KeyStage

Year 2 English · Key Stage 1 · Spelling – English Appendix 1

Year 2 apostrophes: contractions and ownership explained

In Year 2 children meet the apostrophe doing two different jobs. It can show where letters have been left out of a shortened word, as in didn’t, can’t and I’ll, and it can show that something belongs to one person or thing, as in Megan’s coat or the child’s drawing. It is a tiny mark that causes a surprising number of mistakes, so getting the idea secure now saves a great deal of correcting later.

Contractions and apostrophes, explained

A contraction is two words squashed into one, with an apostrophe marking the spot where letters have gone missing. Did not becomes didn’t: the o is missing, so the apostrophe sits where the o used to be. I will becomes I’ll, with the w and the i missing. Many teachers ask children to say the long version first, then spot which letters have disappeared, then write the short version with the apostrophe in exactly that gap.

That last point is where most spelling errors happen. The apostrophe goes in the place of the missing letters, not between the two original words, so it is didn’t and never did’nt. A few contractions are less tidy: can’t comes from cannot (one word, not two), and won’t is a shortened form of will not that doesn’t follow the pattern. Schools choose their own lists of words to practise, and typical ones are can’t, didn’t, couldn’t, hasn’t, isn’t, I’m, I’ll, you’ll and that’s.

The second job is showing belonging for a single owner. If the coat belongs to Megan, we write Megan’s coat. If the book belongs to the girl, it is the girl’s book, and a drawing made by the child is the child’s drawing. In Year 2 the rule is simple: one owner, then apostrophe and s. Children are taught to ask “Who does it belong to?” and to check that there is only one owner. Apostrophes for more than one owner, such as the girls’ coats, come later, in Years 3 and 4.

One word needs special care: it’s. Wherever you see it’s, it can be stretched into it is or it has (“It’s raining” is “It is raining”). It’s is a contraction and is never used to show ownership. This is the most common apostrophe slip, even among adults, so it is worth practising now. Underneath all of it is one rule your child can hold on to: an apostrophe is there because a letter is missing or because one owner has something, and never just because a word ends in s.

Words your child will hear

Apostrophe
The small mark ’ that sits up in the air, not on the line like a comma.
Contraction
Two words shortened into one, with an apostrophe where letters are missing: do not becomes don’t.
Possessive
Showing that something belongs to someone, as in Megan’s coat.
Singular
Just one: one girl, one child, one dog.
Noun
A naming word for a person, place, animal or thing, such as girl, Megan or coat.
Missing letters
The letters left out when two words are joined. The apostrophe takes their place.

What the National Curriculum says

In Year 2, pupils should be taught to:

  • Spell contractions
  • Use the possessive apostrophe (singular nouns)

Objectives from the National Curriculum in England, © Crown copyright, used under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

A worked example: fixing a sentence

Add the missing apostrophes: Megans dog doesnt like the childs hat because its too tight.

  1. Look for words that are short forms of two words. Say each one long: doesnt is does not, and its (here) is it is. In each case a letter is missing, so the apostrophe goes in the gap: doesn’t (the o of not is missing) and it’s (the i of is is missing).
    does not  →  doesn’t
it is     →  it’s
  2. Now look for words where something belongs to somebody. Whose dog is it? Megan’s. Whose hat is it? The child’s. Each time there is one owner, so we add an apostrophe and then s.
    dog of Megan     → Megan’s dog
hat of the child → the child’s hat
  3. Check the other words. Like and because have no missing letters and don’t show belonging, so they need nothing. Read the whole sentence aloud to be sure it makes sense.

Megan’s dog doesn’t like the child’s hat because it’s too tight.

Common mistakes and how to help

Putting the apostrophe between the two words, as in did’nt or is’nt

A child sees two words that have been joined and puts the apostrophe at the join, rather than where the letters were dropped.

What helps: Say the long form and cover up the letters that are missing. Point at the gap: did not has no o in didn’t, so the apostrophe goes there, after the n.

Adding an apostrophe to a plain plural, such as apple’s or two dog’s

Children see an s at the end of a word and think an apostrophe belongs there. Handwritten shop signs reinforce the habit.

What helps: Ask two questions. Is a letter missing? Does one owner have something? If the answer to both is no, there is no apostrophe: two dogs, three apples.

Writing it’s when the word means belonging, or the other way round

Everywhere else in Year 2 an s with an apostrophe shows ownership (Megan’s, the girl’s), so it feels natural to write it’s for “belonging to it”.

What helps: Try “it is” or “it has” in its place. If the sentence still works, use it’s. If not, no apostrophe: the dog wagged its tail has no apostrophe, because “it is tail” is nonsense.

Mixing up the two jobs in sentences such as “Megan’s going out” and “Megan’s coat is red”

The two jobs of the apostrophe look the same on the page. Megan’s can mean Megan is, Megan has, or belonging to Megan.

What helps: Read the sentence with is or has in place of ’s. “Megan is going out” makes sense, so that is a contraction. “Megan is coat” doesn’t, so that one shows belonging.

How to help at home

  • Say it long, say it short. Say a pair such as “could not” and ask your child to squash it and spell it. Swap roles and make deliberate mistakes for them to catch. Keep it quick and light-hearted, a few minutes at a time.
  • Label the house. Use sticky notes to label things with their owners: Dad’s mug, the cat’s bowl, Grandma’s chair. Your child can write them, saying “one owner, apostrophe, s” as they go, and then read the labels back to you.
  • Apostrophe hunt. While reading a favourite book, ask your child to point out an apostrophe and decide whether it shows missing letters or belonging. Say the long form out loud to check.
  • Little dictations. Read a short sentence such as “She didn’t take Tom’s bag” and let your child write it from memory. Check it together, starting with the apostrophes, and talk about any that went wrong.
  • Spot the wrong ones. When you are out shopping together, look for signs with a stray apostrophe, such as a price board that says apple’s. Ask your child to explain why it doesn’t need one: there is no missing letter and the apples don’t own anything.

Related topics

Builds on

Leads on to

More on spelling – English Appendix 1

Everything in Year 2 English

Updated .