74 Capital-Letters Can

Writing in English
How to Use
Capital Letters
Lesson Objective
In this lesson, you will learn how to write capital letters.
You will also learn how and when to use capitals.
You’ll also learn about proper nouns. Let’s begin!
Note:
Another word for “capital” letters is “uppercase.”
Small letters are called “lowercase.”
Warm-Up
A. Writing
Find a partner. Writer your 1. Did you circle the first letter in your partner’s first name?
partner’s full name below.
2. Did you circle the first letter in your partner’s birth month?
Now write your partner’s
birthdate and birthplace. 3. Did you circle the first letter of your partner’s birthplace?
Circle the uppercase letters.
My Partner’s Full Name
My Partner’s Birthdate
My Partner’s Birthplace
Copyright 2018, Red River Press Inc. For use by ESL Library members only. ( B E G / V E R S I O N 2 . 0) 1
How to Use Capital Letters
Writing in English
Warm-Up cont.
B. Vocabulary Preview
Match the words on the left with the correct meanings on the right.
1. capital a) one of 12 periods in a year (e.g., January)
2. lowercase b) not easy
3. proper noun c) an uppercase letter
4. common noun d) a short form where letters represent words (e.g., BTW = by the way)
5. month e) to copy (draw) overtop of a model
6. trace f) small letter(s)
7. difficult g) a general person, place, thing, or idea
8. acronym h) the name of a book, movie, etc.
9. nationality i) the country one is from or belongs to
10. title j) a person, place, or thing with a specific name
Writing in English
Types of Letters
A. Reference
Uses Examples
Use a capital letter at the

• Bunnies are cute.
beginning of every sentence.
Use a capital letter at the • C

anada
Capital Letters beginning of a proper noun. • July
(A proper noun is the name of a • Monday
Big letters are called
person, place, or thing.) • George
capital or uppercase letters.
ABCDEFGHIJKLMN Use a capital “I” for the first • I live in Canada.
OPQRSTUVWXYZ person singular pronoun. • Yuki and I ate apples.
• G reat Expectations
Use capital letters for first and
• The Right to Write
important words in titles.
• The Shadow of the Wind
Use a lowercase letter at the • d

og
beginning of a common noun • pizza
(unless it is the first word in • house
Lowercase Letters a sentence). • movie
Small letters are called
lowercase letters. • t he
Use a lowercase letter for
• a
abcdefghijklmn unimportant words in a title
• an
opqrstuvwxyz such as articles, prepositions,
• of
and conjunctions (unless it is
• an
the first word in the title).
• at
ALL CAPS
Machines read capital letters easily, but most
people don’t! Do not type or print in all capital letters
unless a form asks for ALL CAPS. An exception to this
is envelopes. You should use ALL CAPS to write an
address on an envelope.
Writing in English
Types of Letters cont.

B. Writing Capital Letters
Use the chart below to complete these tasks:
1. Trace the capital letters. 3. Say the letters out loud with your class.
2. Copy the capital letters on the lines. 4. Copy the four most difficult letters on the extra lines.
A B C D E
F G H I J
K L M N O
P Q R S T
U V W X Y
Z
Writing in English
Types of Letters cont.

C. Alphabetizing Capital Letters
Fill in the missing letters.
A C E
F I J
K L M O
Q R T
U V X
Z
Writing in English
Proper Nouns
A. Using Capital Letters
We use a capital letter at the • C

anada is a big country.
beginning of a proper noun • I am from Canada.
anywhere in the sentence. • I live in Canada now.
B. Examples C. Exceptions
Here are some examples of proper nouns. When referring to people by name,
common nouns can become proper nouns.
Here are some examples.
Proper Nouns Example(s)
people or pet’s names Nancy Waters, Spot # Common Nouns Proper Nouns
company or brand names Microsoft, Android 1 My mother is kind. Mother is kind.
cities or towns Ottawa I don’t think

2 I miss my grandma. Grandma is
countries Canada coming today.
nationalities Canadian Is the prime I met Prime

3
minister late? Minister Trudeau.
languages English
The Wizard of Oz,

titles
Mrs., Princess Diana
names of planets Saturn
names of bodies of water the Pacific Ocean
names of mountains Mount Fuji
days Monday
months February
acronyms BTW (by the way)
holidays St. Patrick’s Day
religions Islam
Writing in English
Proper Nouns cont.

D. Practice E. Pair Work
Work on your own. Work with a partner. Compare the words

Complete the chart with examples of proper nouns. you wrote with the words your partner wrote.
Do not use the words from page 5. Write your partner’s answers in the chart below.
Check your partner’s capitals!
# Proper Noun Example

A: What did you write for a person’s name?
1 person’s name B: I wrote Ella. What did you write?
2 month A: I wrote Franco.
3 day
# Proper Noun Partner’s Example
4 language
1 person’s name
5 company name
2 month
6 religion
3 day
7 mountain
4 language
8 city
5 company name
9 nationality
6 religion
10 planet
7 mountain
8 city
9 nationality
10 planet
Writing in English
Titles
A. Using Capital Letters
We use a capital letter at the beginning of a title and for important words in titles.
Important words include:
• nouns and pronouns

• verbs and phrasal verbs
• adjectives and adverbs
B. Examples
Here are some examples of titles. Write some of your

own examples in the empty boxes. Compare with a partner.
# Titles Example My Example
1 movies Planet of the Apes
2 books East of Eden
3 articles How to Teach Math
4 songs Pump Up the Jam
5 albums Like a Prayer
C. Exceptions
Some style guides use different rules for capitalizing titles.

You may see the following:
# Rule Example
1 All caps PLANET OF THE APES
2 Capitals for all first letters Pump Up The Jam
3 Capitalization of infinitives How To Teach a Great Math Class
Writing in English
Common Errors
A. The Pronoun “I” Task 1
In English, the pronoun “I” is always capitalized. Use the model sentences to write three new sentences
about yourself. Change the words in italics to other
• I like coffee. words. Remember to capitalize the pronoun “I.”
• My brother and I like to ski.
• Can I buy you a coffee? 1.
2.
3.
B. English Task 2
In English, languages and nationalities are always Use the model sentences to write three
capitalized. This is not the case in some other new sentences. Change the words in
languages. Many English learners forget to italics to other languages and nationalities.
capitalize the word English. Remember to capitalize the proper nouns.
• E
nglish is my first language. 1.
• I know French and English.
2.
• Are you Canadian?
3.
C. First Word Task 3
In English, the first word in every sentence is always Use the model. Change the words in italics
capitalized. Many new English learners forget this rule. to your own information. Check your capitals!
• M
y name is Tara. I am from Canada. English
is my first language. Do you speak English?
Writing in English
Capitals Checklist
BEFORE YOU SEND OR SUBMIT YOUR WRITING
After you write a note, email, or assignment, check your capitalization.
� Did I begin every sentence with a capital?
� Did I capitalize the pronoun “I”?
� Did I capitalize the word English and other countries, nationalities, and languages?
� Did I capitalize all proper nouns (names, places, company names, etc.)?
� Did I use lowercase letters at the beginning of common nouns within a sentence?
� Did I capitalize my title or other titles correctly?
� Did I proofread my work?
Comprehension Check-In
Work with a partner and answer the
following questions based on the lesson so far.
1. What are some categories of proper nouns? Name at least five.
2. What must writers do at the beginning of every sentence?
3. What pronoun always uses a capital?
4. Why is the word mother sometimes capitalized?
5. Why is the word prime minister sometimes capitalized?
6. What did you learn about common nouns?
7. What words are always capitalized in titles?
Writing in English
Review
Review Task 1
WRITE THE ALPHABET
Write the capital letters of the alphabet.

Check that your letters are in alphabetical order.
Review Task 2
MY STORY
Hello! My name is .

1.
am years old.

2. 3.
My birthday is on .

4.
am from .
5. 6. (country)
y first language is .

7. 8.
I am learning .
9. (language)
I want to visit .

10. (proper noun)
Writing in English
Shared Criteria for Success

Student:
Date CLB Level Assessed By Target Task Skill Competency
� Self
� Copy Letters Writing:
� Partner
� Copy Information II. Reproducing Information
� Teacher
Criteria Rating Notes
forms capital letters correctly
follows alphabetical order
uses proper capitalization

for the pronoun “I”
uses proper capitalization

for proper nouns
begins sentences with

proper capitalization
Writing in English
Answer Key
LESSON DESCRIPTION: LEVEL: Beg / CLB 1–2
In this lesson, students learn some helpful tips for using capital TAGS: writing, capitals, letters, uppercase, lowercase,
letters. They learn about proper nouns and practise writing titles. alphabet, proper nouns, titles, CLB, LINC, PBLA
They also learn how to avoid some common writing errors that
English learners often make.
Warm-Up B. WRITING CAPITAL LETTERS
If your students need the practice, have them trace and write the
A. WRITING capital letters of the alphabet. Practise reading them out loud.
Give your students some time to complete the task with a partner. Have students choose and rewrite the four most difficult letters.
Check that your students are using proper capitalization for these
three types of proper nouns. C. ALPHABETIZING CAPITAL LETTERS
For more practice, have students fill in the missing letters.
CLB Skill Competencies
Speaking: I. Interacting with Others, IV. Sharing Information CLB Skill Competencies
Reading: IV. Comprehending Information

Writing: II. Reproducing Information
B. VOCABULARY PREVIEW
1. c 3. j 5. a 7. b 9. i
2. f 4. g 6. e 8. d 10. h Proper Nouns
Extra Review: In pairs, have students fill in their own definitions
Go over the reference page on proper nouns. Then assign the
on page 17, cut up the strips, and give to their partners to match up.
individual exercise before putting students in pairs to practise.
Types of Letters
A. REFERENCE
Reading: II. Comprehending Instructions
Read through the different uses of uppercase letters. Go over when Writing: II. Reproducing Information
to use lowercase letters, too. Your students will learn more detailed
information in the next few pages.
(continued on the next page...)
Writing in English
Answer Key cont.

Titles Comprehension Check-In
Go over the reference page on capitalization in titles. Then assign 1. Some categories of proper nouns are people or pet’s names,
the individual exercise before putting students in pairs to practise. company or brand names, cities or towns, countries, etc.
For very low levels, you can skip this section. Remind your students (see page 6).
that there are many different rules and style guides about this. 2. Writers must use a capital letter
You may want to come up with your own guidelines for your class. at the beginning of every sentence.
3. The pronoun “I” is always capitalized.
4. The word mother is capitalized if it
CLB Skill Competencies is used as a name (Where is Mother?).
Reading: II. Comprehending Instructions 5. The word prime minister is capitalized when it comes
Writing: II. Reproducing Information directly before a name (e.g., Prime Minister Trudeau).
6. Common nouns are not capitalized unless they
are at the beginning of a sentence (or in a title).
7. Important words (e.g., nouns, pronouns, verbs,
Common Errors
adverbs, adjectives) are always capitalized in titles.
Review the common errors and have students complete Tasks 1–3.
CLB Skill Competencies Reading: IV. Comprehending Information

Review (Assessment Tasks)

Capitals Checklist For Review Task 1, ask students to write out the alphabet in capital
letters. For Review Task 2, have students complete the guided
Go through the checklist with your students. Then have them look
writing assignment. A ready-made assessment tool is available for
back at the sentences and examples in Common Errors Tasks 1–3.
Tasks 1 and 2 on page 12 (Shared Criteria for Success).
Do they need to make any changes?

Writing in English
Answer Key cont.

Canadian Language Benchmarks Summary
OVERVIEW
Stage: 1 CLB Range: 1–2* Primary Skill Competency: Writing – II. Reproducing Information
PAGE TASK SKILL COMPETENCIES
1 Warm-Up Speaking: I. Interacting with Others, IV. Sharing Information

2–4 Types of Letters

5–6 Proper Nouns

7 Titles

8 Common Errors
9 Capitals Checklist Reading: II. Comprehending Instructions

9 Comprehension Check-In
10 Review Tasks (PBLA)** Writing: II. Reproducing Information
11 Assessment Tool Writing: II. Reproducing Information
*Note: **Note:
This CLB range is suggested by ESL Library based on PBLA refers to portfolio-based learning assessment in
the descriptors in the Canadian Language Benchmarks the LINC program (though any teacher can use these tasks
guide: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/pub/language- for review or assessment). Visit our Resources section for
benchmarks.pdf Assessment Tools that you can print and personalize for
PBLA: https://esllibrary.com/resources
Writing in English
Answer Key cont.

Canadian Language Benchmarks Summary cont.
PROFILES OF ABILIT Y
The following descriptors from the Canadian Language Benchmarks

apply to this lesson and are used with permission. For more
detailed information see: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/pub/
language-benchmarks.pdf and visit: https://www.language.ca/
BENCHMARK THE LEARNER CAN:
Writing • Copy letters, numbers, words, and short sentences, including capitalization and punctuation. (1)
(1–2) • Copy letters, numbers, words, and sentences with correct capitalization and punctuation. (2)
• Understand very short, simple instructions for common, familiar everyday situations. (1)
Reading
• Understand short, simple, clearly sequenced instructions for
(1–2)
common, familiar everyday situations (to complete a short assignment). (2)
Speaking
• Give and ask for basic personal information.
(1)
Writing in English
Extra Vocabulary Practice (optional)

Write definitions in your own words. Cut up these vocabulary strips.
Challenge a partner to match the vocabulary to your definition.
capital
lowercase
proper noun
common noun
month
trace
difficult
acronym
nationality
title

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Writing in English

My Partner’s Full Name

1. capital a) one of 12 periods in a year (e.g., January)

2. lowercase b) not easy

3. proper noun c) an uppercase letter

5. month e) to copy (draw) overtop of a model

6. trace f) small letter(s)

7. difficult g) a general person, place, thing, or idea

8. acronym h) the name of a book, movie, etc.

9. nationality i) the country one is from or belongs to

10. title j) a person, place, or thing with a specific name

Use a capital letter at the

Use a capital letter at the • C

Use a lowercase letter at the • d

Types of Letters cont.

Use the chart below to complete these tasks:

Types of Letters cont.

Fill in the missing letters.

We use a capital letter at the • C

people or pet’s names Nancy Waters, Spot # Common Nouns Proper Nouns

company or brand names Microsoft, Android 1 My mother is kind. Mother is kind.

cities or towns Ottawa I don’t think

nationalities Canadian Is the prime I met Prime

The Wizard of Oz,

names of planets Saturn

names of bodies of water the Pacific Ocean

names of mountains Mount Fuji

acronyms BTW (by the way)

holidays St. Patrick’s Day

Proper Nouns cont.

Work on your own. Work with a partner. Compare the words

# Proper Noun Example

2 month A: I wrote Franco.

Important words include:

• nouns and pronouns

Here are some examples of titles. Write some of your

# Titles Example My Example

1 movies Planet of the Apes

2 books East of Eden

3 articles How to Teach Math

4 songs Pump Up the Jam

5 albums Like a Prayer

Some style guides use different rules for capitalizing titles.

1 All caps PLANET OF THE APES

2 Capitals for all first letters Pump Up The Jam

3 Capitalization of infinitives How To Teach a Great Math Class

C. First Word Task 3

After you write a note, email, or assignment, check your capitalization.

� Did I begin every sentence with a capital?

� Did I capitalize the pronoun “I”?

� Did I capitalize my title or other titles correctly?

� Did I proofread my work?

1. What are some categories of proper nouns? Name at least five.

2. What must writers do at the beginning of every sentence?

3. What pronoun always uses a capital?

4. Why is the word mother sometimes capitalized?

5. Why is the word prime minister sometimes capitalized?

6. What did you learn about common nouns?

7. What words are always capitalized in titles?