Page 37 - Enjoying Words (EW) Comprehension & literature

Y6 Autumn Term Part 2. CW Lesson 11

HYPHENS AND DASHES

Truth to Teach (Source)

 Hyphens are used to form compound words.

 Hyphens are used to clarify the meaning of some words.

 Hyphens are used to split a word if it cannot be written on one line.

 Dashes are used to show breaks in sentences.

Way to Work (Means)

1. Review the previous lessons.

2. Let the children take words, all of which have the hyphens missing, from a box
(see separate sheet). Ask them why the words look strange and what could be
done to correct them (put in hyphens).

3. Let the children think of other words which have hyphens. Some children may
have double-barrelled names. Let them look in dictionaries to find more words.

E.g. fire-fighter, slow-moving, sinister-looking, swimming-pool, full-circle,

first-born, ice-cream, drop-out, drip-feed, king-sized

4. Talk about hyphens being used to indicate a split word when the whole word
will not fit on a line. Emphasise that, where possible, we do not split words but

sometimes it is unavoidable so a hyphen is used. Give examples. Stress that
the ideal place to split the words is after a prefix, before a suffix or between
syllables.

5. Discuss the use of a dash when a break is needed in a sentence. It often
shows emphasis.

E.g. Slow down – you’ll slip!
I’ll repeat that – I don’t think you are listening.

I made a decision – but then changed my mind.
A few sentences are good – but not too many.

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