Year 4 English: Expanded noun phrases and direct speech
Part of the Year 4 English writing stories chapter. Chapter overview · whole chapter on one page
Expanded noun phrases and direct speech
An expanded noun phrase adds words to a noun to give the reader more detail. The boat becomes the old wooden barge, and a bridge becomes a mossy stone bridge over the canal. Adjectives describe the noun, and a prepositional phrase (a phrase that starts with a word such as on, over, through or beside) says where something is.
Direct speech shows the exact words that a person says. Put the spoken words inside inverted commas (speech marks), and put the end mark inside them. The reporting clause, such as said Ella, may come before or after the speech. Start a new line each time a different person speaks.
Read the text in the box, then answer the questions in exercise 11E.
The Canal Trip
The old wooden barge drifted past the mossy bridge, and the children waved at the ducks. "Look at those ducks!" whispered Ella. "They are following the boat," replied her father, smiling at the bright yellow ribbons on the rail. "Shall we follow them too?" Ella nodded eagerly.
A tall heron stood on the muddy bank, watching the water with patient eyes. "Do not frighten it," said her father quietly. "Herons are very careful birds."
Key ideas
- An expanded noun phrase gives more detail about a noun.
- Adjectives describe; a prepositional phrase says where.
- Put the spoken words inside inverted commas, with the end mark inside them.
- A comma separates the speech from a reporting clause: "Hello," said Ella. Ella said, "Hello."
- Start a new line when a different person speaks.
Method. Find the spoken words, then add the inverted commas and the end mark.
- Find the spoken words. Look at those ducks is said aloud, so it goes inside inverted commas."Look at those ducks
- Add the end mark inside the speech. The speech is an exclamation, so it ends with an exclamation mark inside the inverted commas."Look at those ducks!"
- Add the reporting clause. whispered Ella follows the speech and ends with a full stop."Look at those ducks!" whispered Ella.
- Write the answer. "Look at those ducks!" whispered Ella.
Check. The end mark is inside the inverted commas. ✓
Method. Add adjectives before the noun, and a prepositional phrase after it.
- Start with the noun. The noun is barge.barge
- Add adjectives. Old and wooden describe the barge.old wooden barge
- Add a prepositional phrase. On the canal says where the barge is.the old wooden barge on the canal
- Write the answer. the old wooden barge on the canal
Check. The phrase has two adjectives and a prepositional phrase. ✓
Method. Put the spoken words in inverted commas, with the comma inside them.
- Find the spoken words. Do not frighten it is what the father says.Do not frighten it
- Add the comma inside the speech. The comma goes before the closing inverted commas, before the reporting clause."Do not frighten it,"
- Add the reporting clause. said her father quietly follows the speech, with a full stop.said her father quietly.
- Write the answer. "Do not frighten it," said her father quietly.
Check. The comma is inside the inverted commas before the reporting clause. ✓
Watch out
Watch out: the end mark belongs inside the inverted commas, and the reporting clause starts with a small letter: "Look at the ducks!" whispered Ella.
Exam tip
Grown-up tip. Read a short dialogue together. Ask your child to point out each new speaker, and to say where the new line starts.
Exercise 11E Practice: expanded noun phrases and speech
Method. Find the detail that the text states.
- Find the words that answer the question. Scan the text for the detail the question asks about.The old wooden barge drifted past the mossy bridge
- Check that the detail is stated, not guessed. Old and wooden are the adjectives that describe the barge.The old wooden barge
- Write the answer. The old wooden barge
Check. The text states this detail. ✓
Method. Find the detail that the text states.
- Find the words that answer the question. Scan the text for the detail the question asks about.the bright yellow ribbons on the rail
- Check that the detail is stated, not guessed. It has two adjectives and a prepositional phrase that says where they are.the bright yellow ribbons on the rail
- Write the answer. the bright yellow ribbons on the rail
Check. The text states this detail. ✓
Method. Choose adjectives that describe the boat.
- Choose two adjectives. Small and red describe the boat.small, red
- Put them before the noun. Adjectives come before the noun they describe.the small red boat
- Write the answer. the small red boat.
Check. The adjectives come before the noun. ✓
Method. A prepositional phrase starts with a word that shows place or direction.
- Choose a preposition. Through shows the place the path goes.through
- Add the noun that follows it. The phrase ends with a noun, here the reeds.through the reeds
- Write the answer. a path through the reeds.
Check. The phrase says where the path is. ✓
Method. Find the spoken words, then put them inside the inverted commas.
- Find the spoken words. We must hurry is what Ella says.We must hurry
- Add the inverted commas and the comma. The comma goes inside the inverted commas, before the reporting clause."We must hurry,"
- Add the reporting clause. said Ella follows the speech, with a full stop.said Ella.
- Write the answer. "We must hurry," said Ella.
Check. The spoken words are inside the inverted commas. ✓
- "Shall we go?" said Ella.
- "Shall we go," said Ella?
- Shall we go? said Ella.
Method. Test each choice against the text or the story.
- Read what the question asks for. Decide what the story or the text needs.
- Test the choice. The question mark is inside the inverted commas, and the full stop comes after said Ella."Shall we go?" said Ella. fits
- Reject the other choices. The other two put the question mark in the wrong place, or leave out the inverted commas."Shall we go," said Ella? and Shall we go? said Ella. do not fit
- Write the answer. "Shall we go?" said Ella.
Check. The choice fits the text or the story. ✓
Method. Find the words that say who speaks.
- Find the speech. The spoken words are Look at those ducks!Look at those ducks!
- Find the words after the speech. whispered Ella says who spoke and how.whispered Ella
- Write the answer. whispered Ella
Check. The reporting clause says who speaks. ✓
Method. Look at the end of the speech.
- Find the last mark. The speech ends with a full stop, inside the inverted commas.Herons are very careful birds.
- Write the answer. a full stop
Check. The full stop is inside the inverted commas. ✓
Method. Split the speech at the reporting clause.
- Split the speech. The first part of the speech ends with a comma, then the reporting clause follows."We must hurry," said Ella,
- Finish the speech. The second part goes on in lower case, because the sentence carries on."or the boat will leave."
- Write the answer. "We must hurry," said Ella, "or the boat will leave."
Check. The reporting clause sits inside the speech, with commas. ✓
Watch out. The second part of a split speech starts with a small letter, because the sentence carries on.
Method. Think about what a reader needs to know in a conversation.
- Think about the reader. A reader needs to know who is speaking.who is speaking
- Think about the new line. A new line shows the change of speaker.the change of speaker
- Write the answer. it shows that a different person is speaking, so the reader can follow who says what.
Check. A new line shows the change of speaker. ✓
Method. Test each choice against the text or the story.
- Read what the question asks for. Decide what the story or the text needs.
- Test the choice. It has two descriptive words and a prepositional phrase, over the canal, which says where the bridge is.the mossy stone bridge over the canal fits
- Reject the other choices. A bridge and the bridge name the bridge but give almost no detail.a bridge and the bridge do not fit
- Write the answer. the mossy stone bridge over the canal
Check. The choice fits the text or the story. ✓
Method. Think about what the reader learns from the extra words.
- Look at the phrase. Old and wooden tell the reader what the boat looks like.old, wooden
- Say what the reader gains. The reader can picture the boat more clearly.picture the boat
- Write the answer. The old wooden barge drifted past the bridge, so the reader can picture the boat.
Check. The extra words give the reader a clearer picture. ✓