National Grammar Day is observed across the United States each year on March 4th. The observance encourages the use of correct grammar in both verbal and written language. Below are 5 of the most common grammar mistakes I come across when marking children’s work. You may come across these mistakes from adults too!

1. There / Their / They’re

The word “there” commonly refers to a place or position, such as “over there.” It can also be used as an exclamation, such as “There! I told you so!”

To show ownership, use the word, “their.” The house that belongs to those people. It is correct to say, “Their house is over there.”.

They’re is a contraction consisting of putting two words together: they and are and is used instead of those. “They’re at the party”.

You can also say, “They’re going to their house over there.”

Use the visual below to help you:

2. To / Too / Two

The word “to” usually means you’re moving toward something. For instance, “You’re going to the park.”

The word, “too,” on the other hand is another way of saying, “also” or “as well”. Such as, “I’ll go, too.” But “too” can also be used to describe excess (a lot of).

Examples: “That house cost too much money.”

It is correct to say, “Let’s go to that house that costs too much money.”

Two is the word for the number 2: “Two ducks are swimming in the pond.”

3. It’s / Its

These two words seem pretty easy to figure out, but many people still get them wrong. The word “it’s” is a contraction for “it is.”

The word “its” shows possession.

It is correct to say, “It’s a fluffy cat and its tail is black.”

4. You’re / Your

The word “you’re” is a contraction for “you are.”

The word “your” shows possession.

It is correct to say, “You’re nice but your friend is not.”

5. Affect / Effect

These words might not sound exactly the same, but they still get mixed up a lot.

The word, “affect” is usually used as a verb and means to make a difference to.

For example: “The lightning affected the tree.”

The word “effect” is usually used as a noun and usually describes the difference itself.

For example, “The effect of the storm was devastating.”

Fun Fact:

According to the Global Language Monitor, the estimated number of words in the English language is 1,025,109. There is some controversy over that figure, but it’s safe to say it is over a million!

What mistakes do you come across? Leave them in the comments below.

Till next time…