson on compound word formation. The main body of the book explores suffixes, prefixes, and roots. Suffixes not only help us determine word class or grammatical function, they also shape the meaning of a word. For example, words ending with the suffix -ic are typically adjectives, often describing behavior or characteristics: angelic, heroic, manic, energetic, electric, etc. Likewise, words ending with the suffix -ary are often nouns, and these words often describe collections of similar things, as in statuary, library, dictionary, glossary, aviary, mortuary, etc.

The curriculum includes dozens of graphic organizers, word games, word-art, word building and sorting activities.  The modified Frayer chart is only one example.

The book has been in publication for almost 25 years. Happy.

Sixth Grade ESL Study: Promoting Awareness of Unknown Word Meanings

What a fine thing it would be, if students would take note of new and unfamiliar words -- and think about them -- rather than merely skipping over them. This post adds more to the theme of developing word consciousness, including sensitivity to unknown words.

 

The method described here requires one student to develop knowledge of unfamiliar words within a text, in order to then teach the meanings to a small group. This method was successful with a small group of ESL students in sixth grade. 

 

Eminent researcher Andrew Biemiller, expertly assisted by Jody Panto, carried out this study in 2010. I recently asked him more about it, and he provided me with a brief excerpt/ summary for this blog, shown below.

 

A Procedure for Promoting Student Awareness for Unknown Word Meanings 

excerpt from Biemiller, 2010

 

In a preliminary study with 6 ESL sixth grade students in 1 class for 16 weeks, my assistant, Jody Panto, and I undertook to increase students’ vocabulary. Most of the students in this class spoke English as a second language and spoke their native language at home. Our general goal was to encourage a higher level of asking about unfamiliar words. 

 

Panto’s basic routine for a reading session involved having each student in a reading group take responsibility for the vocabulary on one or two pages of text. The texts were somewhat more complex than these students would be expected to read on their own. The program emphasized seeking direct assistance for unfamiliar words, both from peers and from teachers when necessary.