Can you solve this year 6 SATs grammar question? Test your semi-colon skills
One teacher who often shares tricky questions online recently took to TikTok to share a question from this year's Year 6 SATs Grammar test. So, can you do it?
Just how long has it been since your Year 6 SATs grammar test?
Put your memory to the test with this challenging question that asks you to place a semi-colon in the right spot. It is likely many years since most people took their Year 6 SATs test, but would you be able to crack this tricky grammar query now?
Even though majority of us must have crammed hard for our exams at school, how much of that information is actively utilised today?
Perhaps you'd flash out your calculator then proceed to do a manual, long division. However, there remains a few nuggets of knowledge from school days that find applications regularly, such as competency in grammar.
Whether you're penning down an compelling cover letter to win over a prospective employer, or just typing out a message to ensure you are making yourself clear, mastering grammar is vital. So, are you game to answer this rather tricky grammar question derived from this year's Year 6 SATs Grammar paper?
Sharing her knowledge generously on TikTok, Sarah, who lectures in Education at university, dishes out tricky questions regularly to challenge people. In one of her latest clips, she said: "Can you answer this question from the 2024 Key Stage 2 SATs grammar test?"
The question is as follows: "Insert a semi-colon in the correct place in the sentence... 'It was raining heavily she had lost her umbrella the week before'."
Sarah, an educator who teaches potential primary school teachers about English and other languages, clarified the use: "So, a semi-colon is used to separate two independent clauses which are closely related in meaning.
"But there has to be a connection between the first clause and the second clause if you're going to use a semi-colon to join them. These are two separate clauses but they are connected by meaning, so the umbrella is related to the fact that it is raining now."
Sarah specified the correct placement of the semi-colon is between the two relevant clauses. The resulting sentence should read like this: "It was raining heavily; she had lost her umbrella the week before." Her explanation about the judicious use of semi-colons resonated with many, even though some were still unsure why the correct answer was what it was.
One individual commented: "After heavily," while another stated: "Separates two main clauses." Yet another person confessed frankly: "I got it right but I don't know why!"
