Grammar 101: insider tips and tricks to instantly improve your writing (part 2)

Hannah Lawrence
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As a proofreader and editor, I'm often asked to explain the rules of grammar. I answered three of the most common questions in the first post of this series, and now it's time to look at another frequent query: how to use apostrophes.Where do they go? When are they needed? And when should they be left out entirely?

Apostrophes might be small but they can cause big confusion because they are used both to indicate posession and to contract words. But the good news is that there are clear, simple patterns to follow, which we'll explore, along with exceptions to watch out for.Whether you’re writing a report or just a text message, these tips will help you use apostrophes correctly and confidently.

Apostrophes with ease: posession

Apostrophes show possession: they tell us something belongs to someone or something.When we want to show possession for regular plurals (when a word needs an "s" to make it plural), the apostrophe goes at the end and no further "s" is added:

  • The teachers' association
  • The campaigners' letter
  • The dogs' dinner

Whereas, when we want to show posession for either a single noun or an irregular plural (for example, children, geese), we add an "apostrophe s":

  • Sarah's car
  • app's assessment tools
  • The children's presents
  • The geese's pond

Single names that end in an “s” get an “apostrophe s” but plural names get only an apostrophe:

  • Mrs Jones’s car
  • James's cat
  • Whole Foods’ offices
  • Starbucks' nearest store

There's one exception that's important to note: "its" and "it's". The posessive form "its" does not have an apostrophe: "it's" always means "it is".

  • The cat ate its food

Apostrophes with ease: contractions

Contracted words are the combined and shortened forms of two words, which are commonly used in everyday writing and speech to sound more natural and conversational. They're made by omitting certain letters and replacing them with an apostrophe: for example, in "don't", it replaces the missing “o” from not.

When you miss one or more letters, use an apostrophe:

  • "would not" becomes "wouldn’t"
  • "cannot" becomes "can’t"
  • "we are" becomes "we're"
  • and, as before, "it is" becomes "it's"

When not to use apostrophes

A common mistake is using apostrophes when making words plural or when refering to decades and numbers. For example:

  • The 1980s had the best music (not "The 1980's")
  • Many people retire from working in their 70s (not "their 70's")
  • I bought some apples at the store (not "apple's")
Using apostrophes: simple tips to improve your writing skills
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Test your knowledge

Now you know the basic rules of apostrophes, it's time to check your knowledge.

Which sentence is correct?:

  1. The childrens break time has finished
  2. The childrens' break time has finished
  3. The children's break time has finished

It's sentence 3. We want to show posession – break time belongs to the children – and "children" is plural so it gets an "apostrophe s".
Now try these sentences and see if you can figure out which one is right:

  1. When you're walking my dog, its important to remember it's collar.
  2. When you're walking my dog, it's important to remember its collar.
  3. When youre walking my dog, it's important to remember it's collar.

The correct answer is 2. "You're" is a contraction of "you are", "it is important" so we use "it's" and we show that the collar belongs to the dog by using "its". Finally:

  1. Luis' daughter won't go to sleep.
  2. Luis's daughter wont go to sleep.
  3. Luis's daughter won't go to sleep.

Here, the right answer is 3. "Luis" is a single name, so gets an "apostrophe s", and "will not" is shortened to "won't".

Hopefully you now feel more confident in using apostrophes in your writing. Look out for the next post in this series, where we’ll explore more common grammar mistakes and how to avoid them.

Read our blog posts "11 fascinating facts about English"and "Grammar 101: insider tips and tricks to instantly improve your writing (part 1)".

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    The importance of diversity and inclusion in your curriculum

    By James Warwick

    Systemic racism has a negative impact on the education of many students across the world. This can start as early as preschool.

    Studies have also shown a correlation between teacher expectations and student achievement. Worryingly, these expectations can be negatively affected by racial prejudice.

    Education should be a powerful force for social change

    In recent history, various events have sparked a global uprising against systemic racism and discrimination. Protests have touched every part of society, from arts to sports to politics to education. A key demand is for real, structural change to society so that the lives of Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) are valued as they should be.

    Mutuma Ruteere, former UN Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, “education has a central role in creating new values and attitudes and providing us with important tools for addressing deep-rooted discrimination and the legacy of historical injustices.”

    Promoting diversity and inclusion

    As we look to the future, and imagine a world we want to live in, it’s important to examine how we create these materials and courses. Our aim is to ensure that what we produce is bias-free, inclusive and actively anti-racist.

    Education will always remain a key instrument for disarming ignorance and bigotry.

    We set up an Employee Resource Group (ERG), which has created a set of principles for app authors and editors. The group’s aim is to lay the groundwork for courses that reflect all parts of a diverse society.

    The guidelines were developed by our BAME and African American ERGs. Ade Gachegua led the project alongside internal and external consultants, including the author of the , Dr. Jason Arday.

    Challenges to overcome together

    The guidelines identified five main challenges and suggested the following ways to overcome them:

    1. Underrepresentation

    Are people from a BIPOC background equally represented in educational products? The guidelines recommend that people of different ethnicities should be included in all course material and portrayed as equal to one another.

    Choosing texts and pictures which promote racial equality is also important.

    2. Exaggerated negative associations

    Negative associations are exaggerated when unfavorable characteristics or traits are linked to people of minority ethnicities again and again. This is how stereotypes are built and reinforced in the minds of learners.

    We can take steps to prevent this by choosing our language carefully, avoiding racist texts and refuting any suggestion that behavior is linked to one ethnicity more than another.

    3. Limited positive associations

    Stereotypes of all kinds can be harmful - even positive ones. The guidelines recommend including people from minority ethnicities as positive role models in all contexts, not just the ones they might be traditionally associated with.

    This way, we broaden our learners’ horizons and show them that they have the potential to succeed in any field, regardless of their background.

    4. Missing stories

    When it comes to contributing to public life, individuals from minority ethnicities are often overlooked. For example, when it comes to history, educators tend to disregard contributions from ethnic minorities.

    It’s not because their contributions are less significant, but because the long history of racism has led to their contributions to public life being more limited and deliberately overlooked.

    It’s important that educational materials include these ‘missing stories.’ This helps learners to develop a richer and more diverse view of society and its participants.

    5. The ‘problem’ frame

    Educational texts often speak about people from BIPOC backgrounds as helpless victims of their ‘own’ disadvantage. Instead, we need to view racism as a systemic, social and institutionalized problem, external to the individuals that it affects.

    Authors and editors use the guidelines and an accompanying checklist to ensure that our courses reflect all parts of a diverse society. This means that you can be confident that the classroom materials you’re using to teach your students will empower each and every one of them to reach their full potential.

    You can apply this checklist to your own teaching and resources to help you ensure that what you are covering is diverse and inclusive. Making for a more positive classroom experience for all.