Year 5 Prose - Write a Bracket Rap

VideoJug: How To Use Parentheses And Square Brackets

We are going to be learning about the trickiest comma - the bracketing commma. To understand the bracketing comma we need to be sure we know how to use brackets correctly.

Task: Write 'The bracket rap'. Work in groups of two or three. Last half-term we wrote a tune for 'The comma song'. This time, you are going to write both the words and the tune! We know that using sound and movement can help us learn tricky facts. You are going to write a 'bracket rap' to help you remember how to use this tricky beast.

Remember to use rhyme and rhythm in your bracket rap!

Include the following six 'brackets facts' in your rap:

Brackets
Brackets are used in written work to enclose an aside or an afterthought, or to add information or ideas which are not essential.

1. Brackets are used when you add something to your writing.
My pal Snozzy (who has red hair) is an Everton supporter.

2. The sentence should be complete, even if the contents of brackets are removed.

There are several ways of beginning to write an essay (all of them equally helpful) and it depends on writers which they prefer.

Remove the brackets and the sentence is still complete: There are several ways of beginning to write an essay and it depends on writers which they prefer.

The suggestion that his secretary, Sally (now his wife), was a criminal genius seriously upset Bob.

The parenthesis now his wife can be removed from the sentences without damaging its meaning.

3. When brackets are used at the end of a sentence, the full stop falls outside the bracket (like this one.

4. The writing inside brackets should be as short as possible, so as not to break the flow of the sentence.

5. You should only use brackets occasionally. If you use them too frequently, they create a choppy effect.

6. Brackets are often used to enclose dates:

James Dean (1931-1955) died tragically in a car crash, at the tender
age of twenty-four.

Oh, and if you've ever wondered why we need punctation, watch this: