Mini-Lesson: a Period Is a Pause

Mini-Lesson: A period is a pause! (Grade 1-2) Here are the first sentences in the story Alexander, Who’s Not (Do you hear me? I mean it!) Going to Move by Judith Viorst (page 1). As I read the beginning of this story aloud listen and look carefully at the words and punctuation on the overhead. What kind of punctuation do you notice each time I pause? When you hear me pause raise your hand for one second then put it back down quickly. Each time you hear a pause raise your hand briefly. Look carefully at this selection from the story on the overhead and notice what kind of punctuation does this author use when I pause and you raise your hand?

They can’t make me pack my baseball mitt or my I Love Dinosaurs sweatshirt or my cowboy boots. They can’t make me pack my ice skates, my jeans with eight zippers, my compass, my radio or my stuffed pig. My dad is packing. My mom is packing. My brothers Nick and Anthony are packing. I’m not packing. I’m not going to move.

What kind of punctuation does an author use to let the reader know it’s time to pause when he or she is reading their story aloud?

1 Discuss what the children noticed and explain that a period is a way to show the reader that a sentence has ended. It allows readers to pause for a moment before reading the next sentence. Listen again to this same selection. This time I will read it without any pauses. (Read the selection again and read it as if there is no punctuation.) How did that sound? Review again the importance of using periods to end sentences.

Now you are going to have a chance to try to use some periods. Here are some sentences about how Alexander feels about moving. Work with a partner and put a period at the end of each sentence.

I don’t want to move I will miss all of my friends The school will be different and I won’t know any of the teachers I won’t even know where the bathrooms are My mom and dad can’t make me I’m not moving

Now you try it. Write a few sentences about how you think Alexander feels about moving or about how you might feel if your family were moving. Use periods at the end of each of your sentences.

*This selection would be really good to use when talking about voice as well!

2 Rubric

Share your sentences with a partner aloud. See if your partner can tell where you pause as you read. Let your partner raise his or her hand when you pause. Check your sentences if your partner is not raising his or her hand at the right time and see if you had a period there? Fix your sentences so they end with a period and take away any extra periods. Then you listen to your partner’s sentences and do the same things. (Teacher should walk around and monitor during this time. Teacher may also want to collect these papers and check to see if students used periods correctly.)