Unit Plan 34 (Grade K ELA): Conventions Clinic – Print, Caps, Punctuation, Spelling
Kindergarten language unit: students learn to write complete sentences with capitals, correct end marks, and sound spelling, while practicing spacing, tracking print, and reading their own sentences with confidence and clarity.
Focus: Capitals (first word/“I”), end marks, phonetic spelling
Grade Level: Kindergarten
Subject Area: English Language Arts (Language • Foundational Skills • Writing)
Total Unit Duration: 5 sessions (one week), 45–60 minutes per session
I. Introduction
This week we turbo-charge sentence sense. Students learn what a sentence looks and sounds like, how to start with a capital (and always capitalize I), how to finish with an end mark (period, question mark, exclamation point), and how to use phonetic spelling to get sounds down. We’ll also reinforce print concepts—left-to-right tracking and spaces between words.
II. Objectives and Standards
Learning Objectives — Students will be able to…
- Demonstrate print concepts: track left-to-right, top-to-bottom; recognize spaces and word boundaries (RF.K.1).
- Produce/expand complete spoken sentences and transfer to dictated/written sentences (L.K.1).
- Apply basic conventions: capitalize first word and I, use end marks (., ?, !), and attempt phonetic spelling for key sounds (L.K.2).
Standards Alignment — CCSS Kindergarten
- L.K.1 Demonstrate command of conventions of standard English grammar and usage when speaking (produce/expand complete sentences in shared activities).
- L.K.2 Demonstrate command of capitalization, punctuation, and spelling (developmentally appropriate).
- RF.K.1 Demonstrate understanding of the organization and basic features of print (track print; recognize word/space).
Success Criteria — student language
- I can point to each word as I read my sentence.
- I started my sentence with a capital and capitalized I.
- I put the right end mark at the end (., ?, !).
- I used spaces between words.
- I used sound spelling to write the sounds I hear.