Sentence endings and capitals for 11 plus English

    A short video on sentence endings and capitals, a worked example, the mistake children most often make, and a question to try. The rule to remember: one idea, one sentence.

    Punctuation, topic 1 of 6 · 2 minute video

    How to see it

    A sentence holds one complete idea. It starts with a capital and ends with a mark: a full stop for a statement, a question mark for a question, an exclamation mark for strong feeling. Names, places, days, months and titles always take capitals. Seasons do not. One idea, one sentence.

    A worked example

    Listen for where each idea ends. On Saturday we went to York: full stop. Saturday is a day and York is a place, so both take capitals. It rained all day: full stop. Did we mind? That asks, so a question mark. We sang all the way home: full stop. Four sentences, four capitals.

    The common mistake: joining two sentences with only a comma

    The trap is joining two sentences with only a comma. We went to York, it rained all day. Both halves stand alone, so a comma is not enough. Use a full stop and a capital, or a joining word like and.

    Try one

    You ↑A remembered the ↑B tickets, didn't you ↑C I left them ↑D on the table.

    Where should a question mark be added?

    Show the answer

    Right: C

    That makes the first part a question. Then a new sentence starts, with I, which always has a capital.

    Try it with your own child

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