You will learn
- Capitalise the first word of a sentence.
- Capitalise names and I.
- Capitalise days, months and holidays.
- Capitalise places.
Version 0.2 · expanded edition · built from cited public sources Content is based on the official frameworks and sources listed under Sources and standards. No official endorsement is claimed. Written in the style of common primary school assessments. No exam result is promised.
Student lesson
- Start every sentence with a capital.
- Capitalise names, places, days and months.
- Always capitalise the word I.
- Capitalise important words in titles.
Words to know
a big letter, like A
a name of a particular person, place or thing
the name of a book or story
a special day, like Christmas
1. Discover: The birthday in March
On friday, Ama and i went to lagos. Ama said, “My birthday is in march!” Her friend Kofi said, “We will have a party in june.” They read a book called The Lion and the Mouse. The teacher fixed all the capital letters.
Think: Which words need capital letters?
2. Understand: Capital letters
Idea 1: Sentence starts and I
Begin every sentence with a capital letter. Always write I as a capital.
Idea 2: Names and places
Capitalise names (Ama), places (Lagos), days (Friday), months (March) and holidays (Christmas).
Idea 3: Titles
In a title, capitalise the first word and important words: The Lion and the Mouse.
3. Worked examples
Example 1 (I show you): Fix
Fix: friday is fun.
- Day.
Answer: Friday is fun.
Example 2 (We do it together): Fix
Fix: i went to lagos.
- I and place.
Answer: I went to Lagos.
Example 3 (You try): Title
Capitalise: the lion and the mouse.
Show the steps and answer
- Important words.
Answer: The Lion and the Mouse
Did you know?
Capital letters are also called upper case, from printers placing them in the upper case drawer.
Why this matters
Capital letters show where sentences start and which words are names.
4. Explore: Capital detective
Fix capital letters.
- Read a sentence.
- Find the mistakes.
- Fix each.
- Read it aloud.
Think about it: what did you notice?
You can fix capitals.
5. Practise
Say it in a sentence
Use these starters when you talk about the lesson. Say them out loud.
- Start with a ___ letter.
- Write ___ as a capital.
- Days start with a ___.
- Months start with a ___.
Guided practice
Question 1. Fix: monday.
Monday
Question 2. Fix: i am here.
I am here.
Question 3. Fix: kofi.
Kofi
Independent practice
Level 1: Start
- A big letter is a ___ letter.
- Every sentence starts with a ___.
- The word I is always ___.
- Days are written with a ___.
- Names are written with a ___.
Level 2: Grow
- Fix: ama lives in accra.
- Fix: today is tuesday.
- Fix: in july we play.
Level 3: Stretch
- Why capitals?
- Is friday correct?
- Is i correct?
Answers are in the answer key below. Try first, then check.
6. Apply: English in everyday life
Write 5 sentences using capitals correctly.
Show a sample answer
five sentences
Another one. Fix 5 sentences with no capitals.
Show a sample answer
fixed sentences
7. Common mistakes
Fix: I.
Fix: March.
8. Lesson summary and revision card
- I can capitalise sentence starts.
- I can capitalise names and I.
- I can capitalise days and months.
- I can capitalise places.
9. Check and master
Answer all 14 questions. You will see feedback after each one.
Your result appears here after you answer every question.
10. Key takeaways
- Capitalise sentence starts.
- Capitalise I.
- Capitalise names, places, days, months.
- Capitalise title words.
11. Next lesson
Next lesson: Commas and apostrophes. Keep going with the next idea in this course.
Exam practice
These questions are written in the style of common school and international primary assessments. Try them on your own, without looking back. Then check your answers in the marking guide. The marks are shown in brackets.
- Name three things that need capitals. [3 marks]
- Fix: ama and i went to lagos. [3 marks]
- Fix: today is monday. [1 mark]
- Why is I capital? [1 mark]
- Explain when to use capitals. [3 marks]
Total: 11 marks.
Marking guide and model answers
- sentence start [1]; names [1]; days/months/places [1]
- Ama [1]; I [1]; Lagos [1]
- Today is Monday. [1]
- it is a special word [1]
- start of sentences [1]; names and places [1]; days, months, I [1]
Score guide: 10 to 11 = secure. 7 to 9 = nearly there, revise the parts you missed. Under 7 = work through the lesson again with a grown-up.
Printable worksheet
- A big letter is a ___.
- Sentences start with a ___.
- Write I as a ___.
- Days start with a ___.
- Months start with a ___.
- True or false: friday is correct.
- True or false: Lagos is correct.
- Fix: ama.
- Fix: march.
- Fix: i am here.
Homework
Fix 5 sentences with no capitals.
Answer key and marking scheme
| Question | Expected response | Marks |
|---|---|---|
| 1. A big letter is a ___. | capital | 1 |
| 2. Sentences start with a ___. | capital | 1 |
| 3. Write I as a ___. | capital | 1 |
| 4. Days start with a ___. | capital | 1 |
| 5. Months start with a ___. | capital | 1 |
| 6. True or false: friday is correct. | false | 1 |
| 7. True or false: Lagos is correct. | true | 1 |
| 8. Fix: ama. | Ama | 1 |
| 9. Fix: march. | March | 1 |
| 10. Fix: i am here. | I am here. | 1 |
| Total | 10 |
Independent practice answers. Level 1: 1 capital; 2 capital; 3 capital; 4 capital; 5 capital. Level 2: 1 Ama lives in Accra.; 2 Today is Tuesday.; 3 In July we play.. Level 3: 1 show start and names; 2 no, Friday; 3 no, I.
Quiz answers: 1 B, 2 C, 3 A, 4 B, 5 C, 6 A, 7 B, 8 C, 9 A, 10 B, 11 C, 12 A, Challenge 1 B, Challenge 2 C.
Mastery and remediation
| Objective | Bronze (Developing) | Silver (Proficient) | Gold (Advanced) |
|---|---|---|---|
| O1 Capitalise the first word of a sentence | Shows this with help from an adult or a picture | Does this independently and explains how they know | Explains it clearly and uses it in a new situation |
| O2 Capitalise names and I | Shows this with help from an adult or a picture | Does this independently and explains how they know | Explains it clearly and uses it in a new situation |
| O3 Capitalise days, months and holidays | Shows this with help from an adult or a picture | Does this independently and explains how they know | Explains it clearly and uses it in a new situation |
| O4 Capitalise places | Shows this with help from an adult or a picture | Does this independently and explains how they know | Explains it clearly and uses it in a new situation |
Courseversity badge thresholds (overall quiz score): Gold = 90–100%; Silver = 80–89.9%; Bronze = 70–79.9%. A badge is never a full record of progress.
If a learner struggles
- Find the misconception: Writing i small. I.
- Explain another way: use real objects, pictures or actions first, then words.
- Show a simpler example: Use capital cards.
- Guided practice: work through one example together and let the learner try the next one.
- Reassess: use the quiz again or the worksheet.
- Move on when the learner shows Silver-level evidence independently.
For parents and guardians
In this lesson your child learns when to use capital letters. You do not need to be an expert to help.
- Check capitals.
- Read together.
- Praise accuracy.
- Ask “how do you know?” after each answer, and listen.
- Praise effort, not only right answers. Mistakes are how we learn.
- Ten to fifteen minutes a day is better than one long session.
Teacher package
1–5. Objectives, prerequisites, materials, preparation, duration
Lesson objectives. Learners will: capitalise the first word of a sentence; capitalise names and I; capitalise days, months and holidays; capitalise places.
Prerequisite knowledge. Subject and predicate.
Materials. Chart paper or board, pencils, picture or word cards, a reading book if available. Low-resource options: use chalk or charcoal on a board or wall, drawings in the sand, and objects from the classroom instead of printed materials.
Preparation. Write the key words and examples on the board or on cards before the lesson.
Suggested duration. 45–60 minutes. It can be split into two shorter sessions.
6–9. Teaching procedure, explanation notes, guided and independent activities
Introduction (5 min). Review sentences.
Explanation (10 min). Teach capitals.
Guided activity (10 min). Practise.
Independent activity (10 min). Check.
Assessment and reflection (5 min). Ask each learner to say one thing they learned and how they know it.
Key questions. Does it need a capital?
Teacher explanation notes. Move from the spoken word to pictures and then to print. Read aloud often, point to the words, and let learners hear and say before they read and write.
10–12. Differentiation, formative assessment, common misconceptions
Support. Use capital cards. Extension. Capitalise titles.
Formative assessment. Listen to learners read and explain, ask “how do you know?”, and check the independent work.
Misconceptions. Writing i small. I.
13–15. Assessment questions, answer keys, marking scheme
Use the quiz, the 11-mark exam practice and the worksheet on this page. All answers and marking guides are in the answer sections above. Re-check every answer before use.
16–19. Remediation, enrichment, homework, teacher reflection
Remediation. Use capital cards. Enrichment. Write a story with capitals. Homework. See above.
Teacher reflection. After teaching, record: which ideas learners understood; which misconceptions occurred; which activities worked; which learners need more practice; and what to improve next time.
Sources and standards
This lesson is based on the sources below, and no official endorsement is claimed. Reference starting points: Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts, Cambridge Primary and the IB Primary Years Programme. Where a standard code is named, it points to the official framework.
Official standards for this topic area. Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts (official site): Grade 2 » Language. These pages list the standards that cover this topic area; read them alongside the lesson.
Research used to shape this lesson. Common Core L.2.2a (capitalize holidays, product names, and geographic names); Cambridge Primary English Stage 2 (grammar and punctuation). These sources informed the lesson.