K.10.D.viii

ELAKindergartenedit drafts with adult assistance using standard English conventions, including:

The Standard

punctuation marks at the end of declarative sentences

Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for English Language Arts and Reading · The student uses the writing process recursively to compose multiple texts that are legible and uses appropriate conventions.

Teacher's field guide

What This Standard Means

What Students Need to Do

Students reread their writing with an adult and find where each telling sentence ends. They add a period after each complete thought.

What Mastery Looks Like

A student rereads a draft, notices where a telling sentence ends, and adds a period. With an adult prompt, the student can explain that the period shows the thought is finished.

Common Misconceptions

Students may leave off the period or place it after every line rather than after the complete thought. They may also confuse periods with question marks or add several periods.

How to Assess It

Give students three short telling sentences without punctuation. Ask them to circle where each sentence ends and add the correct mark.

Lesson moves

Ways to Teach It

  1. Give students word cards to arrange into complete telling sentences, then place a large paper period after each finished thought.

  2. Write “My dog is brown” and ask, “Where does the thought finish, and what mark belongs there?”

  3. Play Period Detective by having students find and correct missing periods in five sentences posted around the room.

  4. Examine a classroom sign or simple note, then circle the periods and discuss how they help readers know when to stop.

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