Identifying conjunctions (joining words such as and, but, because, although) and prepositions (position words such as under, between, through), and choosing the right one for a sentence.
Where your child meets this in real life: Joining ideas smoothly in writing and describing exactly where things are
SEAGReady breaks conjunctions and prepositions into 3 steps, taught in order so each skill builds on the last.
Identify conjunctions, the joining words (and, but, or, because, although, so) that glue two ideas together in one sentence.
Identify prepositions, words such as under, between, through, during and behind that tell you where or when something is, usually sitting just before a noun.
Choose the conjunction or preposition that makes the sentence's meaning work, by testing each option in the gap, the exam's favourite format.
Three free sample questions from our conjunctions and prepositions course. Every question comes with a full explanation, and hints that guide without giving the answer away.
Which word in this sentence is the conjunction? 'Jack wanted chips, but the shop was closed.'
Answer: A. but
Find the two ideas: 'Jack wanted chips' and 'the shop was closed'. The word gluing them together is 'but', cover it with your finger and you are left with two separate sentences. So 'but' is the conjunction, signalling that the second idea gets in the way of the first.
Stuck? Start here: A conjunction is a joining word, it glues two ideas into one sentence.
Which word in this sentence is a preposition? 'The cat slept under the kitchen table.'
Answer: A. under
A preposition tells you where or when, and usually sits just before a noun. Where did the cat sleep? UNDER the table. 'Under' sits right before the noun 'table' and places the cat. So 'under' is the preposition.
Stuck? Start here: A preposition tells you WHERE or WHEN something is, in relation to a noun.
Which word best completes this sentence? 'Sinead forgot her umbrella, ___ she got soaked in the rain.'
Answer: E. so
The first half, 'Sinead forgot her umbrella', is the CAUSE, and 'she got soaked in the rain' is the RESULT, so the gap needs a result word. 'Under' and 'between' are prepositions of place, and no place is being described. 'Because' would put the cause and the result the wrong way round. 'So' points from cause to result: 'forgot her umbrella, so she got soaked.'
Stuck? Start here: Read both halves: the first half explains WHY Sinead got soaked.
This is the exact interactive worked example your child sees in SEAGReady. Step through it and watch the method build up.
Read this sentence: 'Tara wanted to play camogie, but it was raining.'
Which word in this sentence is the conjunction?
Step 1 of 4
Read this sentence: 'Tara wanted to play camogie, but it was raining.'
Which word in this sentence is the conjunction?
'But' is the conjunction, it joins the two ideas and signals that the second one gets in the way of the first.
The key insight: A conjunction is glue, cover it with your finger and the sentence falls apart into two separate ideas.
Watch out: Choosing 'to'. 'To' belongs with the verb ('to play'). The joining word that connects the two whole ideas is 'but'.
These are the misconceptions we see most often in conjunctions and prepositions, including the ones our practice questions are specifically designed to catch.
Struggling with conjunctions and prepositions? The real gap is often in one of these earlier topics.
SEAGReady finds the exact step where your child gets stuck, teaches it with worked examples like the one above, and brings it back for review so it sticks.
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