Learning outcomes

Teaching punctuation
Learning to punctuate is something we continue to do as we become more sophisticated writers. It is a hard skill to master, because it is not discrete but an integral part of effective writing. Exercises and worksheets are unlikely to succeed in helping children to punctuate well, no matter how engaging and colourful they are. Developing a sophisticated knowledge of punctuation needs to occur in the context of children’s deepening understanding of the craft of writing, and the importance of making meaning clear to the reader.
Consider trying the following tried and tested approaches.

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  Explicitly draw attention to punctuation in reading. Help children to see the power of punctuation and how it helps writers to convey meaning.
  
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  Think aloud as you model writing, so that children are able to see and hear the choices you make as you punctuate writing.
  
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  Make writing meaningful. If children write for authentic purposes and audiences, making sense will genuinely matter.
  
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  Draw children’s attention to how changes in punctuation impact on meaning. Include the use of word play, puzzles and investigations to do this.
  
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  Provide opportunities for children to write for a wide range of purposes: challenge them to think about their use of punctuation and talk about what is most appropriate to make the meaning clear to the reader.
  
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  Establish writing or response partners, so that all children have the opportunity to hear their work read aloud and see and hear where punctuation needs adding, changing or deleting.
  
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  Provide opportunities for children to discuss punctuation in their writing with you and their peers.
  

Learning outcomes review
You should now be confident about what you need to know as a primary teacher to teach punctuation well, and be confident in your own subject knowledge. Punctuation is complex, and you will know that we cannot simply teach children how to punctuate and expect them to apply this knowledge accurately throughout their writing. Demarcating simple sentences is the first building block (Hall, 1999). You will also be aware that although there are some rules governing punctuation, other things are a matter of choice, and this is one of the many challenges we face when we teach children to punctuate. Most importantly, you will know that teaching punctuation is integral to teaching good writing and is never an end in itself.