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Mastering capitalization for calendar words and the most important pronoun.
Did you know that some words are so special they always wear a 'Capital Crown'? Imagine if your own name started with a small letter—it wouldn't look right, would it?
In English, the names of the days of the week and the months of the year are very special. We call these Proper Nouns. Because they are the names of specific times, they must always start with a Capital Letter.
Whether the word is at the very beginning of your sentence or hidden right in the middle, it needs that uppercase start! For example, we write Monday, not monday. We write October, not october. Think of the capital letter as a lighthouse that helps people see the name of the day or month clearly.
Let's look at how to fix a sentence that is missing its 'Capital Crowns':
1. Start with the sentence: 'my birthday is in march.' 2. Look for the month: 'march' should be March. 3. Look for the start of the sentence: 'my' should be My. 4. Fixed sentence: 'My birthday is in March.'
Quick Check
Which of these is written correctly: 'friday', 'Friday', or 'fRiday'?
Answer
Friday
When you talk about yourself, you use the word I. This is a very important word because it represents you! In the world of writing, the word I is so important that it is never, ever written as a lowercase 'i' when it stands alone.
Even if it is in the middle of a sentence, like 'Sam and I played tag,' it must stay capitalized. It is the only single-letter word in English that is always capitalized. It stands tall like a soldier to show that you are the one speaking or acting.
Let's fix a story sentence:
1. Sentence: 'when it rains, i like to jump in puddles.' 2. Find the word for yourself: 'i' needs to be I. 3. Find the start of the sentence: 'when' needs to be When. 4. Fixed sentence: 'When it rains, I like to jump in puddles.'
Quick Check
True or False: You only capitalize 'I' if it is the first word in a sentence.
Answer
False
Now that you know the rules for Days, Months, and the pronoun I, you can be a Master Editor! When you read your work, look for these three things. If you see a day like Tuesday, a month like August, or the word I looking small, give them their crowns!
Remember: Names of people, names of days, and names of months are all part of the same 'Proper Noun' family. They all love to be capitalized!
Can you find all 3 errors in this sentence? 'last saturday, i went to a party in january.'
1. Fix the start and the day: 'Last Saturday...' 2. Fix the pronoun: '...I went...' 3. Fix the month: '...in January.' 4. Final Result: 'Last Saturday, I went to a party in January.'
Which sentence uses the correct capitalization?
Which of these is a correctly capitalized month?
The word 'Tuesday' should be capitalized even if it is at the end of a sentence.
Review Tomorrow
In 24 hours, try to list all seven days of the week and check if you remembered to start each one with a capital letter!
Practice Activity
Write three sentences about what you did yesterday. Make sure to use the word 'I' and the name of the day!