Upper Key Stage 2

Terminology for
Parents

A S Remington Davidson 2017

Upper Key Stage 2 Grammar Cheat Sheet
Over the year, we will be recapping grammatical terminology that your children will have
heard in Key Stage 1 or in Lower Key Stage 2. If an area is new to Year 5, it will be labelled
as Y5+ and if an area is specific to Year 6, then it will be labelled Y6.

This booklet is broken down into the following sections:

Words in a Sentence: Definitions

Here we have tried to explain each word that the children will hear in lessons. They are
listed alphabetically.

Sentences: The Break Down

In this section we discuss how a sentence is created. Clear examples of relative and
embedded clauses are explained. Please note – sometimes an embedded clause is also
referred to as a relative clause.

Tenses
In this section we give examples of how tenses go beyond past, present and future.

Punctuation – Common Errors

Here we explain the more complicated punctuation and give examples of how they might be
used.

Poetic Devices
Although brief, this section introduces the difference between a metaphor and a simile. We
also point you in the direction of a helpful website for further understanding.

We hope this cheat sheet will help when you are supporting your child with his/her
homework, but want to explain that this is by no means our curriculum; we will add to our
teaching when we learn more about gaps the children have.

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Words in a Sentence: Definitions
Adjective - describes a noun. We try to encourage using more than one adjective when
describing.

Adverbs - describes HOW something (verb) is done. Often adverbs end in ‘ly’ but this is not
always the case e.g.

Abi walked slowly down the lane, anxious that the noise was getting louder.

Subject Verb Adverb Subordinate clause (adding more information to the Noun)

Trystan will finish soon.

Subject Verb Adverb Soon tells us when Trystan will finish.

Remember, a phrase is a group of words that have nouns and verbs but no subject doing
the verb e.g. running down the hill. We don’t know who or what is running down the hill!

Adverbials and Prepositional Phrases – these are often found at the beginning of a
sentence (fronted adverbial phrase) or after an action. An adverbial phrase describes the
action. It describes the verb, when or how! A prepositional phrase describes where.

Under the clock, Chelsie stood and waited.

Patiently, Louis waited for his friend.
Mikey’s mobile beeped, a few minutes later.
James walked, sadly, towards his car as his friend could no longer meet him.

Y5+ Antonym – are words that mean the opposite of another word.

Y5+ Auxiliary Verbs – are sometimes confused with Modal verbs. Auxiliary verbs are be,
have, do!

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Cohesive Devices
Cohesive devices tell the reader what we are doing in a sentence and help to guide them
through the writing. They signal to the reader what the relationships are between the
different clauses, sentences and paragraphs. Cohesive devices are sentence starters and
conjunctions. Here are some examples.

Conjunctions – join or connect our sentences. There are two main types of conjunctions:

1. Co-ordinating Conjunctions – and, but, so and or are the four main coordinating
conjunctions. They join two clauses which are grammatically independent of each other and
would make sense if they stood alone. We often refer to FANBOYS to help the children
remember these words: For – And – Nor – But – Or – Yet – So.
e.g.
She's already had two holidays this year and now she wants another one.
I had a terrible cold last week, but I still went to work.
You can sit at the front, or you can stand at the back. I don't mind.

2. Subordinating Conjunctions – if, when, because, since, although, etc, are subordinating
conjunctions which introduce subordinate clauses. Subordinate clauses are dependent on
the main clause in some way and do not normally stand alone.

* if suggests a condition
* when / whenever indicate time
* because points to reason
* since suggests reason or time
* as suggests reason or time
* although / though / even though all indicate a contrast of surprising facts

If you feel thirsty or hungry, help yourself to anything at all in the fridge or freezer.
When I babysat for the Robinsons last month, I was given nothing to eat or drink.
Since I started back at school , I don't have so much time for playing.
I go to school every day, because I get to see my friends.

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Determiner – a word that goes before a noun and identifies the noun in further detail. There
are different types of determiners:

Articles – a, an, the

Demonstratives – this, that, these, those etc.

Possessives – his, her, my, their etc.

Quantifiers – some, each, every etc.

Numbers – one, two, three etc.

Question words – which, what, whose etc.

Y5+ Modal Verbs - include can, must, may, might, will, could, should, would. They are used
with other verbs to express ability, obligation, possibility and so on. Below is a list showing
the most useful modals verbs and their common meanings (this is not a definitive list):
Meaning Example
Modal
can to express ability I can speak a little Russian.
can to request permission Can I open the window?
may to express possibility I may be home late.
may to request permission May I sit down, please?
must to express obligation I must go now.
must to express strong belief She must be over 90 years old.
should to give advice You should stop smoking.
would to request or offer Would you like a cup of tea?
would in if-sentences If I were you, I would say sorry.

The spelling of modal verbs does not change, unlike other verbs e.g. I walk to the shops – I
walked to the shops.

Modifier – a word that restricts or adds to the sense of a noun e.g. very, really, extremely

Noun – the name of a common or proper noun

- Common Noun – thing, idea

- Proper Noun – person, place
- Pronoun – used to replace a noun e.g. I, my, he, she, our

Object - a person or thing to which a specified action or feeling is directed.

Prefix – word, letter, or number placed before another e.g. ‘mis’ understood becomes
misunderstood.

Preposition – words that express time, place and cause e.g. before, after, during, in, below

Subject - a person or thing that is being discussed, described, or dealt with.

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Y6 Subjunctive
The subjunctive is a verb or mood used to express things that could or should happen. It is
used to express wishes, hopes, commands, demands or suggestions.

The subjunctive isn't used in English very often. Nowadays is usually replaced with modal
verbs like might, could or should, but it does survive in traditional expressions like 'come
what may', 'perish the thought' or 'God save the Queen'.

Suffix – word, letter placed at the end of another e.g. ‘ed’. walk becomes walked.

Y5+ Synonym – is a word that has almost the same or similar meaning.

Verb – action, doing word

Y5+ Voice
A sentence is written in active voice when the subject of the sentence performs the action in
the sentence.

e.g. The girl was washing the dog.

Subject Verb Object

A sentence is written in passive voice when the subject of the sentence has an action done
to it by someone or something else.

e.g. The dog was being washed by the girl.

Object Verb Subject

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Sentences: The Break Down

Sentence: Clause: Phrase: Words Letter

A group of
s
A sentence is A simple
made from a sentence that words. A phrase
group of words, must contain a does not contain
with one or more subject and a both subject and
clauses, that go verb e.g. The verb.
together to make dog sat.
sense.

Sentence Types
Commands – these sentences order somebody to do something and end with a full stop.
The will begin with an imperative verb; a bossy action word e.g. put, cut, take, slice.

Exclamations – these sentences indicate an element or excitement or emphasis and end

with an exclamation mark. Short sentences such as ‘Gosh!’, may end with an exclamation
mark but are not considered an exclamatory sentence but are called interjections.
Exclamatory sentences must begin with How or What e.g. Gosh! How exciting! What a
fantastic BBQ that was!

Statements – these provide information to the reader. Most sentences fall into this
category. They are punctuated with a full stop.

Questions – these sentences ask something and will often start with what, when, where,
who, why or how, but could start with a modal or auxiliary verb. They end with a question
mark.

Single Clause
These are often referred to as simple sentences. ‘He jumped’ is an example of a short,
simple sentence.
He jumped.

Subject Verb

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Multi-Clause 1 and 2

There are two kinds of multi-clause sentences.

Multi-Clause 1
The first, was once referred to as a compound sentence. This multi clause sentence
contains two main clauses and a conjunction. REMEMBER – if you can take out the
conjunction and it leaves two main clauses that still make sense as simple sentences then it
was a compound sentence!
Planets are big and they are very far apart.

Planets are big. [and] They are very far apart.

Multi-Clause 2
The second, was once referred to as a complex sentence. This is a main clause joined to
one or more subordinate clauses. A subordinate clause is part of a sentence that is extra
information and not a necessity.
I love cats, having owned several.

As it is my favourite food, I had lasagne for tea.

e.g. I went shopping, which is my favourite activity.

Main clause Conjunction (relative pronoun) Subordinate clause

A relative clause is a type of subordinate clause (extra information) that describes/adds more
information about the noun e.g.

She lives in Canterbury, where she was born.

Subject Noun Subordinate clause (adding more information to the Noun)

An embedded clause is a type of subordinate clause that is in the middle of a sentence,

adding extra detail. In class we have called these comma sandwiches or drop in sentences.
They usually have who, which or where included!
e.g.
Mrs Remington Davidson, who went to the disco, danced wildly like a loon.

Subject Embedded clause (adding more detail)

If we take out the embedded clause, then the sentence still makes sense.
e.g. Mrs Remington Davidson danced wildly like a loon.

Both relative and embedded clauses use relative pronouns connect a clause or phrase to a
noun or pronoun. You see them used every day with the most common relative pronouns
being: who, whom, which, whoever, whomever, whichever, and that.

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Tenses
Simply put: Past (happened), present (happening), future (to happen).

Past Simple Present Simple Future Simple

I walked I walk I will walk
You walked You walk You will walk
He/she/it walked He/she/it walks He/she/it will walk
We walked We walk We will walk
They walked They walk They will walk
Past Present Future
Continuous/Progressive Continuous/Progressive Continuous/Progressive
I was walking I am walking I will be walking
You were walking You are walking You will be walking
He/she/it was walking He/she/it is walking He/she/it will be walking
We were walking We are walking We will be walking
They were walking They are walking They will be walking
Past Perfect Present Perfect Future Perfect
I had walked I have walked I will have walked
You had walked You have walked You will have walked
He/she/it had walked He/she/it has walked He/she/it will have walked
We had walked We have walked We will have walked
They had walked They have walked They will have walked

More information can be found at www.englishgrammar.org, where you can also practice
your grammar skills!

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Punctuation – Common Errors
Apostrophes
What is an apostrophe?

An apostrophe looks like a flying comma!

1. An apostrophe shows possession (when one thing belongs to another).

- To form a possession, place an apostrophe on the noun that owns
e.g. Jack’s socks were lost.

Singular noun possessive, add ’s

The girls’ coats were lying on the floor in the cloakroom

Plural noun possessive, only add ’

James’s or James’ are both correct if the singular noun ends in s.

If you are not sure, ask yourself, who or what is owned? Or what or what owns something?
2. An apostrophe shows when letters in a word have been left out (a word like this is
called a contraction).

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Y5+ Bullet Points
Bullet points, like numbered lists, help to break down a set of key ideas or items so that the
reader can see them all easily. We use bullets instead of numbers when the items in the list
don’t need to go in any particular order. A bulleted list should have a stem sentence. A
stem sentence introduces what the list consists of.

When writing names or questions, bullet points should have a capital letter and end
punctuation, this might be a full stop or question mark.

When writing a list, bullet points do not need a capital letter unless they are a full sentence,
though this is a good habit to get into! You can use a semicolon instead of a comma, but
this is not necessary. However if you use one semicolon, be consistent and use them for the
whole list.

Colons
A colon shows that something is going to follow the main clause.

An example:
Jack collects many things: stickers, playing cards, toy cars and rare gemstones.

An explanation:
Use the following instructions as a guide to using an electrical kettle: put water in the kettle,
switch it on and then wait until it has boiled.

It also punctuates speech in a script.

Mrs Remington Davidson: Are you enjoying that apple Mrs Marsh?
Mrs Marsh: It’s extremely tasty, but not as tasty as Miss Tyas’s banana looks.
Miss Tyas: Nom Nom Nom

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Commas
Your child should already know how to use commas in these ways:
✓ To separate items in a list (replacing the word and or or) e.g. From Tesco I bought
bananas, sugar, flour, chocolate and eggs because I am making a banana bread.
✓ After extra information is added at the start of a sentence (after a frontal adverbial
phrase) e.g. Later on that morning, Mrs Marsh realised she had odd shoes on.
Luckily, it was Wacky Day!

Other uses for commas include:

✓ Before conjunctions/connectives when joining clauses e.g. Mrs Marsh munched
happily on her red apple, because she was peckish.
✓ To separate embedded clauses e.g. Mrs RD, during playtime, enjoyed a cup of tea.
✓ To separate the name/title of a person being directly addressed e.g. “Will you, Miss
Tyas, check I have used my commas correctly?”
✓ To separate a question from a statement e.g. You will come, won’t you?
✓ To separate speech from the reader (if no other punctuation is used) e.g. Mrs RD
said, “It’s raining outside!”

Ellipsis/Ellipses
… (3 full stops) to create suspense or show time passing.

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Y6 Hyphens
Hyphens are used to connect whole words, words and prefixes, and parts of words, either temporarily or permanently. Hyphens are used to
avoid ambiguity in sentences. Here is a number of ways in which you could use Hyphens:

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Inverted Commas
Once referred to as speech marks, inverted commas show when a character or person has
spoken. They wrap around direct speech.

Frances asked, “Mrs RD, are you coming to the disco?”

“Of course,” replied Mrs Remington Davidson.

Parenthesis/Parentheses [plural]
Parentheses show when a word or phrase inserted as an explanation or afterthought into a
passage which is grammatically complete without it. Parentheses are usually marked off by
brackets, dashes, or commas, [see Embedded clauses].

Round Brackets – are mainly used to separate off information that isn’t essential to the
meaning of the rest of the sentence. If you removed the bracketed material the sentence
would still make perfectly good sense.

Mount Everest (in the Himalayas) is the highest mountain in the world.
There are several books on the subject (see page 120).

They can also be used to enclose a comment by the person writing:

He’d clearly had too much to drink (not that I blamed him).

(If the sentence starts and ends inside the brackets the punctuation does too.) If the
sentence is part in (and part out) the punctuation goes outside the brackets. It is the same
with quotation marks (see above or look in a newspaper for examples).

Square Brackets – are mainly used to enclose words added by someone other than the
original writer or speaker, typically in order to clarify the situation.

He [the police officer] can’t prove they did it.

If parentheses or brackets are used at the end of a sentence, the period should be placed
outside, as the final punctuation.
They eventually decided to settle in the United States (Debbie's home).
Dante testified that it was the last time he saw them [the missing coins].

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Semicolons
Semicolons can replace the word ‘and’ between two independent clauses.
Two independent clauses
(simple sentences):

My aunty also had hairy

knuckles. She loved to
wash and comb them.

A compound sentences,
using a conjunction:

My aunty also had hairy

knuckles and she loved
to wash and comb them.

Two independent clauses

with a semicolon: See
image.

Poetic Devices
There are many different words that we associate with poetry, such as rhythm, rhyme,
onomatopoeia, similes, metaphors etc. More information can be found at
http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/stories-poems

Metaphors – compare objects as if they are the same using ‘are’ or ‘were’ e.g. Grendel’s
eyes were glowing moons, the car’s lights are two suns shining brightly.

Similes – compare two objects using ‘like a’ or ‘as a’ e.g. the roar of the lion was like a wave
crashing upon the ocean bed or he was as happy as a child in a chocolate shop.

Resources
Twinkl
EnglishGrammar
LearnEnglish
The School Run
The Oatmeal

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