THIS completes what we were doing last week — spelling tricky words. We learnt that no matter how hard you practice, there will always be some words that you struggle to spell correctly. Spelling mistakes are obvious to the examiner, so use these tips to help you spell perfectly.
Keep a list of the words that you find tricky. Practise spelling them until you get them right every time. Use flashcards and write the spelling on the front and put the meaning on the back especially when dealing with junior classes. That way you can test the spelling as well as the meaning. Learn spelling rules – the “i” before “e” rule Make up mnemonics: Try using mnemonics – these are sentences or phrases that can help you remember spellings. Make up your mnemonics for words that you find tricky.
The first letters of these phrases help you remember how to spell difficult words.
For example: Necessary –Never Eat Chips – Eat Salad Sandwiches And Remain Young. Because – Big Elephants Can Always Understand Small Elephants. Rules for words that sound the same are really useful. These rules help you remember which similar-sounding word is which. Stationery is for things like pencils and paper. Stationary is for things that are not moving, like a parked car.
Complement adds something to make it enough. Compliment puts you in the limelight. Desserts have two sugars. Deserts just have sand. It can be hard to think about spelling when you are in the middle of an examination. Spell sensibly in the examination. Even if you have prepared properly, there is still a chance that your mind might go blank in the examination.
The important thing is not to panic – remember this simple advice to help you get those SPaG marks. SPaG stands for Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar. SPaG marks are given for correct spelling, punctuation and grammar in certain GCSE subjects. Examples of subjects that award SPaG marks are: English Literature, History, Geography and Religious Studies.
Five percent of the total marks for these GCSE subjects will be given for SPaG.
Even if a subject does not award marks for SPaG it is really important to be able to use spelling and punctuation correctly.
You will not be tested on SPaG for every question so you need to read the examination paper carefully. SPaG marks are really important. Five percent does not sound like many marks, but it could make a whole grade’s difference.
You will throw away easy marks if you make silly mistakes or forget how to use punctuation and grammar properly. Remember though, even if your SPaG is perfect, if an examiner cannot read your handwriting, it could still cost you marks.
Plurals: When you have two or more of something you need to change the noun to the plural form.
Most words add -s” to make the plural. Examples: human > humans, place > places. “-s” is added to the noun to make sense. Some words need “-es”. Add “-es” to nouns ending in a hissing sound – “s’” “ch” “sh”, “x” and “z”. You cannot just add “-s” to these nouns because they would be difficult to say. You need to add “-es” to help you pronounce the word.
Here are examples of wrong spellings of plurals and the correct ones: glass + “-s” =glass (wrong) > glass + “es” = glasses (correct); watch + “-s” = watchs (Wrong) .> watch + “_+_es” = watches.
There are two plural forms for words that end in – y. Look at the letter in front of the ‘y’ If it is a vowel – the letters “a”, “e”, “I”, “o”, or “u”; – just add “-s” key > keys, play > plays. The letter before the “y” is a vowel, so you only need to add an “-s”. If the letter in front of the “y” is a consonant – drop the “y” and add “-ies”. Party –parties, fly > flies. The letter before the “y” is “I” – consonant. You need to drop the “y” and add “-ies”.
Plurals are not just sticking “s” on the end.
Make sure you learn the rules of these plural words. One way to check the plural of words which end in “s”, “ch”, “sh”, “x” and “z” is to say them aloud – if they end in a hissing sound, they need an “-es” ending. Most plurals of names just need an “-s” on the end. You always add an “-s” when you write the plural of a name unless the name ends with “-s”.
Both plurals of names just need an “s” on the end. You always add an “s” when you write the plural of a name (unless the name eds with “s” Both Henrys were good at horse riding Even though the letter before “y” is “r” a consonant because it is a name you just add an “s”.
For views link with [email protected] or sms to 0772113207
