SPaG-spelling, grammar and punctuation

The SPAG test includes questions that assess the following elements of the English curriculum:

Sentence grammar through both identifying and writing sentences that are grammatically correct

Punctuation through identifying and writing sentences that are correctly punctuated

Vocabulary through identifying and writing sentences in which a word is used correctly

Spelling

The spag tests contains 2 papers

Paper 1 requires multiple choice or short sentence answers, covering areas

such as using connectives (because, despite, however, etc), using pronouns (I/me) correctly, capitalising the correct words in a sentence and explaining why, putting the correct punctuation into a given sentence, writing sentences that illustrate two different meanings of the same word (such as ‘present’), identifying the verb/noun/adjective/clauses in a sentence, and using plurals correctly

Q: Which ending would make the word lazy an adverb? A: laziness/lazily/lazier/laziest

Correct answer: lazily

Paper 2 is a spelling test, where children will have to spell words dictated by

the examiner (presented within sentences). For example:

Pria turned on the television to watch her favourite cartoon.

What skills and knowledge do children need to succeed?

But for your child to do well in the SPAG test, they don’t just have to be good at writing; they also need a technical understanding of how the English language works.

As well as being able to spell words correctly, use a wide range of vocabulary and punctuate well, they need to grasp the meaning of grammatical terms such as noun, verb, adjective, prefix, pronoun and adverb, know what phrases and clauses are and how to use them, understand what connectives are and how they work, know how to turn a question into a command, and so on. This terminology can be a stumbling block even for children who are otherwise good at reading and writing, and make the questions hard to understand; for a parent-friendly guide to the vocabulary and how English and grammar concepts are taught in primary school see primary literacy glossary for parents.

Year 1

Punctuation- commas separating subordinate clauses

Spinning your sentences

Look at these complex sentences… can you spin them around so the subordinate clause opens the sentence? Don’t forget that you will need a comma!

E.g. The kitten waited by its bowl because it was hungry

Because the kitten was hungry, it waited by its bowl.

1- The kitten waits by its bowl if it is hungry.

2- The kitten waits by its bowl until it has been fed.

3- The kitten goes off to play after it has been fed.

4- The kitten has gone off to play since it has been fed.

5- The kitten goes off to play as it has been fed.

Year 2

Sentence typesSimple, compound, complex

Try to make one of each sentence using these pictures as the subjects.

Year 3

Sentence openers

Change the opening Varying openings Examples

How- adverb Angrily, the old king sat down.

When- time connective In the afternoon, the old king sat down.

Where-prepositional phrase On the hilltop, the old king sat down.

ing verb Giggling, the old king sat down.

ed verb Excited, the old king sat down.

Simile using like Like a Buddha, the old king sat down.

Simile using and As thin as a whippet, the old king sat down.

Single word Weary, the old king sat down.

Try to think of examples of each for these sentences:The caterpillar went across the wall.Sharks are not all dangerous.

Year 4

Verbs

Look at the pictures and see how many verbs you can think of to describe what is happening.

The bird went……………

The waterfall came…………

The man began to……………

Year 5

Verbs

Verb race

List as many verbs as you can to match with the noun e.g.

Car- dashed, raced, cruised, drove, prowled, trundled, crawled.

Try with these nouns; snake, volcano, baby, wind, river.

Year 6

Connectives-discussion connectives

Should X be banned?

In pairs discuss a topic e.g. whether school uniform should be banned with one partner for and one against. Use discussion connectives in your arguments.

Some people think that…

However…

On the other hand…

Although…

It could be argued that…

Others believe that…

Another point of view is…