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Year 5 - English

Speech interrupted: inverted commas and punctuation rules

Speech punctuation, parenthesis and apostrophes

Unit Summary

In this unit, pupils review punctuation rules for speech first and second sentences as well as for apostrophes for contraction, singular and plural possession. They learn to punctuate speech interrupted sentences and how to punctuate parenthesis with brackets and dashes for stylistic effect.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to accurately punctuate a speech interrupted sentence.

Key Notes

  • Inverted commas are the punctuation that signal direct speech to the reader.
  • A speech interrupted sentence begins with a character's spoken words.
  • The character's spoken words are interrupted by the reporting clause.
  • The character's spoken words resume after the reporting clause and the speech interrupted sentence ends.
  • A character's spoken words must be chosen carefully to include a natural break when punctuating speech interrupted.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • direct speech: the term used for a character speaking out loud in a text
  • speech interrupted sentence: a sentence in which a character's speech is interrupted by the reporting clause
  • inverted commas: a pair of punctuation marks that signal direct speech to the reader
  • reporting clause: a clause that tells the reader who said the speech sentence and how

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • Pupils may omit the commas from a speech interrupted sentence or include an extra capital letter.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

1. Explain this English learning goal in two key points.

Inverted commas are the punctuation that signal direct speech to the reader. A speech interrupted sentence begins with a character's spoken words.

2. Define this language term and use it in a sentence. 'direct speech'

the term used for a character speaking out loud in a text.

3. Correct this common English misunderstanding.

Mistake: Pupils may omit the commas from a speech interrupted sentence or include an extra capital letter. Correction: Use the graphic included in the slides as a visual prompt for pupils when writing speech interrupted.

More Lessons In This Unit

Browse all guides in the Year 5 English guide library.