20868_Editing_reports_Years_5_and_6

Your partner in education
YEARS 5–6
EDITING
SKILLS
Editing reports
Literacy
Australian Primary Publisher
of the Year 2015 and 2016

EDITING SKILLS (Ages 11 + )
Published by R.I.C. Publications ® 2005
Copyright © R.I.C. Publications ® 2005
RIC–20868
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Foreword
Editing skills consists of a selection of texts written in specific formats to provide punctuation,
spelling and grammatical practice. Detailed descriptions of concepts, such as specific
parts of speech and punctuation, are also included, as well as vocabulary enrichment and
aspects of writing.
The aim is to provide students with varied, structured experiences in proofreading and
editing written texts. A high level of proficiency in these skills is vital for accurate selfmonitoring
of written work.
Other titles in this series are:
• Editing skills 6–7
• Editing skills 8–9
• Editing skills 10–11
Contents
Teachers information
Teacher information................................................................................................................... iv – v
Curriculum links................................................................................................................................ v
Overview of activity content.....................................................................................................vi – vii
Punctuation, spelling, grammar, vocabulary and writing information.................................viii – xiii
Writing format information.....................................................................................................xiv – xv
Writing format checklists .................................................................................................... xvi – xxii
Student proofreading and editing checklist................................................................................ xxiii
Worksheets
Dear diary.................................................. 2–3
Piggy banks............................................... 4–5
Ancient Greek myth.................................. 6–7
Where is the king?..................................... 8–9
Revulsion................................................10–11
Chocolate...............................................12–13
How the woodpecker was born............14–15
Left-wing.................................................16–17
Violence on the news........................... 18–19
The St Bernard...................................... 20–21
Kelly’s holiday....................................... 22–23
How to be a successful note taker....... 24–25
The question mark................................ 26–27
The hothouse........................................ 28–29
A miraculous escape............................ 30–31
Michael McCoy...................................... 32–33
Mobile madness.................................... 34–35
Making a papier-mâché piggy bank..... 36–37
What is an urban myth?........................ 38–39
Travelling toad....................................... 40–41
Go and play!.......................................... 42–43
Constable Hector Plod’s report........... 44–45
The word ‘love’ in tennis...................... 46–47
Surface tension....................................... 48–49
We should earn regular pocket money.. 50–51
The runaways....................................... 52–53
The castle on the hill............................ 54–55
Mighty microbes.................................. 56–57
Princess Caraboo................................. 58–59
Making a tepee..................................... 60–61
Achilles’s heel....................................... 62–63
Impressionism...................................... 64–65
Tsunami!............................................... 66–67
Rowan Atkinson................................... 68–69
Special groups...................................... 70–71
Give me strength.................................. 72–73
The fleet awakens................................ 74–75
Taking better photos............................ 76–77
Cooking fish – the easy way................. 78–79
A night to remember............................ 80–81
Classical composers............................. 82–83
Music forever......................................... 84–85
R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au Editing skills iii

Teacher information
The following is an explanation of how to use the pages in this book.
Teachers pages
A teachers page accompanies each student worksheet. It provides the following information:
The lesson focus indicates the focus for each
student page. This will include aspects from
the areas of punctuation, spelling, grammar,
vocabulary and writing. Some of these may involve
simple recognition of a concept, or use an alreadyknown
aspect. More detailed teacher information
about punctuation, spelling, grammar, vocabulary
and writing can be found on pages viii–xxiii.
Teacher information gives brief background
information about each text type. More detailed
information can be found on pages xiv– xv.
Answers to all worksheet activities are provided.
The corrected text is given with punctuation errors
in bold. Correct spelling is highlighted in italics, as
well as being provided in the answers section.
Proofreading and editing
marks
Editors use a number of consistent
symbols to indicate where changes
are to be made in a text.
Teachers may require students to use
these ‘professional’ proofreading and
editing marks to indicate errors in the
text on the student pages.
NOTE:
All spelling is taken from the
Macquarie Dictionary, Revised
Third Edition, while all punctuation
is according to the Style manual
for authors, editors and printers,
Sixth edition, Revised by Snooks &
Co. These are standard references
for contemporary professional
publishing.
= insert (something)
The weather hot
The boys hat
He went swiming.
= delete (something)
I went to to the shops.
The dog broke it’s collar.
+ lc = lower case
a
lc
I don’t like Maths.
+ cap. = capital letter
+ correction = spelling
‘
was
m
cap.
‘I’m telling mum.’
He wos playing football.
iv Editing skills R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au

Student pages
Teacher information
• A specific text type is identified and presented for the students to read. The text has
punctuation, spelling and grammatical errors for the student to identify.
There are also opportunities presented for the students to work in the areas of grammar,
vocabulary and writing as specified by the worksheet or teacher.
• The texts are presented in two ways. One allows students to become familiar with
formats they may encounter in some standardised tests; both follow a similar format for
identifying and correcting proofreading and editing errors.
The student activities follow a common format.
Format 1
The title of the text is given.
The specific text type is
given and the text presented.
Format 2
Headings indicate which punctuation,
spelling, grammatical, vocabulary and
writing mistakes need to be identified and
corrected by the student. Extra practice is
given in particular areas.
Student instructions are written in a consistent format to encourage students to concentrate
on the activity.
Where an instruction requires students to ‘find capital letters etc.’, teachers should select
their own method for students to use; for example, circle, highlight with a coloured marker,
underline or write over the error. Some proofreading and editing marks may be used. (See
teachers notes page iv.)
Curriculum links
Year 5
Re-read and edit student’s own and others’ work
using agreed criteria for text structures and language
features (ACELY1705)
Year 6
Re-read and edit students’ own and others’ work
using agreed criteria and explaining editing choices
(ACELY1715)
R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au Editing skills v

Activity content overview
Activity content Page number
PUNCTUATION 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41 43 45 47 49 51 53 55 57 59 61 63 65 67 69 71 73 75 77 79 81 83 85
Full stops
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Capital letters: begin. of sentences
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
proper nouns
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Question marks
• • • • • • • • • •
Exclamation marks
• • • • • • • • • •
Commas: in a list
• • • • • • • • • • • •
grammatical
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Apostrophes: contractions • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
possession
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Quotation marks
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Colons
• • • • • • • • •
Semicolons
• • • • • • • • •
Hyphens
• • • • • • • • • • •
Dashes
• • • • • •
Parentheses • • • • • • • • • •
SPELLING
Misspelt words
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Confused words
• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Plurals: adding ‘s’ and ‘es’
• •
change ‘y’ to ‘i’ • •
Rec.
Expl.
TEXT TYPE
N
P
D
Rep.
N
Rec.
Expo.
Rep.
N
P
Expl.
Poet.
Rec.
Poet.
Expo.
P
Expl.
Rep.
Rec.
Rep.
Expl.
P
Expo.
N
D
Expl.
Rec.
P
N
Rep.
Expl.
Rec.
Expo.
Rep.
D
Expl.
P
Rec.
Rep.
N
vi Editing skills R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au

Activity content Page number
GRAMMAR 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41 43 45 47 49 51 53 55 57 59 61 63 65 67 69 71 73 75 77 79 81 83 85
Nouns: common nouns
collective nouns
• • • • •
•
Pronouns
• • • • • • • • • • • • •
Adjectives
• • • • • •
Verbs: active/passive • • • • • •
tenses
• • • • • • • • • • •
infinitives
• •
Subject-verb agreement
• • • • • • • •
Adverbs
• • • • • • • •
Prepositions
• • • • • •
Conjunctions
Indefinite article: ‘a’ or ‘an’ • • •
• •
VOCABULARY
Enrichment
• • •
Synonyms
• • • • •
Antonyms
• • • • •
Compound words
• • • • •
Compound words: hyphenated
• •
Shortened forms
• • •
Similes • •
WRITING
Paragraphs
• • • • •
Double negatives
• • • • •
Tautology
• • • • • • • • •
Convoluted language
• •
Analogy
•
Repeated and omitted words
• • •
Errors of fact • • • • •
Rec.
Expl.
TEXT TYPE
N
P
D
Rep.
N
Rec.
Expo.
Rep.
N
P
Expl.
Poet.
Rec.
Poet.
Expo.
P
Expl.
Rep.
Rec.
Rep.
Expl.
P
Expo.
N
D
Expl.
Rec.
P
N
Rep.
Expl.
Rec.
Expo.
Rep.
D
Expl.
P
Rec.
Rep.
N
Narrative – N Explanation – Expl. Procedure – P Recount – Rec. Report – Rep. Exposition – Expo. Description – D Poetry – Poet.
R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au Editing skills vii

Punctuation, spelling, grammar, vocabulary and
writing information
PUNCTUATION
Please note: In some cases, teachers will need to exercise their own judgment with regard to
punctuation, as certain aspects, particularly commas and exclamation marks, are to an extent
discretionary and depend on the individual writer’s intent.
Capital letters
Capital letters are needed for:
• sentence beginnings; e.g. My dog is very friendly. He welcomes everyone.
• proper nouns – people’s names (Chloe Parker), names of places (Indian Ocean), days of
the week (Saturday), months (December), holidays and festivals (Christmas ), countries
(America), nationalities (Russian), languages (Italian) and religions (Buddhism).
• titles; e.g. World Health Organisation
NOTE:
R.I.C. Publications employs minimal capitalisation for titles of books and other
publications as recommended by The Style manual for authors, editors and printers,
sixth edition 2002.
To kill a mockingbird
Snow White and the seven dwarfs
Exclamation marks
Exclamation marks are used to end exclamations and imperatives (commands) and for
emphasis at the end of a statement.
I love it!
Don’t touch!
She ate every bit of it!
Note: If overused, exclamation marks lose their effect.
Commas
Teacher information
Commas are used to separate items in a list or series.
I enjoy reading, playing squash, skiing and swimming.
Grammatical commas are used to:
• make the meaning of a sentence clear.
Jane said her mother is very busy.
Jane, said her mother, is very busy.
• indicate where a pause is needed in a sentence.
Many years ago, dinosaurs roamed the Earth.
Apostrophes for possession
(Jane’s mother is very busy.)
(Jane is very busy.)
Apostrophes are used to show that something belongs to someone or something.
The placement of the apostrophe can be challenging but the simple rule is that it is placed
after the owner or owners. (The ‘tail’ of the apostrophe ‘points’ to the owner(s).)
the boy’s shoes (one boy) ............... the boys’ shoes (more than one boy)
the lady’s hats (one lady)............... the ladies’ hats (more than one lady)
the son’s pets (one son)................... the sons’ pets (more than one son)
viii Editing skills R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au

Grammatical contractions
Grammatical contractions are words that have been made by joining and shortening two
words. An apostrophe is used in place of the missing letters.
Quotation marks
would not..............wouldn’t
I would............................I’d
Quotation marks are used:
• to enclose quoted speech
will not......................won’t
they are.................. they’re
Single or double quotation marks are accepted but must be used consistently.
‘You’re late again’, my mother complained.
“I’m sorry”, I replied.
• To enclose quotes within quotes, one set is used outside and the other inside.
He reported, ‘My mother complained, “Late again, John”’
• To cite a title.
Colons
I read the book ‘Black Beauty’.
A colon is a marker of relationship and sequence.
Colons are used:
• before offset lists
You need to take:
warm socks,
sturdy walking shoes,
a raincoat.
• between a statement and an explanation.
I remember you: we went to the same school.
• with quotations.
Semicolons
Malcolm Fraser said: ‘Life wasn’t meant to be easy’.
A semicolon, despite its name, is not a half colon; it is much stronger than a comma, closer
to a full stop. It is generally used where a full stop is possible, but using one would separate
the sentences too strongly.
It can be used:
• when two sentences are closely connected.
The footballers are leaving the field; some are looking very dejected.
• before words and expressions such as, ‘therefore’, ‘for example’ and ‘however’.
Hyphens
There are many animals native to this area; for example, wallabies, kangaroos and
wombats.
Hyphens are short strokes (without a space on either side) used to join words or parts of
words.
ice-cream
Teacher information
pre-existing
Note: Students should be encouraged to refer to a modern dictionary to check for current
hyphenation, which changes over time in response to common use.
R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au Editing skills ix

Punctuation (continued)
Dashes
A dash is used to indicate a text break but should not be overused.
It can be used:
• to separate a word or group of words within a sentence.
Climbing mountains is fun—if you are young and fit.
• before a specific list.
Do you know the Wilsons—Peter and Jane?
• between numbers or words to mean ‘to’ or ‘until’.
Read chapters 1–4.
• in place of parentheses (round brackets)
The tsunami—2004—caused horrendous damage.
Parentheses (round brackets)
The main use of parentheses is to enclose explanations and asides.
Parentheses are used:
• to add explanatory words
Ian Thorpe (Australia) won his race.
• to express the same thing in a different way
He ran 6 km (kilometres).
• To set-off an aside
GRAMMAR
Nouns
He won the race in record (yet to be confirmed) time.
Nouns are naming words of people, places and things:
teacher, school, desk.
Proper nouns name individual people (Bill), places (Kings Park) and others (Christmas,
December, Sunday). Proper nouns are written with capital letters.
Common nouns are any other nouns.
Collective nouns are a subset of common nouns:
Pronouns
a team of players.
A pronoun is a word substituted for a noun:
They asked him to help them.
Personal pronouns refer to you, me and other people:
Adjectives
Teacher information
I, me, you, she, us, them.
Adjectives modify (enhance or change) the meaning of nouns and, less commonly,
pronouns:
parched land; green, fertile land; poor old me; lucky you
x Editing skills R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au

Verbs
Verbs are ‘doing’ words:
swim, like, look.
Auxiliary verbs join other verbs to form verb groups:
have eaten, will be asleep.
Active and passive verbs
In English, verbs are classified as either active or passive.
Active verbs indicate that the subject ‘does’ or ‘is’ something. They are straightforward and
cause little difficulty.
We went to the shopping centre.
(subject) (verb)
The passive voice is often used when it is not necessary to tell who is responsible for the
action.
Cats should be fed regularly.
Students should be encouraged to use active verbs in preference to passive ones because
they make sentences more direct and positive.
Verb tense There are three basic tenses. Because there are so many irregular verbs in
English, tense can be complex.
Infinitives
regular
irregular
the past..................... the present.......................the future
played...............................play................................will play
has played.......................plays......................... should play
went.................................. go................................... will go
has gone.......................... goes............................should go
NOTE: The future and the past tenses often use auxiliary verbs.
The infinitive is the basic form of a verb and is usually introduced by ‘to’:
to work, to be, to eat
Subject-verb agreement
Verbs have to agree with their subjects:
The children cheer loudly.
(subject-plural) verb
The child cheers loudly
(subject-singular) verb
Many English verbs are irregular, which can cause problems, particularly for students from
non-English speaking backgrounds:
He is at school.
He was busy.
They are at school.
They were busy.
In some sentences the subject of a verb is separated from the verb and not easy to locate.
Students should be encouraged to ask themselves ‘who’ or ‘what’ before the verb.
Adverbs
‘The boy, although really late for school and likely to get into trouble, dawdled.’
‘dawdled’ is the verb.
‘The boy’ is the subject. (who dawdled?)
Adverbs are words that modify (enhance or change) the meaning of verbs:
He ran quickly.
There are adverbs of:
Teacher information
I’ve seen this before.
time........................e.g. yesterday
place......................e.g. downstairs
manner...................e.g. carefully
R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au Editing skills xi

Prepositions
Prepositions show the relationship between nouns and/or pronouns in the same sentence.
Common prepositions include: across, about, between, by, during, for, from, in, of, since,
through, until, without, up.
Conjunctions
He disappeared during the night.
I’m afraid of spiders.
I enjoy reading books about travel.
Conjunctions are joining words. They can join different language units:
• One word with another .........................e.g. black or white
• One phrase with another........................e.g. on the beach and in the sand
• One clause with another........................e.g. He asked me if I could cook.
• One sentence with another....................e.g. I was hot so I went for a swim.
SPELLING
Singular and plural nouns
Adding ‘s’ and ‘es’
The most commonly used plural is made by adding ‘s’; e.g. books, games.
It is usually necessary to add ‘es’ to nouns ending in ‘ch’, ‘sh’, ‘s’, ‘x’ and ‘z’ to make the
plural easier to pronounce; e.g. washes, dishes, classes, foxes and waltzes.
Words ending in ‘o’ are also often made into a plural by adding ‘es’:
potatoes, tomatoes
There are many exceptions, including radios, merinos, silos, zeros, photos and sopranos.
Students should be encouraged to consult a dictionary if uncertain about the spelling of a
specific word.
Changing ‘y’ to ‘i’ and adding ‘es’
Many nouns and verbs ending with ‘y’, change the ‘y’ to ‘i’ before adding ‘es’:
lady (singular noun)
curry (singular noun)
I cry
VOCABULARY
Shortened forms
There are three categories of shortened forms:
• Shortened words:
ladies (plural noun)
curries (plural noun)
he cries (verbs)
– abbreviations (first letter, some other letters, but not the last letter):
Mon., Cont., Co.
(full stop needed)
– contractions (first letter and last letter and sometimes other letters):
Mr, dept, Qld
• Shortened phrases:
(no full stop)
– acronyms (strings of initial letters pronounced as a word):
• Symbols:
radar, Qantas, sonar
(no full stops)
Internationally recognised representations of units of measurement, words and concepts:
km, %, @
Teacher information
(no full stops)
xii Editing skills R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au

Similes
A simile is a figure of speech in which one thing is likened to another in one particular
respect:
as fast as greased lightning
to run like the wind
Similes can enhance descriptions by helping to convey the writer’s intended meaning.
Writing
Tautology
Tautology is combining two or more words, which in effect say the same thing:
I followed after him.
He has never at any time smoked.
Examples of tautology include:
blend together, close proximity, combine together, cost the sum of, divide up, during
the course of, few in number, for a period of, grateful thanks, just recently, may
possibly, mutual cooperation, small in size, return back, repeat again.
Convoluted language
Convoluted language is unnecessarily complicated, complex language, often using passive
verbs, lengthy sentences and unnecessary words. Students should be encouraged to use
clear, concise language to express ideas:
Analogy
Teacher information
In the fullness of time, taking into account the exigencies of the existing situation,
and in complete recognition of the delicacy of this matter, your proposal will be
duly brought to the light of day, unpacked and addressed in a cooperative group
context.
(We will look at your proposal later.)
An analogy is usually used to explain something complex by using something familiar:
An atom is like our solar system. (The nucleus is the sun and the electrons are the
planets in orbit around it.)
Stones were to some ancient people as dollar notes are to modern people.
Analogies are helpful in pointing out relationships that may not at first be obvious, but they
have their limitations. It is said that an analogy ‘breaks down’; this means that it is only
suggestive and doesn’t hold true in every detail.
R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au Editing skills xiii

Teacher information
Writing format information
Below are general descriptions of the text types included in this book.
Narrative
– is a framework which tells a story.
– includes:
• Orientation:
the setting, time and character(s)
• Complication:
involving the main character(s) and a
sequence of events.
• Resolution:
to the complication
• Ending:
– uses:
often showing what has changed
and what the characters have learnt.
• a range of conjunctions to connect
ideas
• appropriate paragraphing
• descriptive language
• past tense.
A narrative may be written in the form
of a poem, story, play, imaginative story,
fairytale, novel, myth, legend, ballad,
science fiction story or modern fantasy.
Recount
– is a framework that retells events as
they happened in time order.
– may be factual, personal or imaginative.
– includes:
• Orientation:
all relevant background (who, when,
where, why)
• Events:
significant events in detail
• Conclusion:
– uses:
often with an evaluative comment.
• vocabulary to suggest time passing
• paragraphs to show separate
sections
• the past tense.
A recount may be written in the form
of a newspaper report, diary, letter,
journal, eyewitness account, biography,
autobiography or history.
Report
– is a framework which provides facts
concerning aspects of a living or non-living
thing without unnecessary information or
opinion.
– includes:
• Classification:
a general or classifying statement
• Description:
accurate and detailed
• Conclusion:
– uses:
a comment about the content of the
report (optional).
• factual language rather than imaginative
• the third person
• the timeless present tense
• linking and action verbs.
A report may be written in the form of a
book review, scientific report, newspaper or
magazine article, eyewitness account or a
progress report.
Procedure
– is a framework which outlines how
something is made or done.
– includes:
• the purpose of the procedure shown
clearly and precisely
• a list of materials or requirements
under appropriate headings or layout
• the method in a detailed, logical
sequence
• an evaluation (if appropriate).
– uses:
• instructions with an imperative verb
• subject-specific vocabulary
• simple present tense.
A procedure may be written in the form of
a recipe, instructions for making something,
an experiment, an instruction manual, a
maths procedure, how to play a game, how
to operate an appliance, how to use an atlas
and how to deal with a problem.
xiv Editing skills R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au

Writing format checklists
Student report checklist
Title:
Classification:
There is a general or classifying statement about
the subject of the report.
Description:
Provides accurate, detailed descriptions.
Information is clearly presented.
Facts are relevant and interesting.
Conclusion:
A personal comment has been made about the subject.
Writing skills:
• Language is factual rather than imaginative.
• The report is written in the third person.
• The present tense is used.
• Technical vocabulary and subject specific terms are used.
• Information is organised in paragraphs.
• Punctuation and spelling have been checked.
Name: Date:
Editing skills R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au
Student report checklist
Title:
Classification:
There is a general or classifying statement about
the subject of the report.
Description:
Provides accurate, detailed descriptions.
Information is clearly presented.
Facts are relevant and interesting.
Conclusion:
A personal comment has been made about the subject.
Writing skills:
• Language is factual rather than imaginative.
• The report is written in the third person.
• The present tense is used.
• Technical vocabulary and subject specific terms are used.
• Information is organised in paragraphs.
• Punctuation and spelling have been checked.
Name: Date:
xx Editing skills R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au

Student proofreading and editing checklist
Use this page to check your work. You will not need to tick all of the boxes.
Name:
Date:
Title:
Punctuation:
I have included:
• full stops
• capital letters for:
• question marks
• exclamation marks
• commas:
beginning sentences
proper nouns
in lists
for pauses
to make meaning clear
• apostrophes: in contractions
• quotation marks
• colons
• semicolons
• hyphens
• dashes
• brackets
Spelling:
I have:
to show ownership
• checked the spelling of any unknown words
Grammar:
I have included:
• a variety of different verbs
• correct verb tenses
• correct verb-subject agreement
• appropriate adverbs to describe verbs
• interesting adjectives to describe nouns and pronouns
• suitable conjunctions
• a variety of prepositions
Writing:
I have read through my writing to check that:
• it makes sense
• it is easy to understand
• there are no repeated or omitted words
• paragraphing is appropriate
• there are no double negatives or tautologies
• there are no errors of fact
R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au Editing skills xxiii

Chocolate
Lesson focus
Teachers notes
Punctuation
• Capital letters for proper nouns
• Grammatical commas
• Exclamation marks
• Apostrophes to show possession
• Apostrophes in grammatical contractions
Grammar
• Pronouns
• Nouns – pronoun matching
• Conjunctions
Spelling
• Confused words: were/where
• Misspelt words
Writing
• Double negatives
Teacher information
A report is usually written in the present tense and describes aspects of a living or non-living thing.
Answers
Chocolate was first made in Mexico, where the Aztec Indians
used cocoa beans to make a cold drink.
In the 1500s, it was the favourite of the Mexican emperor
Montezuma. He reportedly drank over 50 cups a day!
When Spanish explorers came to Mexico, they tried
Montezuma’s chocolate but found it very bitter as it didn’t
have any sweeteners added. They took it back to Spain, where
sugar, vanilla, cinnamon and other spices were added. It was
also decided the drink would taste considerably better
if it was hot.
Chocolate then spread to the rest of Europe, where it
became a fashionable drink. It wasn’t until 1847 that an
English company first made chocolate which could be
eaten. In 1876, the Swiss added milk to chocolate, creating
the most popular kind of chocolate today—milk chocolate.
where
cocoa
favourite
He (pronoun)
tried
it (pronoun)
added
vanilla
decided
it (pronoun)
spread
fashionable
company
creating
popular
Answers
1. Missing punctuation is in bold type.
2. (a) Pronouns are underlined.
Him – He (line 4); her – it (line 6); they – it (line 10)
(b) (i) it – chocolate (ii) they – Spanish explorers
(c) These conjunctions should be underlined.
(i) if (line 10) (ii) but (line 6) (iii) as (line 6) (iv) where (lines 1, 7 and 11)
(d) • ‘Chocolate was first made in Mexico’ and ‘The Aztec Indians used cocoa beans to make a cold drink.’
• ‘They took it back to Spain.’ and ‘Sugar, vanilla, cinnamon and other spices were added.’
• ‘Chocolate then spread to the rest of Europe.’ and ‘It became a fashionable drink.’
3. (a) Spelling errors are in italic type.
where, cocoa, favourite, tried, added, vanilla, decided, spread, fashionable, company, creating,
popular
4. (a) One way of correcting the double negative has been underlined in bold.
‘…didn’t have no sweeteners …’ should read ‘… didn’t have any sweeteners …’ or
‘… had no sweeteners …’
12 Editing skills R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au

Chocolate
Read the report.
Editing skills
Chocolate was first made in mexico, were the Aztec Indians
used cokoa beans to make a cold drink.
In the 1500s it was the favorite of the mexican emperor
montezuma. Him reportedly drank over 50 cups a day
When spanish explorers came to Mexico they tryd
Montezumas chocolate but found her very bitter as it didnt
have no sweeteners aded. They took it back to spain, where
sugar, vanila, cinnamon and other spices were added. It was
also descided the drink would taste considerably better
if they was hot.
Chocolate then spred to the rest of europe, where it
became a fashinable drink. It wasnt until 1847 that an
english companey first made chocolate which could be
eaten. In 1876 the swiss added milk to chocolate, criating
the most poppular kind of chocolate today—milk chocolate.
1 Punctuation
(a) Find the 3 missing apostrophes, 8 capital
letters, 3 commas and the exclamation mark.
(d) Write any two sentences in the text that have
been joined with the conjunction ‘where’.
2 Grammar
Pronouns are words that replace nouns; for
example, ‘I’, ‘he’, ‘she’, ‘him’, ‘it’.
(a) Circle the 3 incorrect pronouns used in the
text. Write the correct pronoun in the space
at the end of the line.
(b) Write the nouns replaced by the pronouns
highlighted in the text.
(i)
it
(ii) they
Conjunctions are words that join single words or
groups of words to make a sentence longer.
(c) Underline these words used as
conjunctions in the text.
3 Spelling
(a) Write the incorrectly spelt words in the space
at the end of the line.
4 Writing
A double negative statement incorrectly uses two
negative words; for example, ‘I haven’t got no
more,’ should be ‘I haven’t any more’ or
‘I have no more’.
(a) Underline the line in the text containing a
double negative. Write it correctly.
(i) if (ii) but
(iii) as (iv) where
R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au Editing skills 13

The St Bernard
Lesson focus
Teachers notes
Punctuation
• Apostrophes for possession
• Capital letters for proper nouns
• Grammatical commas
• Commas in lists
• Semicolons
Grammar
• Subject-verb agreement
Spelling
• Confused words: where/wear, to/too,
whether/weather, weigh/way, they’re/their
• Misspelt words
Vocabulary
• Shortened forms
Teacher information
A report is usually written in the present tense and describes aspects of a living or non-living thing.
Answers
The St Bernard is a large, intelligent dog with a dense coat.
is (verb)
The breed was first developed in the 1600s in Switzerland, Switzerland
where the dogs were kept at the St Bernard’s
where
monastery in the Swiss Alps as guard dogs. By 1750, the
monastery
breed became known for rescuing people who were
were (verb)
travelling on foot through the Alps and got lost or were
travelling
buried by snowstorms or avalanches. The St Bernard had
buried
many attributes that made it suitable for working in these
suitable
conditions; thick fur, a keen sense of smell, an excellent
excellent
sense of direction and, according to the monks,
to
an ability to sense severe weather conditions.
weather
Today’s St Bernards are thought to be bigger than the
thought
original Swiss rescuers. They can weigh up to about
weigh
90 kg and stand about 75 cm high, making them one of high
the largest dog breeds. Their coats are white and red or
are (verb)
white and brown and can be long or short. They have a
have (verb)
gentle nature; however, due to their size they can
their
be a handful for any family to own!
handful
1. Missing punctuation is in bold type.
2. (a) Verbs are underlined.
am – is (line 1), was – were (line 5), is – are (line 15), has – have (line 16)
3. Spelling errors are in italic type.
(a) where, to, weather, weigh, their
(b) Switzerland, monastery, travelling, buried, suitable, excellent, thought, high, handful
4. (a) (i) St – Saint (ii) kg – kilograms (iii) cm – centimetres
20 Editing skills R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au

The St Bernard
Read the report.
Editing skills
The St Bernard am a large intelligent dog with a dense coat.
The breed was first developed in the 1600s in Swisserland
(wear, where) the dogs were kept at the St Bernards
monasterry in the swiss Alps as guard dogs. By 1750 the
breed became known for rescuing people who was
traveling on foot through the alps and got lost or were
berried by snowstorms or avalanches. The St bernard had
many attributes that made it sutable for working in these
conditions thick fur a keen sense of smell an exellent
sense of direction and, according (too, to) the monks
an ability to sense severe (whether, weather) conditions.
Todays St Bernards are thouht to be bigger than the
original Swiss rescuers. They can (weigh, way) up to about
90 kg and stand about 75 cm hi, making them one of
the largest dog breeds. Their coats is white and red or
white and brown and can be long or short. They has a
gentle nature however, due to (they’re, their) size they can
be a handfull for any family to own!
1 Punctuation
(a) Write the 2 missing apostrophes for
possession, 3 capital letters and 6 commas.
A semicolon is used to separate clauses or
phrases in a sentence. It indicates a pause—not as
strong a pause as a full stop or colon, but stronger
than a comma; for example, ‘He wouldn’t stop
talking; he was being annoying’, ‘You may go;
however, pack up first’.
(b) Write 2 semicolons missing from the text.
2 Grammar
In any sentence, the subject and the verb have to
agree in person and in number; for example, ‘He
has’ but ‘They have’.
(a) Four verbs in the text do not agree with their
subjects. Write the correct form of each verb
in the space at the end of the line.
3 Spelling
(a) Choose the correct
spelling from each
pair of words in
brackets. Write your
choice in the space
at the end of the line.
(b) Write the correct spelling
of the misspelt words in the
space at the end of the line.
4 Vocabulary
(a) Circle the 3 shortened forms in the text.
Write what each stands for.
(i)
(ii)
(iii)
R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au Editing skills 21

Travelling toad
Teachers notes
Lesson focus
Punctuation
• Capital letters for proper nouns
• Full stops
• Commas grammatical
• Apostrophes to show possession
• Quotation marks for direct speech
Spelling
• Misspelt words
• Plural nouns
Grammar
• Adverbs
• Verb tense
• Pronouns
Teacher information
An report records factual information clearly without unnecessary information or opinions.
Answers
MEDIA STATEMENT
COMO TEENAGER COMMENDED
A Como teenager is being commended for his quick actions after discovering a cane toad in his
luggage following a holiday to Queensland.
The Department’s vertebrates pest officer, Robbie Robson, said the young person demonstrated quick
thinking and concern for his community.
‘While he was on holiday in Queensland, a cane toad climbed in to the young man’s sneaker, which he
had left outside after a game of cricket. Preparing to return to Perth, he placed his shoes in a plastic
bag and added them to his suitcase. This action inadvertently brought the cane toad on the return trip
with him. When he unpacked his luggage, he was surprised by the discovery of the toad, which jumped
from his sneaker and began hopping around his bedroom. The teenager was able to capture the toad
and, subsequently, called the Department which confirmed its identity.’
Mr Robson said that when toads are found in Western Australia, it is because they have hitched a ride in
a vehicle, in camping gear or in packed luggage.
‘In the case of cane toads, reporting is vital for preventing their spread.’
Answers
1. Missing punctuation is in bold type.
2. (a) Adverbs have been underlined.
inadvertently, subsequently
(b) The correct verbs have been underlined in bold.
places – placed (line 8), jumps – jumped (line 10), calls – called (line 12)
(c) The correct pronouns are highlighted grey.
it – he (line 7), her – his (line 10), his – their (line 15)
3. (a) Spelling errors are in italic type.
Queensland, officer, community, sneaker, subsequently, confirmed, hitched
(b) (i) communities
(ii) suitcases
(iii) identities
(iv) luggage
(v) discoveries
40 Editing skills R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au

Travelling toad
Read the report.
Editing skills
MEDIA STATEMENT
COMO TEENAGER COMMENDED
A como teenager is being commended for his quick actions after discovering a cane toad in his
luggage following a holiday to Qeensland
The Departments vertebrates pest oficer Robbie Robson, said the young person demonstrated quick
thinking and concern for his comunity.
‘While he was on holiday in Queensland, a cane toad climbed into the young mans sneeker, which it
had left outside after a game of cricket. Preparing to return to perth, he places his shoes in a plastic
bag and added them to his suitcase This action inadvertently brought the cane toad on the return trip
with him. When he unpacked her luggage, he was surprised by the discovery of the toad which jumps
from his sneaker and began hopping around his bedroom. The teenager was able to capture the toad
and, subseqently, calls the Department which confermed its identity
Mr robson said that when toads are found in western Australia it is because they have hiched a ride in
a vehicle, in camping gear or in packed luggage.
‘In the case of cane toads reporting is vital for preventing his spread
1 Punctuation
(a) Find the 4 missing capital letters for proper
nouns and 4 full stops.
(b) Find 2 missing quotation marks, 4
grammatical commas and 2 apostrophes for
possession.
2 Grammar
(a) Underline 2 adverbs ending in ‘ly’.
We change the ‘tense’ of a verb to tell what
happened in the past, what is happening in the
present or what will happen in the future; for
example, ‘He said it’ (past tense); ‘He says it’
(present tense); ‘He will say it’ (future tense).
(b) In this text, the wrong verb tense has been
used 4 times. Find each of these and write
the correct verb above the word.
Pronouns are words that replace nouns;
e.g. ‘she’, ‘him’, ‘them’.
(c) Circle the incorrect pronouns used in the
text. Write the correct pronoun above the
word.
3 Spelling
(a) Write the correct spelling of the 7 misspelt
words above the words in the text.
Although the most common way to make the
plural form of nouns is to add ‘s’ or ‘es’, there
are many exceptions; for example, ‘library’ and
‘libraries’, ‘sheep’ and ‘sheep’.
(b) Write the plural of these nouns from the text.
(i)
community
(ii) suitcase
(iii) identity
(iv) luggage
(v) discovery
R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au Editing skills 41

Constable Hector Plod’s report
Teachers notes
Lesson focus
Punctuation
• Capital letters for proper nouns
• Quotation marks – quotes within quotes
• Colons introducing dialogue
• Grammatical commas
Grammar
• Prepositions
Teacher information
Spelling
• Misspelt words
Writing
• Convoluted writing
• Tautology
An eyewitness account is a form of report which records factual information.
Answers
‘Last Friday evening, 20 June, I was perambulating through my assigned patrol area. At about 8.00 pm
in the evening, I did espy the defendant, Lionel ‘Lucky’ Logan, descending down a fire escape affixed to
the premises at 223 Remington Lane. He was carrying a large bag over his shoulder with the word ‘Loot’
painted on it. At that point in time, I believed his actions and demeanour to be of a suspicious nature.
‘Reaching the second floor from the ground, Logan disappeared from sight behind a large sign
advertising a ‘free gift’ with every Lenny Burger sold. Proceeding carefully with caution, I advanced
towards the building. By the time Logan reached the ground, I was waiting for him. Quickly moving at
speed, I was able to place my handcuffs on the suspect, thereby rendering him innocuous.
‘An examination of the previously referenced white bag revealed the contents inside to be stolen
jewellery, the property of Miss Andrea de Lisle, whose abode was at Flat 3, 223 Remington Lane. I then
did place my hand on Logan’s shoulder and intone: “Lionel Logan, I hereby place you under arrest for
the unlawful theft of property. I now require you to accompany me to Broadwater Police Station”.’
1. Missing punctuation is in bold type.
2. (a) Teacher check
3. (a) Spelling errors are in italic type.
defendant, demeanour, jewellery
4. (a) Teacher check
(b) Groups of words where tautology is used are underlined.
8.00 pm in the evening, descending down, second floor from the ground, free gift, carefully
with caution, advanced towards, Quickly moving at speed, unlawful theft
44 Editing skills R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au

Constable Hector Plod’s report
Read the eyewitness report.
Editing skills
‘Last Friday evening 20 June I was perambulating through my assigned patrol area. At about 8.00 pm
in the evening, I did espy the defendent Lionel Lucky Logan descending down a fire escape affixed to
the premises at 223 remington lane. He was carrying a large bag over his shoulder with the word Loot
painted on it. At that point in time, I believed his actions and demenor to be of a suspicious nature.
‘Reaching the second floor from the ground, Logan disappeared from sight behind a large sign
advertising a free gift with every Lenny Burger sold. Proceeding carefully with caution I advanced
towards the building. By the time Logan reached the ground, I was waiting for him. Quickly moving at
speed, I was able to place my handcuffs on the suspect thereby rendering him innocuous.
‘An examination of the previously referenced white bag revealed the contents inside to be stolen
jewelery, the property of miss andrea de lisle whose abode was at Flat 3, 223 remington lane. I then
did place my hand on Logan’s shoulder and intone Lionel Logan, I hereby place you under arrest for
the unlawful theft of property. I now require you to accompany me to Broadwater Police Station.’
1 Punctuation
(a) Find 7 missing capital letters for proper
nouns, 1 colon, 7 commas and 4 sets of
quotation marks.
Whenever a quote is written within a quote,
different quotation marks are used from those on
the outside of the quote; i.e either ‘ or “.
(b) Write the missing quotation marks for a
quote within another quote.
2 Grammar
Prepositions are positional words placed before
nouns and pronouns to indicate their relation to
other words; for example; the girl with curly hair.
(a) Write 1 sentence using these 2 prepositions.
outside
from
4 Writing
‘Convoluted’ writing often includes words which
could be replaced by others that are easier
to understand.
(a) Give more common, simpler words for these.
(i)
espy
(ii) abode
(iii) demeanour
(iv) perambulating
(v) affixed
(vi) innocuous
3 Spelling
(a) Write the correct spelling of 3 misspelt
words above each word.
(b) Underline 8 examples of tautology; i.e two
words or a group of words meaning the
same thing.
R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au Editing skills 45

Impressionism
Teachers notes
Lesson focus
Punctuation
• Capital letters for proper nouns
• Parentheses separating dates from text
• Apostrophes for possession
Spelling
• Misspelt words
• Plurals (‘y’ to ‘i’ and add ‘es’)
Grammar
• Nouns
• Verbs
• Verb tense
• Prepositions
Teacher information
This report briefly explains Impressionism, naming two of its most famous artists and examples of their
work.
Answers
Impressionism is a style of painting in which artists use light and colour in different ways to produce
a particular effect. There are no sharp lines between the colours and objects in an impressionist
painting but we can clearly identify them. Such is the skill of the artist with brushes and paints.
The Impressionist movement was developed mainly in France, in the late 19th century. It included
many famous artists such as Claude Oscar Monet (1840–1926) and Pierre Auguste Renoir
(1841–1919).
Like many of their contemporaries, Monet and Renoir loved to paint
scenes from nature, particularly gardens and stretches of the River
Seine, which flows through Paris, the capital city of France. Among
their most famous paintings are Monet’s ‘Sunrise’ (1872) and Renoir’s
‘Luncheon of the Boating Party’ (1881).
Although a lot of their original paintings are scattered worldwide,
many are displayed in the magnificent Louvre art gallery in Paris.
1. Missing punctuation is in bold type.
2. (a) Verbs are underlined.
use, are, was, loved, flows, are
(b) (i) between (ii) of (iii) with
(iv) from (v) in
3. (a) Spelling errors are in italic type.
colour, brushes, mainly, scenes, displayed, magnificent
(b) (i) apply – applies – verb (ii) dairy – dairies – noun
(iii) cry – cries – noun – verb
(iv) identify – identifies – verb
(v) diary – diaries – noun
(vi) fly – flies – noun – verb
64 Editing skills R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au

Impressionism
Read the report.
Editing skills
Impressionism is a style of painting in which artists used light and color in different ways to produce
a particular effect. There were no sharp lines between the colours and objects in an impressionist
painting but we can clearly identify them. Such is the skill of the artist with brushies and paints.
The Impressionist movement is developed manely in france, in the late 19th century. It included
many famous artists such as Claude Oscar Monet (1840–1926) and pierre Auguste Renoir
(1841–1919.
Like many of their contemporaries, Monet and Renoir love to paint
seens from nature, particularly gardens and stretches of the River
seine, which flowed through Paris, the capital city of France. Among
their most famous paintings are monets ‘Sunrise’ 1872) and Renoirs
‘Luncheon of the Boating Party’ 1881.
Although a lot of their original paintings are scattered worldwide,
many were displade in the magnifiscent Louvre art gallery in paris
1 Punctuation
(a) Write 5 missing capital letters for proper
nouns and 2 apostrophes for possession.
Parentheses (brackets) are used to separate
additional information in the text.
(b) Add the missing parentheses needed for
dates in the text.
2 Grammar
The tense of all verbs must be correct for a
sentence to convey the intended meaning.
(a) In the text there are 6 examples where the
incorrect tense has been used. Underline
them and write the correction above each.
(iv) scenes from nature
(v) displayed in the magnificent Louvre
3 Spelling
(a) There are 6 spelling errors in the text.
Underline them and write the correction
above each.
‘Change the “y” to “i” and add “es”‘ is a useful
rule to follow when changing the tense of some
verbs; for example, ‘We identify’ – ‘She identifies’.
The same rule applies for changing nouns from
singular to plural; for example, ‘lady’ – ‘ladies’.
(b) Change these words to the ‘ies’ form and
indicate if they can be nouns, verbs or both.
Prepositions are positional words placed before
nouns and pronouns to indicate their relation to
other words.
(i) apply
(ii) dairy
noun
noun
verb
verb
(b) Circle the prepositions.
(iii) cry
noun
verb
(i) sharp lines between the colours
(iv) identify
noun
verb
(ii) the skill of the artist
(v) diary
noun
verb
(iii) with his brushes and paints
(vi) fly
noun
verb
R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au Editing skills 65

Give me strength
Lesson focus
Teachers notes
Punctuation
• Capital letters for proper nouns
• Commas in lists
• Apostrophes to show possession
• Hyphens
• Parentheses (round brackets)
• Semicolons
• Exclamation marks
• Quotation marks
• Dashes
Grammar
• Verb tenses
• Active and passive verb
Spelling
• Confused words: pour/poor, buy/by,
reel/real, threw/through, grate/great
Teacher information
A book review is a form of report. A report organises and records factual information to classify or
describe something.
Answers
‘Give me strength’ is the latest children’s novel in the series by
British author, PT Bailey. As in the previous titles—‘Better the devil
you know’ and ‘Off with the fairies’ —it is concerned with the
adventures of the main character, Angela True (Angela—get it?),
an angel stranded on Earth, who must fight the forces of evil to
save poor humanity from a fate worse than death. This time, the
villain is one KC Olraw (try saying it backwards—not very subtle),
whose dastardly plan is to enslave the world by destroying the
environment, thus starting the next big Ice Age. What it is he
exactly plans to do with a frozen Earth-popsicle is never actually
explained, which is just one of many weaknesses in the story-line.
But the main problem with this book—and the previous two—is
that the author simply lacks the real talent and skills necessary to
make it work. The plot is full of holes, the characters are
cardboard cut-outs, and the dialogue is so awkward and unreal
it makes one cringe to read it! Bailey obviously learnt her
vocabulary from reading Enid Blyton books; words like ‘super!’
and ‘spiffing!’, and phrases like ‘I say—what a jolly idea!’ drip
tragically from the characters’ mouths.
‘Give me strength’ is, however, a great title for the book. Strength
is indeed what any reader needs to plough through this waste of trees.
Apostrophe for possession
Dash
Dash
Bracket
stranded (verb tense)
poor
Bracket
by
Capitals for proper nouns
Hyphen
Hyphen
Dash
real
Comma in a list
Comma in a list
Exclamation mark
Semi-colon
Exclamation marks
Apostrophe for possession
great
through
1. (a) Missing punctuation is in bold type.
(b) Quotes are underlined.
‘super!’, ‘spiffing!’, ‘I say—what a jolly idea!’
2. (a) The verb is underlined in bold.
stranding – stranded (line 5)
(b) Teacher check. Possible answer; Bailey’s vocabulary was obviously learnt by reading Enid
Blyton.
3. (a) Spelling errors are in italic type.
poor, by, real, great, through
72 Editing skills R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au

Give me strength
Read the book review.
Editing skills
‘Give me strength’ is the latest childrens novel in the series by
British author PT Bailey. As in the previous titles ‘Better the devil
you know’ and ‘Off with the fairies’ it is concerned with the
adventures of the main character, Angela True (Angela—get it?,
an angel stranding on Earth, who must fight the forces of evil to
save pour humanity from a fate worse than death. This time, the
villain is one KC Olraw try saying it backwards—not very subtle,
whose dastardly plan is to enslave the world buy destroying the
environment, thus starting the next big ice age. What it is he
exactly plans to do with a frozen Earth popsicle is never actually
explained, which is just one of many weaknesses in the story line.
But the main problem with this book and the previous two—is
that the author simply lacks the reel talent and skills necessary to
make it work. The plot is full of holes the characters are
cardboard cut-outs and the dialogue is so awkward and unreal
it makes one cringe to read it Bailey obviously learnt her
vocabulary from reading Enid Blyton books words like ‘super!’
and ‘spiffing!’, and phrases like ‘I say—what a jolly idea’ drip
tragically from the characters mouths.
‘Give me strength’ is, however, a grate title for the book. Strength
is indeed what any reader needs to plough threw this waste of trees.
1 Punctuation
(a) Write in 2 missing capital letters for proper
nouns, 3 dashes, 2 apostrophes for possession,
2 hyphens, 3 commas, 1 semicolon, 2
exclamation marks and complete 2 sets of
brackets.
(b) In the sentence starting ‘Bailey obviously
learnt her vocabulary from reading Enid
Blyton books ...’ the verb ‘learnt’ is active
because Bailey is doing the learning. Rewrite
the sentence so that the verb is passive i.e.
‘something is being learnt’.
On the line at the end, state the
type of punctuation corrected.
(b) Underline 3 quotes which have
been written in quotation marks.
2 Grammar
(a) One verb is written in the incorrect tense.
Underline it and write the correct verb in the
space at the end of the line.
3 Spelling
(a) Write the correct spelling of 5 misspelt
words in the space at the end of the line.
R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au Editing skills 73

Classical composers
Teachers notes
Lesson focus
Punctuation
• Capital letters for sentence beginnings and
proper nouns
• Full stops
• Parentheses (round brackets)
Grammar
Spelling
• Misspelt words
Writing
• Adjectives
• Errors of fact
• Paragraphs
Teacher information
This report provides information on the three key composers of a classical music period.
Answers
The classical music period of 1750–1825 produced three of the world’s most famous composers,
the Austrians, Franz Joseph Haydn (1732–1809) and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791), and the
German, Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827).
Haydn is known as the father of classical music. He was a friend to Mozart and a tutor to Beethoven.
A talented musician and prolific composer, Haydn produced several works which became popular
during his lifetime. As a result, he died a famous and very wealthy man.
By the age of six, Mozart was already performing his own compositions. Despite his incredible
talent, he did not enjoy the successful career he craved.
He composed many works including the opera, ‘The magic flute’.
By the age of 30, Beethoven was profoundly deaf yet he still
managed to compose brilliant music. Examples of these works are
the symphonies, ‘Eroica’ and ‘Pastoral’.
The works of the classical composers, Haydn, Mozart and
Beethoven, have been appreciated by lovers of classical
music for three hundred years.
1. (a) Missing punctuation is in bold type.
2. (a) Teacher check. Answers may include:
classical, music, most, famous, talented, prolific, several, popular, famous, very, wealthy,
incredible, successful, many, magic, profoundly, brilliant
3. (a) Spelling errors are in italic type.
friend, musician, wealthy, compositions, incredible, profoundly
4. (a) Errors of fact are underlined.
Haydn (1732 – 1809), Beethoven was German, Mozart (1756 – 1791)
(b) Teacher check. Possible answers include:
‘How long have the works of Hayden, Mozart and Beethoven been appreciated?’
82 Editing skills R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au

Classical composers
Read this report.
Editing skills
The classical music period of 1750–1825 produced three of the world’s most famous composers,
the Austrians, franz Joseph Haydn 1723–1809 and Wolfgang Amadeus mozart 1756–1799, and the
Hungarian, Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827).
Haydn is known as the father of classical music he was a frend to Mozart and a tutor to Beethoven.
A talented musiscian and prolific composer, haydn produced several works which became popular
during his lifetime as a result, he died a famous and very welthy man
By the age of six, Mozart was already performing his own compersitions. Despite his incredable
talent, he did not enjoy the successful career he craved.
He composed many works including the opera, ‘The magic flute’.
By the age of 30, Beethoven was profowndly deaf yet he still
managed to compose brilliant music examples of these works are
the symphonies, ‘Eroica’ and ‘Pastoral’.
The works of the classical composers, Haydn, mozart and
Beethoven, have been appreciated by lovers of classical
music for three hundred years
1 Punctuation
(a) Find 3 capital letters for the beginning of
sentences, 4 for proper nouns and 5 missing
full stops.
Parentheses (curved brackets), are used to
separate additional information, such as dates,
from the text.
(b) Two sets of brackets are missing in the text.
Add them.
2 Grammar
(a) Write 6 adjectives from the text.
3 Spelling
(a) Write the correct spelling of the 6 misspelt
words.
4 Writing
(a) In the first paragraph of the text, there are 3
errors of fact; one is an incorrect nationality,
the others are incorrect dates. Use resources
available to you to check all the facts about
the composers. Underline the errors and
write the corrections above.
(b) Write the question answered by the
information provided in paragraph 7.
R.I.C. Publications ® www.ricgroup.com.au Editing skills 83