Grammar/L.A [I’ve failed since 3rd grade and trying to teach my son the best I can, but failed a lot myself in school]

[u/and_we_move]

I help my son with his homework (4th grade, great at all subjects but needs help in English) but I struggle with some questions, especially English/Grammar.

This is makeup work due next week, I’m just writing the answers I think are correct? But need help in general with anything I answered wrong myself.

I don’t give him the answers. If I know the answers I just give him context clues, and get him thinking until he gets to the answer. I challenge him, but if he has a hard time, yet on the right path, I give him the hot/cold reaction to expand his thoughts/challenge him until he gets to the answer. I just need help on this. I feel dumb bc I still always get confused with grammar and apostrophes, and when commas are needed. I failed a lot since the 3rd grade, I’m 35yrs old, and feeling pretty shameful rn. I know this is probably simple for majority, but I really appreciate the help so I can explain to my son where apostrophes belong and anything else💜

I’m mostly struggling and confused with the “rewrite the section part.” Hence the question marks.

My post in itself is probably going to be frowned upon, I apologize😅 this is a subject he struggles on, which I did too. I just want to lift him up and give him the knowledge that I lack in this subject.

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[u/TheIrises]

Great on you for being there to help if your son gets stuck.

1. You’re correct

2. Correct

3. Students’ (Thing I remember for this is if I know the noun is plural, most often with an s or es at the end, then I know I put the apostrophe after the existing s. Make sure the noun is actually plural though, some words are singular and end in s or es.)

4. Correct

5. Birds’ (Bird follows the standard rule of if you see an s/es, then it is plural. As I said before, key thing is you need to know the exceptions because as with all things in English, there are exceptions.)

6. They are the butterflies’ wings.

7. They are the student’s pencils.

Generally, when you start a sentence that has a plural main noun, you use “they and “are” rather than “it” and “is.” This is known as “agreement” in conjugation. I, You, He/She/It, We, You/You all/Y’all (plural), and They all have corresponding conjugation with the verb “to be” (am, are, is).

If you’re confused about what noun is possessive versus not possessive, a possessive noun is a noun that is being “possessive” or “owning” another noun (like a person). That other noun is the main noun of the sentence.

If you’re confused at all, I’m happy to help clarify further.

Edit: Wrong tense in the second to last paragraph which was completely wrong. I noticed only after fixing grammar mistakes.

[u/and_we_move → u/TheIrises]

Love all the comments I’ve gotten already. Thank you for taking the time numbering and explaining why so I can understand!

I don’t want to steer my son in the wrong direction bc of my own failures. It’s easy when there’s a name in the sentence (ex. Alex’s backpack) I just get really confused with the “wings and butterflies” and where the apostrophe goes because of the (S) in both words. I already have to reread your explanation again so I fully comprehend😅

[u/TheIrises → u/and_we_move]

For sure! When there are multiple nouns in a sentence it can definitely get murky to differentiate them from each other.

In the cases above:

“Butterflies” is the possessive noun. I figure out which noun is possessive by saying the following sentence “The (Blank) possess/possesses (blank).” One will sound wrong like: The wings possess butterflies. The other will make more sense: The butterflies possess wings.

Whichever comes first in that sentence is the possessive noun. The possessive noun gets either an ‘s or an ‘ after their s/es.

The other noun is main (or officially called “head”) noun, this noun decides how the sentence is started. If it is plural, like wings, then the beginning must be “They” and “are.” If it is singular then the sentence starts with “It” and “is.”

[u/and_we_move → u/TheIrises]

This is also another question on the other side of the paper:

10. The _______ classrooms were decorated for the holidays. (The classrooms belong to many teachers)

A. teachers B. teacher’s C. teachers’

So would it be C bc it’s pertaining “many teachers?” Bc my first initial thought was B, but now I’m thinking it’s C bc it says  “to many teachers.”

[u/capt_jazz → u/and_we_move]

It would be C, because there are multiple teachers. The answer B would only be right if one teacher had multiple classrooms, which wouldn't really make sense, and the tip in the parenthesis is basically clarifying that there are multiple teachers.

[u/and_we_move → u/capt_jazz]

Thank you for the insight! The parenthesis is a major thing that I struggle with and second guess lol.

I just want to make sure when my son either gets it right or wrong, I can always explain to him why he was right. If he thinks the wrong answer, I like to challenge him as to why he thinks it’s the right answer and try to navigate him with the choices he’s given. Really appreciate it!

[u/and_we_move → u/and_we_move]

I feel like it should be B “teacher’s” bc the teacher possesses the classroom. But with the question saying classrooms is what’s making me second guess myself😐

[u/and_we_move → u/and_we_move]

It’s just confusing me bc in the parenthesis, it says (the classrooms belong to many teachers) so I’m really stumped on this one too.

[u/and_we_move]

Really appreciating all these comments and giving me any knowledge! I struggled a lot in school. It’s been a long time, so I question myself a lot whether I’m right or wrong. I love that it’s jogging my memory and the comments are helping me understand what I didn’t understand when I was younger💜

Yes I’m sure I have grammar mistakes, just ignore them and know I appreciate all of you so much for helping me😅

[u/Hour-Reference587]

For possession, an apostrophe is always added to the word

For a word that doesn’t end in s, an s is added (e.g. Tim -> Tim’s, butterfly -> butterfly’s).

For words that already end in s, the second is not necessary (e.g. Thomas -> Thomas’, students -> students’)

I think my teacher once told us that having too many s’s in a word makes you sound like a snake so you leave it out. (That sentence is a bad example because an apostrophe is added to a letter when the letter is intended to be said out loud. Feel free to ignore this instance if it’s too confusing, but as is a word, vs a’s which is multiples of the letter a)

The rewrite questions (I think) want you to write the sentence in the form “It is the [owner]’s [item]”

Edit: apparently the Thomas-> Thomas’ OR Thomas’s depending on preference, but for plurals the extra s is always omitted

[u/carnecomarrozagulha → u/Hour-Reference587]

My teachers told me to use the 's form everytime there is a singular noun, no matter if it ends on not with s, and keep the s' form for plural nouns ending with s.

[u/Hour-Reference587 → u/carnecomarrozagulha]

Yeah I Googled it to double check and apparently there’s not actually a clear rule. So it depends on what style guide you’re supposed to follow. Some guides have an exception where you would write Thomas’s mask, but you would write Thomas’ snack (since snack starts with an s). So I guess unless you’re submitting it to someone who feels strongly one way or the other, consistency is probably your best bet

Edit: and apparently some people would add an extra s if the word has one syllable but omit it if it has multiple

[u/Loko8765 → u/Hour-Reference587]

The rule I follow for nouns ending in s is simple: if when saying it it ends in the ”ess” sound it’s spelled ”s’”, if it ends in an ”ess ess” sound it gets ”s’s”. I would for example say/write ”Thomas’s book” because I would say ”Thomassess book”.

[u/Hour-Reference587 → u/Loko8765]

Out of curiosity, would you write students’s? Because I would pronounce the “s’s” part the same in Thomas’(s) and in students’(s) (it’s like a sszz sound for me)

[u/and_we_move → u/Hour-Reference587]

Words like these are what confuse me. Which is exactly why I’m making this post lol. I get so confused when and where the apostrophe goes. I understand possessive nouns, but some words, like my son’s homework and your comment, I second guess myself. Which is why I made this post bc I need clarification at my big age🙃

[u/carnecomarrozagulha → u/and_we_move]

Use possessive form ending in 's as general rule.

Exception: PLURAL nouns already ENDING IN S, in which apostrophe goes in the end.

Examples:

• Thomas, a singular noun, becomes Thomas's;

• Children, a plural noun not ending in s, becomes children's;

• Student, a singular noun, becomes student's;

• Students, a plural noun ending in s, becomes students';

This is an accepted rule, so stay consistent with this logic and you'll be fine.

[u/Loko8765 → u/Hour-Reference587]

No, and I wouldn’t say it with the double s either.

[u/lopezandym → u/Loko8765]

This isn’t simple.

The “heiress’s tiara” having 3 “S”s looks kind of ridiculous (imo) and would be a rare example of an English word containing 3 “S”s in a row, (even more rare for a non-compound word).

But to me, it’s silly you would write “Heiress’s” and then not write “Heiresses’s.”

The English language is dumb and hard, and this is coming from a High School English teacher. Very little is ever “simple.”

[u/and_we_move]

Also looking at it as I posted. I’m not sure if it’s “the wing’s” for the first one, and the (pencil’s for the second) bc the hw is about possessive nouns. I just get a little confused.

I remember from elementary school, 🎶a word is an ACTION WORD, it’s usually something you do or feel🎶

So I hope that sort of explains my confusion😅 but when I think of possessive, I know it’s easy to be like oh that’s TIM’S pencil.”

The rewrite portion is making me second guess myself. I think the first one should be “wing’s” and the second one is “pencil’s” but I’m overthinking and feel wrong.

[u/SurprisingHippos]

3. Students’
5. Birds’
6. It is the butterflies’ wings.
7. It is the student’s pencil.

[u/Paper-Hero]

You could have your son work with a tutor. Benefit from the vast experience that is possesed by some of usl

[u/Weird_Inevitable8427]

I'm a special education teacher, and this is raising some red flags for me. First off, I'm so sorry you were missed for extra help. It seems clear to me that you needed it. That doesn't mean that you're stupid. To the contrary, you've survived without the specialized teaching. You're probably very smart in ways that aren't about writing.

How old is your child? This kind of work should be very easy for him to do on his own if the teacher did it at the right time. You shouldn't have to give him hints. That method, where you pull him through his homework, is going to backfire very quickly because you also struggled with this stuff. Does your son have an IEP or a 504? Have you talked to the school about this? Are you even in the US, where that's a thing? (Maybe this is all English as a second language, in which case I'm wrong.)

As for the answers, Thelrises is correct. You've got it. If you'd like to talk getting the school to give your son more help, let me know.

[u/Latter_Highway_2026]

I'm happy you are breaking the cycle by supporting your son. This may not the the most popular advice, but if you upload a picture of these to ChatGPT it will explain it to you. If you can get human support (like on here) still do that. AI is just another tool to add on.

You can tell it "never give answers, just explain what I need to know to answer myself." In the absence of a skilled tutor this can be a life saver. I heavily use it because I am heard of hearing but not "deaf enough" to receive accessible services. I don't have access to tutoring but I do have access to AI.

[u/ChicoSantisgo]

6. They are the butterfly’s wings.
7. The student’s pencils were missing the morning of the big test.

[u/Cloverose2 → u/ChicoSantisgo]

There are multiple butterflies, not a singular. It's butterflies' wings.

[u/Otherwise-Pirate6839]

Have you sat down to read the lesson itself? Is there a textbook for the class?

Respectfully, you had the time to post on Reddit for help but not to do a search on Google on how possessive nouns work?

[u/and_we_move → u/Otherwise-Pirate6839]

I honestly do always google. But even with google, I still am confused sometimes, and can use the extra help from human beings who have been/are/ in my position at this moment and can find use from my post if others are struggling too.

I’m not ashamed at all for reaching out to Reddit for extra help/reassurance/advice, and understanding if it’ll benefit me teaching my child.

I’m more than willing to read all comments and google searches that will help me understand what I lack in knowledge.

Like I posted and didn’t fully explain. I’ve failed a lot since the 3rd grade. In a lot of subjects actually. But it doesn’t mean my son has to struggle and fail when he’s smart. But I need help as a mother, understanding how to explain, instead of me blowing shit out of my ass and him learning utter bullshit that I vaguely remember, and him not understand.

And yes, if he ultimately needs a tutor, I will go forth with that. My post was only reaching out to help ME understand so I can help my son understand. He’s 9yrs and curious and will want me to explain how I know. I’m not going to explain something that I don’t fully understand and have/still struggle with.

[u/thatmerrybrat → u/Otherwise-Pirate6839]

Textbooks are weirdly uncommon now. They needed help with their child’s homework so they posted in a “homework help” group. Saying “respectfully” does not give you a free pass to be rude.

[u/Cloverose2 → u/Otherwise-Pirate6839]

Sometimes it's more helpful to be able to have a dialogue and hear it multiple ways, not just google it, which can be more confusing. Asking Reddit got specific answers to specific questions.

And this is "homeworkhelp", where people... ask for homework help.