English & Language Arts: Apostrophes are not Possessions, but Use Them Anyway!
You have no doubt already covered lessons in your homeschool classroom about apostrophes. While apostrophes have three uses, this article will be concerned only with the use of the apostrophe to show possession.
The apostrophe is probably one of the most misused punctuation marks in the English language. Some people want to use an apostrophe where none is needed much more than they leave out an apostrophe when it is needed. Fortunately, the rules of using an apostrophe to show possession are easily understood, and not something that will be hard at all to learn in the homeschool setting.
The most widely accepted rule of using the apostrophe to show possession is this: If you are able to substitute the word ‘of' then your noun most likely needs an apostrophe. For example, Jane's book is on the table. It may sound funny at first but if you can substitute the word ‘of' to show the book belongs to Jane you will need an apostrophe. For example, "the book of Jane that she needs for her homeschool class". In this example, the book of Jane does not mean the book is about Jane. It merely means the book belongs to Jane. If it is her book, then she needs an apostrophe.
If the book is going to Jane's homeschool class, then in this sentence since the homeschool class belongs to Jane, she will need an apostrophe.
If Jane owns anything and it is being talked about in the same sentence with Jane, then Jane will need an apostrophe. But what if Jane owns the book, and in the next sentence a pronoun is used, like the following:
Jane's book is on the table. Its cover was torn accidentally in her homeschool reading class.
We're still talking about Jane's book but when the pronoun "its" is used, no apostrophe is necessary. Note the difference in the following example:
Its cover is torn.
Its on the table.
One of these needs an apostrophe but which one? In the first example, we're still talking about Jane's book but since the pronoun 'its' is used, no apostrophe is necessary. However, in the second example, the word ‘its' is a contraction meaning ‘it is' therefore:
It's on the table.
When you're using 'its' to show possession, no apostrophe is needed, but if you're using 'its' to show a contraction, you'll need an apostrophe.
What if the book belongs not only to Jane but to her roommate as well?
If two people own one thing, you only need one apostrophe and it should be used on the last owner such as: "Jane and her roommate's book is on the table." Now this is just one book that both Jane and her roommate own. If they both own books, it will look like this:
Jane's and her roommate's homeschool books are on the table. When both people individually own something, they both get apostrophes.
Now, what if Jane's brother James comes over with his books? James sometimes confuses people because his name already ends in ‘s.' If the book belongs to James though, the same rule applies as in "James's book is on the table." Now if James has more than one book it will look like this when correct: "James' books are on the table."
If you will apply these rules of ownership to your homeschool lessons you will gradually come to know them by heart.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Mimi Rothschild is a homeschooling parent, author, children's rights advocate, and Founder and C.E.O. of Learning by Grace, Inc. She and her husband of almost 3 decades reside with their 8 children in suburban Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Rothschild co-founded Learning By Grace, Inc. because "our current system of education has broken its promise..." Learning By Grace, Inc. delivers Internet-based multimedia education to PreK-12 children in the United States and throughout the world.
Rothschild has authored a number of books about education published by McGraw Hill and others. Her Daily Education News Blog contains feature stories on alternatives in education.