Apostrophes for Possession Lesson Starter

Year 4 EnglishGrammar and Punctuation3 pages

About this worksheet

Plural possessive apostrophes are the focus of this three-page lesson starter for Year 4 English. Pupils choose between forms such as girl's, girls and girls' in three sentences. For each one, they decide if it is a plain plural, one owner or many owners. They then shorten two phrases, including the coats belonging to the children, and a tip explains why children takes 's. Last, they fix two mistakes in a short story about monkeys at the zoo. The answer key explains every answer. Linked to the England National Curriculum grammar objectives.

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Curriculum objectives covered

Writing - vocabulary, grammar and punctuation

โ€œLearning the grammar for years 3 and 4 in English Appendix 2โ€

Part 1 asks pupils to tell apart plurals, singular possession and plural possession.

Writing - vocabulary, grammar and punctuation

โ€œIndicating possession by using the possessive apostrophe with plural nounsโ€

Parts 2 and 3, including children's and keepers'.

What's inside this worksheet

Part 1: Choose the Correct Word

Three sentences with three options each, about a football team, dogs in the local park and a coffee mug left on a desk.

Part 2: Rewrite the Phrase

Two long phrases to shorten with an apostrophe, about the players' boots and the children's coats.

Part 3: Spot the Mistakes

A two-sentence zoo story with one apostrophe that should not be there and one that is missing.

Answer Key

Each answer labelled as a plain plural, singular possession or plural possession.

How teachers use it

Lesson starter

Use Part 1 as a ten-minute starter, then teach from the mistakes you see.

Whiteboards

Read the Part 1 sentences aloud and ask pupils to write their choice on mini whiteboards.

Proofreading

After Part 3, pupils check the apostrophes in their last piece of writing.

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