Learn on PengiElements of Language, 2nd CourseChapter 13: Capital Letters: Rules for Capitalization

Lesson 3: Proper Nouns A

In this Grade 5 grammar lesson from Elements of Language, 2nd Course, students learn Rule 13e for capitalizing proper nouns, focusing on two categories: geographical names such as continents, countries, states, cities, bodies of water, and parks, and the names of teams, organizations, institutions, and government bodies. Students also practice the important distinction between capitalizing directional words when they refer to a named region versus leaving them lowercase when indicating compass directions. Practice exercises reinforce these capitalization rules through sentence-level editing tasks.

Section 1

Geographical Names

Definition

Geographical names are proper nouns and should be capitalized.

Explanation

Think of geographical names as the specific, official names for places on a map! This includes everything from your city and state to big countries and oceans. Because they are unique names, they need a capital letter. Here's a helpful tip: words like North, South, or Western get capitalized when they name a specific region (like 'the Northeast'). But if you're just giving a direction (like 'head east'), use a lowercase letter.

Examples

  • My pen pal lives in London, a large city in England. [London and England are the names of a specific city and country.]
  • We are vacationing in the Southwest this winter. [The word Southwest is capitalized because it refers to a specific region.]
  • To get to the park, drive west on the main highway. [The word west is not capitalized because it is a direction.]

Section 2

Teams, Organizations, and Institutions

Definition

The names of teams, organizations, institutions, and government bodies are proper nouns and should be capitalized.

Explanation

This rule is for the official names of groups, clubs, schools, and even parts of the government. If it’s the unique name for a team (like the Lakers), an organization (like the Red Cross), or a school (like Lincoln Middle School), it needs capital letters. A cool thing to remember is that abbreviations for these groups, like NASA, are also capitalized!

Examples

  • My cousin will attend the University of Miami next fall. [Which words name a specific institution?]
  • The New York Yankees are a famous baseball team. [Which words name a specific team?]
  • My aunt works for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). [The name of the government agency and its abbreviation are capitalized.]

Section 3

Planets, Stars, and Heavenly Bodies

Definition

Capitalize the names of planets, stars, constellations, and other heavenly bodies.

Explanation

When you look up at the sky, any object with a specific name is a proper noun! This means planets like Venus, stars like Polaris (the North Star), and star patterns called constellations like Orion all get a capital letter. Just remember, the word 'planet' isn't capitalized unless it's part of a name, but the planet's actual name, like Jupiter, always is!

Examples

  • The planet Mars is sometimes called the Red Planet. [Mars is the name of a specific planet.]
  • The Little Dipper is a constellation found in the northern sky. [Little Dipper is the name of a specific constellation.]
  • Our solar system is in a galaxy called the Milky Way. [Milky Way is the name of a specific galaxy.]

Book overview

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Chapter 13: Capital Letters: Rules for Capitalization

  1. Lesson 1

    Lesson 1: First Words; Inter Salutations and Closings; The Pronoun I

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  2. Lesson 2

    Lesson 2: Proper Nouns and Common Nouns

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  3. Lesson 3Current

    Lesson 3: Proper Nouns A

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  4. Lesson 4

    Lesson 4: Proper Nouns B

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  5. Lesson 5

    Lesson 5: Proper Nouns C

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  6. Lesson 6

    Lesson 6: School Subjects and Proper Adjectives

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  7. Lesson 7

    Lesson 7: Titles of Persons and Creative Works

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Lesson overview

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Section 1

Geographical Names

Definition

Geographical names are proper nouns and should be capitalized.

Explanation

Think of geographical names as the specific, official names for places on a map! This includes everything from your city and state to big countries and oceans. Because they are unique names, they need a capital letter. Here's a helpful tip: words like North, South, or Western get capitalized when they name a specific region (like 'the Northeast'). But if you're just giving a direction (like 'head east'), use a lowercase letter.

Examples

  • My pen pal lives in London, a large city in England. [London and England are the names of a specific city and country.]
  • We are vacationing in the Southwest this winter. [The word Southwest is capitalized because it refers to a specific region.]
  • To get to the park, drive west on the main highway. [The word west is not capitalized because it is a direction.]

Section 2

Teams, Organizations, and Institutions

Definition

The names of teams, organizations, institutions, and government bodies are proper nouns and should be capitalized.

Explanation

This rule is for the official names of groups, clubs, schools, and even parts of the government. If it’s the unique name for a team (like the Lakers), an organization (like the Red Cross), or a school (like Lincoln Middle School), it needs capital letters. A cool thing to remember is that abbreviations for these groups, like NASA, are also capitalized!

Examples

  • My cousin will attend the University of Miami next fall. [Which words name a specific institution?]
  • The New York Yankees are a famous baseball team. [Which words name a specific team?]
  • My aunt works for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). [The name of the government agency and its abbreviation are capitalized.]

Section 3

Planets, Stars, and Heavenly Bodies

Definition

Capitalize the names of planets, stars, constellations, and other heavenly bodies.

Explanation

When you look up at the sky, any object with a specific name is a proper noun! This means planets like Venus, stars like Polaris (the North Star), and star patterns called constellations like Orion all get a capital letter. Just remember, the word 'planet' isn't capitalized unless it's part of a name, but the planet's actual name, like Jupiter, always is!

Examples

  • The planet Mars is sometimes called the Red Planet. [Mars is the name of a specific planet.]
  • The Little Dipper is a constellation found in the northern sky. [Little Dipper is the name of a specific constellation.]
  • Our solar system is in a galaxy called the Milky Way. [Milky Way is the name of a specific galaxy.]

Book overview

Jump across lessons in the current chapter without opening the full course modal.

Continue this chapter

Chapter 13: Capital Letters: Rules for Capitalization

  1. Lesson 1

    Lesson 1: First Words; Inter Salutations and Closings; The Pronoun I

    LearnPractice
  2. Lesson 2

    Lesson 2: Proper Nouns and Common Nouns

    LearnPractice
  3. Lesson 3Current

    Lesson 3: Proper Nouns A

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  4. Lesson 4

    Lesson 4: Proper Nouns B

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  5. Lesson 5

    Lesson 5: Proper Nouns C

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  6. Lesson 6

    Lesson 6: School Subjects and Proper Adjectives

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  7. Lesson 7

    Lesson 7: Titles of Persons and Creative Works

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