1. APOSTROPHES grammar lesson

2. Two Primary Functions…
1. To show possession of a noun
2. To show the omission of letters

3. To Show Possession… Add an ‘s to the end
UNLESS the noun is plural AND ends in s. Then add
only an apostrophe to the end.
EXAMPLES:
Singular: Plural:
Child’s toy Children’s toys
Baby’s bottle Babies’ pacifiers
Ms. Jones’s class The Joneses’ house
Texas’s football team

4. To Show Possession…
Add ‘s to the singular form of the word (even if it ends in –s)
Ex: I drive near the president’s house every day.
Ex: I like James’s car.
Add ‘ to the end of plural nouns that end in –s
Ex: These are my sisters’ dresses.
Ex: These are my friends’ pencils.
Add ‘s to the last noun to show joint possession of an object
Ex: We are at Todd and Anne’s apartment.

5. Practice (make corrections)…
I drive near the presidents house every day.
I like James car.
Rewrite each word group with a possessive noun.
Example:
The application that Alison made
Alison’s application
The mathematics book that my brother has
The request that our teachers made

6. Practice…
Singular Singular Possessive Plural Pl. Possess. bear bear’s bears bears’ man Carlos woman chorus

7. Continued…
If two or more people own a single thing together, place the apostrophe after the last person’s name.
Haley and Liz’s basketball
If each owns a thing separately, make each noun possessive.
Haley’s and Liz’s basketballs

8. Practice…
Change the phrases into possessive noun phrases using an apostrophe…
shoe of the girl
son of Marcus
House of Julie and Juan

9. To Show Omission of Letters… (contractions)
Apostrophes are used to show any omission of letters in a word.
Apostrophes are also used to form contractions. A contraction is a combination of two words which results in a single word. The apostrophe is used where letters have been omitted.

10. Practice…
Use apostrophes in the following sentences to make contractions.
1. I do not like vanilla ice cream.
2. I am going to the mall.
3. Who is the new student?

11. The Exception to the Rule…
**The only time you need to use an apostrophe for “it is” is when forming the contraction it’s.
**Its (with no apostrophe) is used to show possession.
Ex: I love school. It’s the best part of my week!
Ex: It is funny when the dog chases its tail!

12. The Exception to the Rule…
**The only time you need to use an apostrophe for “who is” is when forming the contraction who’s.
**Whose (with no apostrophe) is used to show possession.
Ex: Who’s going to work on the project tonight?
EX: At whose house will we work on the project?

13. Practice… Choose the correct word to complete the sentence.
1. (Its/It’s) fun to study English.
2. I think (its/it’s) cute to watch a kitten play with (its/it’s) ball of yarn.
3. (Who’s/Whose) computer is this?
4. Kristen, (who’s/whose) normally very shy, will be giving the presentation.

14. Works Cited…
Info taken from