### 1. Showing Possession
 
**Singular Nouns**: To show that something belongs to a singular noun, add an apostrophe followed by an "s". This applies even if the noun ends in "s".
 
- Example: "The cat's toys are scattered everywhere." (Shows that the toys belong to one cat)
- Example: "James's book is on the table." (Even though James ends in "s", we add 's to show possession)
 
**Plural Nouns (already ending in "s")**: For plural nouns that already end in "s", just add an apostrophe after the "s" to show possession.
 
- Example: "The dogs' leashes are in the closet." (Indicates that the leashes belong to multiple dogs)
 
**Plural Nouns (not ending in "s")**: For plural nouns that do not end in "s", add an apostrophe followed by an "s".
 
- Example: "The children's playground is newly painted." (Shows that the playground belongs to the children)
 
**Joint Ownership**: When two or more people own something together, place the apostrophe and "s" after the last noun.
 
- Example: "Alex and Sam's apartment is spacious." (Indicates that the apartment belongs to both Alex and Sam together)
 
**Separate Ownership**: When two or more people own separate items, place the apostrophe and "s" after each noun.
 
- Example: "Lisa's and Mark's books are on different shelves." (Indicates that Lisa and Mark each have their own set of books)
 
### 2. Indicating Omissions
 
**Contractions**: The apostrophe can be used to show where letters have been left out in contractions.
 
- Example: "Don't" is the contraction for "do not." (The apostrophe shows the omission of the "o" in "not")
- Example: "It's" can mean "it is" or "it has." (The apostrophe shows the omission of the "i" in "is" or the "ha" in "has")
 
**Informal or Poetic Omissions**: Sometimes, especially in informal speech or poetry, apostrophes are used to omit letters to convey a certain style or to maintain rhythm.
 
- Example: "'Tis the season to be jolly." (The apostrophe indicates the omission of the "i" in "it is")
- Example: "O'er the land of the free..." (The apostrophe shows that the "v" in "over" is omitted)
 
### Practice with Examples
 
Ask students to create sentences using both rules. For possession, they might write something like "Sarah's guitar needs new strings." For omissions, they could come up with "She'll be coming to the party later." Encouraging them to identify and correct sentences with incorrect apostrophe use can also be a helpful exercise.
 
### Common Mistakes to Avoid
 
- **Its vs. It's**: Remind them that "it's" is a contraction for "it is" or "it has," whereas "its" is a possessive pronoun meaning "belonging to it."
- **Plurals**: Apostrophes are not used to make words plural. For example, "apples" is the plural of "apple," not "apple's."
 
By providing clear rules, relatable examples, and opportunities for practice, you can help high school students grasp the correct usage of apostrophes.
 
 
Give examples of incorrect use of apostrophe
 
Incorrect use of apostrophes is a common issue in writing, and it often leads to confusion or misinterpretation of the intended meaning. Here are some examples of incorrect apostrophe usage, along with explanations:
 
### 1. Apostrophes Used to Form Plurals
 
Incorrect: "I have three apple's in my bag."
Correct: "I have three apples in my bag."
 
- Explanation: Apostrophes should not be used to make nouns plural. In this case, adding an 's makes it seem like possession is being indicated when it's simply a plural form.
 
### 2. Possessive Pronouns with Apostrophes
 
Incorrect: "That book is your's."
Correct: "That book is yours."
 
- Explanation: Possessive pronouns (yours, hers, its, ours, theirs) do not require an apostrophe, as they already indicate possession.
 
### 3. Its vs. It's Confusion
 
Incorrect: "The cat licked it's paw."
Correct: "The cat licked its paw."
 
- Explanation: "It's" is a contraction for "it is" or "it has," not a possessive form. The possessive form "its" should not have an apostrophe.
 
### 4. Plural Possessive Mistakes
 
Incorrect: "All the cats' has their own toys."
Correct: "All the cats have their own toys."
 
- Explanation: When making a noun plural and possessive, the apostrophe placement is crucial. However, in this case, since "cats" is already plural and the sentence structure does not imply possession directly, no apostrophe is needed.
 
### 5. Apostrophes with Verbs
 
Incorrect: "She walk's to school every day."
Correct: "She walks to school every day."
 
- Explanation: Apostrophes should not be used to form the third person singular present tense of verbs.
 
### 6. Unnecessary Apostrophes in Dates and Acronyms
 
Incorrect: "In the 1980's, CD's were very popular."
Correct: "In the 1980s, CDs were very popular."
 
- Explanation: Apostrophes are not needed when pluralizing dates or acronyms unless there's a risk of misreading.
 
### 7. Confusing Plural and Singular Possessive
 
Incorrect: "The three dog's share a single bowl."
Correct: "The three dogs share a single bowl." (If referring to multiple dogs sharing one bowl)
Or: "The three dogs' bowl is in the kitchen." (If emphasizing possession of the bowl by the dogs)
 
- Explanation: The first incorrect example suggests a singular possessive (one dog owning three of something), which is not the intended meaning. The corrected versions clarify the intended plural nature and the possessive case where necessary.
 
By recognizing and understanding these common mistakes, writers can improve their accuracy in using apostrophes and thereby enhance the clarity of their writing.

Key capitalization rules with examples:

1. Capitalize the First Word of a Sentence: Start every sentence with a capital letter.
   • Example: "Every morning, we have assembly before classes start."
2. Capitalize Proper Nouns and Titles: Proper nouns (specific names of people, places, organizations, etc.) and titles when they precede names should be capitalized.
   • Examples: "We will visit the Statue of Liberty during our trip to New York City." / "Dr. Smith will give us a lecture on human anatomy."
3. Capitalize Days, Months, and Holidays, but not Seasons: Days, months, and holidays are capitalized, but the names of seasons are not unless they are part of a proper noun.
   • Examples: "We have a test on Monday, in the month of October, right before Halloween." / "I love spring because everything is so green."
4. Capitalize the First Word and Major Words in Titles of Books, Movies, etc.: In titles, capitalize the first word, nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, and subordinating conjunctions. Do not capitalize articles, coordinating conjunctions, or prepositions unless they are the first or last word.
   • Example: "My favorite book is 'To Kill a Mockingbird' by Harper Lee."
5. Capitalize the Pronoun 'I': The pronoun 'I' is always capitalized, no matter where it appears in a sentence.
   • Example: "My friend and I will work on the project together."
6. Capitalize Specific Geographical Locations: Specific places and regions are capitalized, but general geographical terms are not.
   • Examples: "We live in the Pacific Northwest, which is known for its rain." / "The river flows through the valley."
7. Capitalize Nationalities, Languages, and Religions: Words that denote a specific nationality, language, or religion are capitalized.
   • Examples: "She speaks Spanish fluently." / "They practice Buddhism."
8. Capitalize Family Relationships When Used as Proper Nouns: When terms denoting family relationships are used as proper nouns (i.e., as names), they are capitalized.
   • Example: "I asked Uncle John to pass the salt." vs. "My uncle is coming to visit."
     

By using these examples and clarifying the rules, students can better understand when and why to capitalize certain words, enhancing their writing skills.

What do you think of when you hear the word audience? Do you tend to think of TV viewers and movie goers? What about those who attend concerts or sporting events? Now switch gears a bit and think about audience as it relates to your writing. 

Most of what you write, whether it’s creative, academic or professional, is meant to be read by others. As such, it is important to identify your audience in order to best determine how to present your ideas for optimal understanding and persuasion. 

So, how do you go about identifying your audience? Sometimes it’s easy, like when your instructor tells you that your writing will be read by your classmates or when you’re writing something for a group of like-minded individuals. But what if you’re not sure? How do you narrow down your audience? Think about your writing and consider the following:  

Who are the people most likely to read your document?  Once you determine this, you can begin to gather other information. Data related to demographic traits, such as gender, age, education, and socioeconomic standing can further narrow your audience. Also consider the level of knowledge that your audience has about your topic. Knowing this will determine how detailed you should be or how much support you should give to your ideas. Finally, consider any potential biases that your audience may have and where these biases come from.    
 
When you have the answers to these questions, you can then adjust your content to best identify with your intended audience. This is especially important if your aim is persuasion. You may also want to address these questions --
​

• What is your connection to your audience? For example,  are they your co-workers or your supervisors or perhaps  you’re the supervisor. Whatever the case, it is important to keep your status in mind in order to use the appropriate tone.
• Is your audience more likely to agree or disagree with your position? Having this information will help you determine how best to appeal to them and to argue your points.   
• What is the audience likely to do with the information provided by you? Are you asking them to follow up with some sort of action or take a position? If so, have you given them sufficient information, so they can follow up responsibly? 
  

In the workplace, writing emails, proposals, reports, and other business documents is commonplace. It’s safe to assume that your audience for these types of writing are your co-workers and other industry personnel. As such, your writing should reflect certain professional standards. These standards include writing that is concise, professional in tone, and formatted in business style.

So, remember, there are many types of audience in writing. It is up to you, the writer, to identify your audience and deliver content that meets their needs.​

​Tone conveys attitude. Unlike spoken words, where the tone can be heard, writers control tone through the words they use. The way we put words together to form sentences – also known as diction or word choice – depends on our attitude toward what we are writing and how we choose to project it onto our readers.     

Some common tones in writing are funny, serious, happy, sad, formal, informal, positive and negative. A piece of writing can shift from one tone to another or it can remain consistent throughout. Overall, however, the writing should maintain a balanced tone that reflects the writer’s purpose. In other words, what is the writer hoping to accomplish by writing this?  
 
The three common purposes of writing are --
​

• Writing to persuade. In a written piece that’s meant to persuade, the writer’s main purpose is to sway his or her readers to take a specific action or draw a certain conclusion through convincing argument. Two examples here are advertisements and political speeches. 

• Writing to inform. The main purpose here is to enlighten or educate the reader about a topic. Some examples of informative writing are instructions, textbooks, and expository essays. 

​

• Writing to entertain:  The writer’s primary purpose here is to provide enjoyment through text. Common examples are fiction and poetry.

 
It’s important to remember that these purposes aren’t mutually exclusive; at times they merge. For example, writing that is meant to persuade can also inform. Along the same line, writing that is meant to inform can serve to entertain. Again, it all depends on the writer’s purpose and the tone he or she uses to deliver it. 

​In workplace writing, a writer’s purpose and what he or she hopes to achieve is especially important. Equally important is the document’s audience. Once this is determined, the writer will be able to use the most effective tone – one that is based on the readers’ knowledge, needs, and preferences.

Sincerity and honesty are a must in writing professional documents. Be sure to choose words that project these traits. The same can be said for optimism. Delivering bad news is a part any professional setting, but it is possible to deliver it in an optimistic fashion. Again, it is all in the writer’s tone.

Finally, stay away from lofty language. Using big words can seem like the writer is talking down to his or her readers. It is always best to use plain, concise language.
​
Using the appropriate tone in workplace writing is key to conveying the intended message. When determining the appropriate tone, remind yourself of the document’s purpose, audience, and desired outcome. Keeping these factors in mind will help you to identify the most appropriate tone to use for writing any professional document.

Concise writing is direct, efficient, and contains only the words needed to convey a point. Writing this way can be challenging, especially for students and young professionals. It takes conscious effort to choose our words carefully and to not write the way we talk. That’s not to say there’s anything wrong with the way we talk; but talking is usually informal while academic and workplace writing require a more formal tone and style.