Ten-Minute

Grammar

OBJECTIVES: 1. Students should understand that a. Proper nouns should be capitalized, and common nouns should not. b. The first word of a quotation should be capitalized. c. Peoples titles should be capitalized only when it is used as part of their name or in place of their name. d. Words derived from proper nouns (like languages) are always capitalized. e. In titles of publications, the first and last word are always capitalized, and all other words are capitalized except articles, coordinating conjunctions, and prepositions. 2. Students should be able to a. Avoid the most common capitalization errors in their own writing. b. Recognize and correct capitalization errors when proofreading.

CAPITALIZATION

LITERATURE: This unit contains example selections from the novel Sunrise over Fallujah by Walter Dean Meyers.

Ten-Minute

Grammar

DAY One

Capitalization

Identify the capitalization errors in the following sentences and re-write the words that need to be changed (there is at least one in each sentence):

1. We went to new york city last year. 2. I brought a book called sights to see in the city. 3. There were a ton of people there, and many of them spoke languages other than english. 4. At the World Trade Center Memorial, we met an awesome cop named officer Fernandez. 5. When it was time to leave, I asked my parents, can we come back next year?
Correct any words with capitalization errors in the following paragraph (there are 11 incorrect words in all):

6. One of my favorite parts of the trip was seeing the statue of liberty. I learned that it was a gift to the united states from the french. On another day, we met the Mayor; his name was mayor Bloomberg. Mom and dad thought it was outrageous how expensive everything was. Dad said, next year were going to las vegas.
Wordplay Just for fun!

EIGHT LETTERS: Create as many words as you can using three or more of the
letters below (at least one eight-letter word is possible):

RUDOTASW

Ten-Minute

Grammar

DAY Two

Capitalization

In your own words, write a capitalization rule that explains the following correction (Your rule could start with You should capitalize):

1. nile river = Nile River

That River there = that river there

2. I said, hello. = I said, Hello. 3. president Washington = President Washington was the first President was the first president 4. french, spanish, american = French, Spanish, American
Based on the rules you deduced above, find the capitalization error in each sentence below:

5. I want to go to disneyland in california. 6. She asked, why is your hair purple? 7. Our class wrote letters to senator Kennedy last year. 8. This pancake house down the road has great german pancakes; and one of the cashiers is bilingual, so you can order in spanish if you want.
Wordplay Just for fun!

VOWEL COMBINATOR: The vowel combination ou can sound like the

ow in wow or like the soft u in much. List as many words as you can that contain this vowel combo.

Ten-Minute

Grammar

DAY Three

Capitalization

Yesterday, you deduced the following the capitalization rules. Create your own example sentence for each rule:

1. Proper nouns should be capitalized, and common nouns should not. 2. The first word in a quotation should be capitalized. 3. A persons title should be capitalized only when its used as a name or as part of a name. 4. Words that come from proper nouns (like languages) should be capitalized.
General Grammar Review Read the following excerpt from Sunrise over Fallujah by Walter Dean Meyers and then answer the questions:

The sadness in Halimas voice bothered me, but then I thought about the village men who had been killed, and remembered her saying that they were going to Baghdad to get ready to fight Americans.
5. List at least four nouns from this sentence. 6. Who is the antecedent of the pronoun her in the second line? 7. List at least three verbs from this sentence.
Wordplay Just for fun!

DESCRAMBLER: Try to sort out the five scrambled words below: WOSC EPJES DWNIOW RAMECRE YRAMDEDA

Ten-Minute

Grammar

DAY Four

Capitalization

In titles of things like books, movies, and articles, the first and last word are always capitalized, and all other words are capitalized except articles (a, an, the), short conjunctions (and, but, or, as, if), and prepositions (of, over, beyond, through).
Rewrite the following titles with correct capitalization:

1. Harry potter And The half-blood Prince 2. lizzie bright and the buckminster boy 3. second Star To The Right 4. the Curious case of Benjamin button
Using the proper proofreading marks, correct the six errors in this excerpt from Sunrise over Fallujah by Walter Dean Meyers:

Your not allowed to treat iraqis, captain Coles said. Ive got a few rolls of clean bandages and and some antibiotics, Miller said. I dont think its going to make a major difference in the War.
Wordplay Just for fun!

CATALOGUE CREATOR: The root word -aster- / -astr- means star.

How many words can you list that contain this root?

Ten-Minute

Grammar

QUIZ DAY

Capitalization

REVIEW FOR TODAYS QUIZ:

1. When should a noun be capitalized? 2. When starting a quotation in the middle of a sentence, which word should be capitalized? 3. When would words like mom and dad be capitalized, and when would they not? 4. Why are words like black and white not capitalized while AfricanAmerican and Caucasian are capitalized? 5. Identify the capitalization errors in the following sentence: a. king augustus arbuckle, the ruler of buckland, wrote a book about his experiences called becoming The supreme Leader Of A completely unknown Country. In the book, Augustus says, to be honest, being a king kind of stinks.

Extra

Ten-Minute

Grammar

DAY Five

Capitalization

Correct any capitalization errors you find in the following paragraphs (there are 5 in each):

1. For my birthday, I wanted a new Game Console. I was hoping for a nintendo game system, but mom thought they were still too expensive. I said, what if I pay for half of it? She still wouldnt give in. 2. barack obama was elected as president in 2008. Since taking office in 2009, president Obamas approval rating has gone up and down, just like other Presidents ratings have in the Past. 3. The neighbors down the street adopted a little girl from china last year. A few months later, the neighbors in the next house brought home a two-year-old vietnamese orphan, and my friends mom and dad became Foster parents to a boy from guatemala. At the end of the year, mom said, Looks like love is contagious.
Wordplay Just for fun!

FOUR-LETTER WORDS: Take the four-letter word below and change one letter
to make a new four-letter word (keep it clean!) Then take that word and change one letter to make a new word. Then take that word and You get the picture.

ARMY

Extra

Ten-Minute

Grammar

DAY Six

Capitalization

REMEMBER: In titles of things like books, movies, and articles, the first and last word are always capitalized, and all other words are capitalized except articles (a, an, the), short conjunctions (and, but, or, as, if), and prepositions (of, over, beyond, through).
Correct the capitalization of the following titles:

1. The dangerous book for Boys 2. the Absolutely True Diary Of A part-time Indian 3. the last book in the universe 4. the Lord Of The Rings
Using the proper proofreading marks, correct the six errors in this excerpt from Sunrise over Fallujah by Walter Dean Meyers:

I told victor that the women had named the monkey sergeant Yossarian and thatthe name was from a book called catch-22. Victor said that it was stupid to give a Monkey a name. I said, hey, women do that kind of thing.
Wordplay Just for fun!

FIXER-ROOTER: How many words can you think of that have the same
prefix, suffix, or root as the multisyllabic word below?

UNCONSCIONABLE
(unjustly excessive)

Extra

Ten-Minute

Grammar

DAY Seven

Capitalization

Read the following excerpts from Sunrise over Fallujah by Walter Dean Meyers. Identify the capitalization errors in each sentence (there is at least one in each sentence):

1. Yesterday (or the day before, I couldnt tell) the iraqi 5th corps formally surrendered. 2. I wanted to write to dad and tell him about the war being over, but he is still acting sour about me being in the army. 3. Major Sessions said, weve been asked to help a woman find her son. 4. We dropped major Sessions off in the Green Zone and me, Jonesy, and Marla went with Captain Coles and Jamil. 5. We met the iraqi kids. Only they werent the same kids we had played the first Game with. 6. Hey, birdy, you getting a bad feeling about this game? captain Coles asked. 7. people from three villages wanted to play, Omar said, holding up three fingers. They all know about the game and want to play against the americans. 8. The old man spoke in arabic, and I looked at ahmed.
Wordplay Just for fun!

ANAGRAM: Rearrange the letters in the nonsense phrase below to create new words that actually make sense. CLUMSY MIME PROS
(Hint: competition)

DAY Four Name: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Capitalization

DAY Four Name: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Capitalization

Your not allowed to treat iraqis, captain Coles said. Ive got a few rolls of clean bandages and and some antibiotics, Miller said. I dont think its going to make a major difference in the War.

Your not allowed to treat iraqis, captain Coles said. Ive got a few rolls of clean bandages and and some antibiotics, Miller said. I dont think its going to make a major difference in the War.

DAY Four Name: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Capitalization

DAY Four Name: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Capitalization

Your not allowed to treat iraqis, captain Coles said. Ive got a few rolls of clean bandages and and some antibiotics, Miller said. I dont think its going to make a major difference in the War.

Your not allowed to treat iraqis, captain Coles said. Ive got a few rolls of clean bandages and and some antibiotics, Miller said. I dont think its going to make a major difference in the War.

DAY Six Name: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Capitalization

DAY Six Name: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Capitalization

I told victor that the women had named the monkey sergeant Yossarian and thatthe name was from a book called catch-22. Victor said that it was stupid to give a Monkey a name. I said, hey, women do that kind of thing.

I told victor that the women had named the monkey sergeant Yossarian and thatthe name was from a book called catch-22. Victor said that it was stupid to give a Monkey a name. I said, hey, women do that kind of thing.

DAY Six Name: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Capitalization

DAY Six Name: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Capitalization

I told victor that the women had named the monkey sergeant Yossarian and thatthe name was from a book called catch-22. Victor said that it was stupid to give a Monkey a name. I said, hey, women do that kind of thing.

I told victor that the women had named the monkey sergeant Yossarian and thatthe name was from a book called catch-22. Victor said that it was stupid to give a Monkey a name. I said, hey, women do that kind of thing.

Quiz
Capitalization Capitalization
PERIOD: NAME: PERIOD:

Quiz

NAME:

Put a check mark by the sentence that uses correct capitalization:

Put a check mark by the sentence that uses correct capitalization: 1. ____ The war in Iraq, also called Operation Iraqi Freedom, began in March, 2003. ____ The war in Iraq, also called operation Iraqi freedom, began in March, 2003. 2. ____ One reason for the war was that U.S. leaders suspected iraq of possessing Weapons of mass destruction. ____ One reason for the war was that U.S. leaders suspected Iraq of possessing weapons of mass destruction. 3. ____ The president said, We know that Iraq, in the late 1990s, had several mobile biological weapons labs, ____ The president said, we know that Iraq, in the late 1990s, had several mobile Biological Weapons labs, 4. ____ One of the Presidents key allies was prime minister Tony Blair of the United Kingdom. ____ One of the presidents key allies was Prime Minister Tony Blair of the United Kingdom. Identify the capitalization errors using the proper proofreading marks (there are three errors in each.) 5. The invasion of baghdad, Iraqs capital city, eventually led to the capture of saddam hussein, the president of Iraq.

1. ____ The war in Iraq, also called Operation Iraqi Freedom, began in March, 2003.

____ The war in Iraq, also called operation Iraqi freedom, began in March, 2003.

2. ____ One reason for the war was that U.S. leaders suspected iraq of possessing Weapons of mass destruction.

____ One reason for the war was that U.S. leaders suspected Iraq of possessing weapons of mass destruction.

3. ____ The president said, We know that Iraq, in the late 1990s, had several mobile biological weapons labs,

____ The president said, we know that Iraq, in the late 1990s, had several mobile Biological Weapons labs,

4. ____ One of the Presidents key allies was prime minister Tony Blair of the United Kingdom.

____ One of the presidents key allies was Prime Minister Tony Blair of the United Kingdom.

Identify the capitalization errors using the proper proofreading marks (there are three errors in each.)

5. The invasion of baghdad, Iraqs capital city, eventually led

to the capture of saddam hussein, the president of Iraq.

Page Two
Capitalization Capitalization

Page Two

6. Even after victory was declared later in 2003, U.S. forces occupation of their Country.

6. Even after victory was declared later in 2003, U.S. forces continued to battle iraqis who fought against the american

continued to battle iraqis who fought against the american

occupation of their Country.

7. In a speech from the Oval Office of the white house in

7. In a speech from the Oval Office of the white house in August of 2010, President Barack Obama said, the American combat mission in Iraq has ended. 8. as of june, 2011, there had been over 4,700 U.S. and ally Casualties in the war in Iraq.

August of 2010, President Barack Obama said, the

American combat mission in Iraq has ended.

8. as of june, 2011, there had been over 4,700 U.S. and ally

Casualties in the war in Iraq.

Are the following titles correctly capitalized? (Yes or No)

Are the following titles correctly capitalized? (Yes or No) 9. _____ To Kill a Mockingbird 10. _____ Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid 11. _____ Late night with David Letterman 12. _____ I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings Rewrite the following titles with correct capitalization: 13. through the looking glass (book) 14. mr. smith goes to washington (movie) 15. the forest of hands and teeth (book) 16. the declaration of independence (historical document)

9. _____ To Kill a Mockingbird

10. _____ Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid

11. _____ Late night with David Letterman

12. _____ I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Rewrite the following titles with correct capitalization:

13. through the looking glass (book)

14. mr. smith goes to washington (movie)

15. the forest of hands and teeth (book)

16. the declaration of independence (historical document)

Ten-Minute
NAME:

Grammar

Extra
Practice

Capitalization

PERIOD:

REMEMBER that you should capitalize a. b. c. d. Proper nouns but not common nouns The first word of a quotation A persons title only when it is used as part of the persons name Words derived from proper nouns (like languages or nationalities)

Put a check mark by the sentence that uses correct capitalization:

1. _____ On march 19, 2003two days after demanding that Saddam hussein and his Sons surrender and leave Iraq within 48 hourthe U.S.-led Coalition begins bombing baghdad. _____ On March 19, 2003two days after demanding that Saddam Hussein and his sons surrender and leave Iraq within 48 hourthe U.S.-led coalition begins bombing Baghdad. 2. _____ Outlining the purpose of invading Iraq, President Bush says, The people of the United States and our friends and allies will not live at the mercy of an outlaw regime. _____ Outlining the purpose of invading Iraq, president Bush says, the people of the United States and our friends and Allies will not live at the mercy of an Outlaw regime. 3. _____ On March 20th at 7:57 A.M., the first confirmed skirmish between American and Iraqi forces takes place. _____ On March 20th at 7:57 A.M., the first Confirmed Skirmish between american and iraqi forces takes place. 4. _____ After encountering little serious resistance, U.S. forces roll into Central baghdad and take control of iraq's Capital City. _____ After encountering little serious resistance, U.S. forces roll into central Baghdad and take control of Iraq's capital city. 5. _____ On April 9th, Marines pull down a giant statue of Saddam in Firdos Square amidst celebrating Iraqis. _____ On April 9th, marines pull down a giant Statue of Saddam in firdos square amidst celebrating Iraqis.

In the examples below, identify the capitalization errors using the proper proofreading marks (the number in parentheses tells how many errors are in each paragraph):
6. (8) Sitting in the co-pilot's seat of a Navy S-3B Viking, president Bush landed May 1 on the USS abraham lincoln, an aircraft Carrier stationed off the coast of san Diego. Dressed in a flight suit, he gave a Nationally televised victory speech from the carrier's flight deck and declared, major combat operations in iraq have ended. 7. (9) By June, 2003, over 50 american troops had been killed since major Combat operations were declared over. secretary of defense Donald Rumsfeld blamed continued problems in Iraq on the last remnants of Saddam's baathist regime, claiming that the level of Violence is not different from everyday Crime in a major U.S. City. 8. (8) After the 2003 invasion of Iraq, david Kay led the U.S. weapons inspection team known as the iraq survey group. In less than one year, Kay told a Senate committee that no weapons of mass destruction (or WMDs) had been found in Iraq. On january 28, he testified, it turns out that we were all wrong. However, he maintained that he still believed the War was the right thing to do in light of the continuing threat posed by saddam. 9. (15) In early february, 2004, various Media outlets reported that U.S. forces had stormed a house in baghdad and found a computer disk containing a letter addressed to senior al-qaeda terrorist figures. The writer, believed to be the jordanian insurgent zarqawi, asked for assistance in waging a Civil War of religious Extremism in Iraq and claimed to be behind 25 attacks on american and other coalition Forces. U.S. officials point to the letter, saying, there is clearly a plan on the part of Outsiders to come into this Country and spark civil war.
(Example sentences take from Seven Years in Iraq: An Iraq War Timeline at www.time.com.)

On the lines below, write 5 example sentences of your own about war. In each sentence, include ONE capitalization error. When youre finished, go back and edit your own errors using the proper proofreading marks. __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________

Ten-Minute
NAME:

Grammar

Extra
Practice

Capitalization

PERIOD:

In titles of things like books, movies, and articles, the first and last word are always capitalized, and all other words are capitalized except articles (a, an, the), short conjunctions (and, but, or, as, if), and prepositions (of, over, beyond, through).
Circle the title that is capitalized correctly:
1. Hitler Youth: growing up in Hitlers shadow Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitlers Shadow 2. the Kane Chronicles, Book Two: the Throne of Fire The Kane Chronicles, Book Two: The Throne of Fire 3. The Power of Six the Power of Six 4. The Catcher In The Rye The Catcher in the Rye 5. Pretty Good for a Girl: The Autobiography of a Snowboarding Pioneer Pretty Good for a girl: the autobiography of a Snowboarding Pioneer 6. Courage the Cowardly Dog Courage the cowardly Dog 7. Prince Of Persia: The Sands Of Time Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

Use the proper proofreading marks to correct the capitalization errors in the following titles:
8. Children Of the Dust Bowl: the True Story of the school at Weedpatch Camp 9. Miss Peregrines home for peculiar Children 10. to Kill A Mockingbird

11. Lord Of The Flies 12. Soul Surfer: a True Story of Faith, Family, and Fighting to get back on the Board 13. Fosters Home For Imaginary Friends 14. How to train Your Dragon

Rewrite the following titles with the correct capitalization:

15. children of the great depression _____________________________________________ 16. what happened to goodbye ___________________________________________ 17. return of the king __________________________________ 18. the tales of beedle the bard ___________________________________________ 19. a child called it: one childs courage to survive ________________________________________________________________________ 20. late night with conan oBrien ___________________________________________ 21. transformers: revenge of the fallen ____________________________________________

Now its your turn to create the examples!

Write your own title to match the following descriptions. Each title must be at least three words long and must have at least one word that is NOT capitalized:
22. A science fiction novel about clones: ______________________________________________________________________________ 23. A nonfiction book about American history: ______________________________________________________________________________ 24. A TV show about strange scientific discoveries: ______________________________________________________________________________ 25. A novel about life in junior high: ______________________________________________________________________________ 26. A movie about the zombie apocalypse: ______________________________________________________________________________