Year 4 English: The reporting clause first, with a comma after it
Part of the Year 4 English direct speech chapter. Chapter overview · whole chapter on one page
The reporting clause first, with a comma after it
The reporting clause can also come first. Then it is followed by a comma, and the spoken words begin with inverted commas.
The first word of the speech has a capital letter, because the speech is a new sentence. The end mark goes inside the closing inverted commas, and no full stop follows them.
Asked is a good choice for a question. Said is often used for a statement. Shouted and cheered also work, because they are reporting verbs too.
| Reporting clause first | Example | What to notice |
|---|---|---|
| a statement | Mum calls, "Dinner is ready." | comma after calls; capital D; full stop inside the marks |
| a question | Arjun asked, "Shall we walk to the park?" | question mark inside the marks; no full stop after them |
| an exclamation | Tom shouted, "What a lovely day!" | exclamation mark inside the marks; no comma after it |
Key ideas
- When the reporting clause comes first, put a comma after it, before the opening inverted commas.
- The first word of the speech has a capital letter, because it is a new sentence.
- The end mark goes inside the closing inverted commas. No full stop follows the closing inverted commas.
- Asked suits a question. Said, shouted and cheered are other reporting verbs.
Method. Write the reporting clause, a comma, then the spoken words in inverted commas.
- Find the reporting clause. It tells who speaks, and it comes first.Mum calls
- Put a comma after the reporting clause. A comma separates the reporting clause from the spoken words.Mum calls,
- Put inverted commas round the spoken words. The first spoken word has a capital letter, and the end mark goes inside the closing inverted commas.Mum calls, "Dinner is ready."
- Write the answer. Mum calls, "Dinner is ready."
Check. Read it aloud: only the spoken words are inside the inverted commas. ✓
Watch out. Do not add a full stop after the closing inverted commas when the end mark is already inside them.
Method. Write the reporting clause, a comma, then the spoken words in inverted commas.
- Find the reporting clause. It tells who speaks, and it comes first.Arjun asked
- Put a comma after the reporting clause. A comma separates the reporting clause from the spoken words.Arjun asked,
- Put inverted commas round the spoken words. The first spoken word has a capital letter, and the end mark goes inside the closing inverted commas.Arjun asked, "Shall we walk to the park?"
- Write the answer. Arjun asked, "Shall we walk to the park?"
Check. Read it aloud: only the spoken words are inside the inverted commas. ✓
Watch out. Do not add a full stop after the closing inverted commas when the end mark is already inside them.
Method. Write the reporting clause, a comma, then the spoken words in inverted commas.
- Find the reporting clause. It tells who speaks, and it comes first.Tom shouted
- Put a comma after the reporting clause. A comma separates the reporting clause from the spoken words.Tom shouted,
- Put inverted commas round the spoken words. The first spoken word has a capital letter, and the end mark goes inside the closing inverted commas.Tom shouted, "What a lovely day!"
- Write the answer. Tom shouted, "What a lovely day!"
Check. Read it aloud: only the spoken words are inside the inverted commas. ✓
Watch out. Do not add a full stop after the closing inverted commas when the end mark is already inside them.
Watch out
Watch out: the comma after the reporting clause is needed. Arjun asked, "Shall we walk to the park?" Do not write Arjun asked "Shall we walk to the park?" with no comma.
Exam tip
Grown-up tip. Ask your child to say the reporting clause, then pause, then say the speech. The pause is the comma. Then ask which mark ends the speech.
Exercise 5C Practice: the reporting clause first
Method. Write the reporting clause, a comma, then the spoken words in inverted commas.
- Find the reporting clause. It tells who speaks, and it comes first.Ali says
- Put a comma after the reporting clause. A comma separates the reporting clause from the spoken words.Ali says,
- Put inverted commas round the spoken words. The first spoken word has a capital letter, and the end mark goes inside the closing inverted commas.Ali says, "The tea is hot."
- Write the answer. Ali says, "The tea is hot."
Check. Read it aloud: only the spoken words are inside the inverted commas. ✓
Watch out. Do not add a full stop after the closing inverted commas when the end mark is already inside them.
Method. Write the reporting clause, a comma, then the spoken words in inverted commas.
- Find the reporting clause. It tells who speaks, and it comes first.Chloe asked
- Put a comma after the reporting clause. A comma separates the reporting clause from the spoken words.Chloe asked,
- Put inverted commas round the spoken words. The first spoken word has a capital letter, and the end mark goes inside the closing inverted commas.Chloe asked, "Can I help you?"
- Write the answer. Chloe asked, "Can I help you?"
Check. Read it aloud: only the spoken words are inside the inverted commas. ✓
Watch out. Do not add a full stop after the closing inverted commas when the end mark is already inside them.
Method. Write the reporting clause, a comma, then the spoken words in inverted commas.
- Find the reporting clause. It tells who speaks, and it comes first.Kofi cheered
- Put a comma after the reporting clause. A comma separates the reporting clause from the spoken words.Kofi cheered,
- Put inverted commas round the spoken words. The first spoken word has a capital letter, and the end mark goes inside the closing inverted commas.Kofi cheered, "Hooray!"
- Write the answer. Kofi cheered, "Hooray!"
Check. Read it aloud: only the spoken words are inside the inverted commas. ✓
Watch out. Do not add a full stop after the closing inverted commas when the end mark is already inside them.
Method. Write the reporting clause, a comma, then the spoken words in inverted commas.
- Find the reporting clause. It tells who speaks, and it comes first.Fatima said
- Put a comma after the reporting clause. A comma separates the reporting clause from the spoken words.Fatima said,
- Put inverted commas round the spoken words. The first spoken word has a capital letter, and the end mark goes inside the closing inverted commas.Fatima said, "We won the match. We are happy."
- Write the answer. Fatima said, "We won the match. We are happy."
Check. Read it aloud: only the spoken words are inside the inverted commas. ✓
Watch out. Do not add a full stop after the closing inverted commas when the end mark is already inside them.
Method. Write the reporting clause, a comma, then the spoken words in inverted commas.
- Find the reporting clause. It tells who speaks, and it comes first.Mum asks
- Put a comma after the reporting clause. A comma separates the reporting clause from the spoken words.Mum asks,
- Put inverted commas round the spoken words. The first spoken word has a capital letter, and the end mark goes inside the closing inverted commas.Mum asks, "Who wants a biscuit?"
- Write the answer. Mum asks, "Who wants a biscuit?"
Check. Read it aloud: only the spoken words are inside the inverted commas. ✓
Watch out. Do not add a full stop after the closing inverted commas when the end mark is already inside them.
Method. The reporting clause comes first, and it has a name and a verb.
- Choose the verb. The speech is a question, so asked fits.asked
- Add the name. The name Oliver tells who is speaking.Oliver asked
- Write the answer. Oliver asked
Check. Oliver asked is followed by a comma. ✓
Watch out. Write the name first, then the verb.
Method. Compare the sentence with the marks it should have.
- Read the sentence. Check the inverted commas, the end marks, the reporting clause and the capital letters.Ben says "Come here."
- Find the mistake. The reporting clause comes first, so a comma must follow it, before the opening inverted commas.add a comma after says
- Write the correct sentence. Read it aloud. The marks now match the spoken words.Ben says, "Come here."
- Write the answer. No. Ben says, "Come here."
Check. Read the corrected sentence aloud. ✓
Watch out. Read the sentence aloud, and pause where the marks go.
Method. Compare the sentence with the marks it should have.
- Read the sentence. Check the inverted commas, the end marks, the reporting clause and the capital letters.Amira asked, "Where is the bus"
- Find the mistake. The speech is a question, so it ends with a question mark inside the closing inverted commas.a question mark goes inside the closing inverted commas
- Write the correct sentence. Read it aloud. The marks now match the spoken words.Amira asked, "Where is the bus?"
- Write the answer. No. Amira asked, "Where is the bus?"
Check. Read the corrected sentence aloud. ✓
Watch out. Read the sentence aloud, and pause where the marks go.
Method. Think about what the speaker is doing.
- Read the speech. The speech asks something, so it is a question."Do you like pizza?"
- Choose the verb. Asked shows that the speaker is asking a question.asked
- Write the answer. asked
Check. Asked matches a question. ✓
Watch out. Said can be used, but asked is the better match.
Method. Look at the mark before the closing inverted commas.
- Find the mark. The exclamation mark ends the speech.!
- Decide whether a comma is needed. One end mark is enough, so no comma is added.no comma
- Write the answer. the exclamation mark already ends the speech
Check. One end mark is enough. ✓
Watch out. An exclamation mark never has a comma after it inside the speech.
Method. Write the reporting clause, a comma, then the question.
- Choose a reporting clause. The reporting clause comes first, with a verb and a name.Ruby asked
- Add the comma and the speech. A comma follows the reporting clause, and the question mark goes inside the marks.Ruby asked, "Where is my bag?"
- Write the answer. Ruby asked, "Where is my bag?"
Check. Comma after the reporting clause, question mark inside. ✓
Watch out. Check the comma after the reporting clause and the question mark inside the marks.