The Mother Tongue, Book I: Lessons in Speaking, Reading and Writing English · Secs. 210–211 · Part 1: Part First
62. The exclamation point and capital O
Goal: Your child uses the exclamation point after words of strong feeling and always writes the word O as a capital.
You'll need
- The book, open to this lesson
- Paper and pencil (a notebook kept just for this book works well)
What's in the book
Section 210 explains the exclamation point after a word or phrase of fear, surprise or other feeling, with twelve examples (from Dickens, Rip Van Winkle and poems). Section 211 gives nine lines with the word "O" and the rule that it is always a capital.
The lesson, step by step
Read the examples (Section 210)
Read the twelve examples aloud with feeling.
But hark! a rap comes gently at the door.
Ask: What feeling is in each one?
Where does the sentence end?
The book points out that after the exclamation, the sentence goes on and ends with its own period or question mark. Look at number 4: "Hallo, Mary! where are you going?"
Capital O (Section 211)
Read the nine lines.
Give me of your bark, O Birch tree!
The word "O," when consisting of a single letter, is always written as a capital.
Write
Your child writes five sentences with exclamations (a surprise, a warning, a cheer, a fright, a greeting), and copies three of the "O" lines.
Check it gently
Check the exclamation points and the capital O. Your child fixes any slips. Don't let exclamation points pile up (!!!); one is enough.
What a good result looks like
Example (written for this guide, not from the book):
Look out! the ladder is slipping.
Hurrah! we won the game.