Thursday, June 4, 2026
Grammar and spelling are very important to me. I know my grammar is not always perfect and Mason says I need to embrace the comma. I tend to write on my blog like I would speak is what I tell him. He is not a regular reader, but I have asked him for advice! My kids are absolutely better writers than I am, by the way.
Are you in a work setting where grammar might matter?
I would regularly receive emails from higher ups in my field (of education!) with really unprofessional grammar. I did judge them! They also were not taking advantage of using editing features and spell check.
Once one is an adult, the red ink pen corrections are no more, so where does one go to learn? Professor Google?
I sometimes don’t edit well enough and make mistakes even in words like “hear” and “here” and I am mortified! It’s easy to do when you are typing quickly. I always give people passes on things like that. I hate typing on my phone and I know that can cause errors.
Even though I was a Spanish teacher, I taught some English grammar that was imperative to the learning of the new language and if they ever had to write in English, I also wanted them to be the best they could be. Jen, my English teacher and blogger friend, let me know what I forget!
I absolutely think grammar should still be taught. It goes hand in hand with reading and writing and comprehension of a text.
Here we go…
Their, They’re, and there are homophones – words that sound the same but have different spellings and meanings. Apostrophes are used to replace/represent missing letters in a contraction.
Their – is a possessive so you would use this spelling for “their house was simply gorgeous”
They’re – this is a contraction which means a morphing of two words – they and are. “They’re just adorable!” You could have also said, “They are just adorable!”
There – is an adverb of place so it is used like this “There are lots of kids in our neighborhood”
Some common contractions:
I’ve is “I have”
Isn’t is “Is not”
Doesn’t is “Does not”
Won’t is “will not” – can you imagine teaching this one to a non-native speaker of English – confusing!
It’s and its – Ok, this is one I see so many people use incorrectly and I distinctly remember when a teacher corrected me and that’s why I know it now – Thank you, Mr. A! I really wanted to impress him, too.
It’s – It’s is a contraction – a morphing of the words It and is “It’s a long way from here to there”
Its – this is the possessive – “We adopted a puppy but its mom is not done weaning yet” – this does not get the apostrophe because we are not saying “it is”
Who’s – this is a contraction of who and is – “who’s the chairperson of the committee?”
Whose – this is a possessive – “She is Mary whose daughter is Sarah”
Your – this is a possessive – “Your daughter is Sarah” – no apostrophes are needed
You’re – this is a contraction of you and are “You’re the apple of my eye”
Her – “Her daughter is Sarah”
Hers – “He is a friend of hers” – this does not get an apostrophe.
Mary’s – you use an apostrophe to show possession.
The kids’ – if more than one person owns something, your apostrophe goes after the “s” – “This is the kids’ playroom”
Here is a tricky one – if the name already ends in “s” you can choose – James’s or James’
Last names also don’t take an apostrophe. If you write a card to a family you would say “The Scotts” or you can say “The Scott Family” to avoid the “s”. The Jones’s or the Jones’ would correct. That’s a tricky one.
Plurals don’t take an apostrophe. All you need is the “s” at the end – “There are two girls in the group”
What trips you up? Do you have any grammar questions? My mom was an English and Art major and she taught both subjects during her long career. My Dad was the one that corrected our grammar, though. He was an excellent student and an excellent writer.
Thank you for attending class today,
Amy
Coffee and Cocktails at the Casa 
I always want my grammar to be correct! I feel like I know the rules pretty well (certainly all the ones you have listed) and if I have a question or am not sure, I always look it up. I agree that it’s easy to make mistakes when typing even when you know the rule. For instance, I just reread my post for today and I realized that I used the word “too” incorrectly. I know the rules for it but just quickly mistyped it. I try to read each post that I write several times to find mistakes. Speaking of grammar mistakes, I see them everywhere! Websites, emails from people in high positions who, one would hope, are intelligent enough/educated enough to know the rules of grammar, in advertisements, online news articles, etc.
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It’s usually easy to tell which is a typo and which is not knowing. I see grammar mistakes every single day. Some of what I shared today seems really basic but as a teacher I never assumed they knew something and there was always someone scared to ask.
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I get totally tripped up (and not sure what is correct) with: Sarah and I went to the store. She wanted Sarah and ME to go to the store. I think this is correct…but when I hear people say She wanted Sarah and I to go the store….I think that is wrong?! When to use me and when to use I…..yikes.
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That is tricky! I think I was taught that what was correct was what you would also say alone with out the Sarah “She wanted me to go to the store”.
Here is what I found but it’s still tricky:
In short, if you’re doing something, it’s “and I”. If something is being done to you, it’s “and me”. Remembering this simple rule will help you choose correctly every time.
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Wow! I am shocked that you had to suffer through bad grammar in the education field! That is mind boggling! I loved this post. I was an English major and I love words and grammar and writing of course. Thanks for sharing
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Oh yeah, girl. It was bad. Thank you! I didn’t know you were an English major! I love words, too. I think I’m going to send this post to my nieces and nephews because I have noticed some bad grammar in their texts. What a Karen I am!
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Hi Amy!
I liked your lesson today. My parents and now my friends and husband tell me I was sick on the day they thought spelling, and they are right!
I won’t ever know how to spell, What cracks me up is when I try to spell something and the auto correct has no idea what I’m trying to say.
I’ll live with it.
Cheers Missy
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Aww, thank you! I wasn’t sure how it would be received. That’s funny!
That is funny! You keep being you! We all have our talents.
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I loved this post! I have gotten tripped up over using me versus I in a sentence, but I was taught the same way you were. I do get that it’s easy to make mistakes when we’re typing really quickly; I always try to proofread really well, but I often omit words or will sometimes use the wrong spelling. I try to catch it, but I don’t always. The cards in the mail get me…I have a friend who shares a mini grammar lesson every Christmas through Facebook; she reposts and image of last names and which actually get an apostrophe. Ha!
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I agree! I do probably mess up the I vs. me! I try to proof but sometimes you don’t catch your own typos.
That is funny about your friend!
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I appreciated this lesson very much, Amy! Such great reminders of mistakes that are commonly made! I often have to remind myself of the “its” and “it’s” and the “who’s” and “whose” differences. I remember when our oldest got married, a dear friend gifted her with a wooden sign to welcome everyone to the wedding. Unfortunately, the friend put an apostrophe before the “s” after their last name (The __________’s and then their wedding date underneath). My daughter was mortified and we tried to figure out a way to fix it without offending the friend. Ultimately, she decided to just keep it as is. We still laugh about it to this day!
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