English Language Arts
Grade 3
15 min
Abbreviate months of the year
Abbreviate months of the year
What you'll learn
- Identify the correct abbreviations for at least 9 out of 12 months of the year.
- Apply the learned abbreviations to correctly rewrite 5 sentences containing spelled-out months.
- Explain the rule for abbreviating months that require only the first three letters and a period.
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Introduction & Learning Objectives
Learning Objectives
Identify the standard abbreviation for each of the 12 months of the year.
Correctly write the abbreviation for any given month, using a capital letter and a period.
Explain that an author's purpose for using abbreviations is often to save space or time.
Identify which months (May, June, July) are usually not abbreviated.
Apply the rules of abbreviation to write dates in a shortened format.
Recognize month abbreviations in real-world texts like calendars and letters.
Have you ever seen a calendar with short words like 'Jan.' or 'Dec.'? 🗓️ Why do you think the author didn't write out the full word?
Today, we will learn the special short-cuts for writing the months of the year. These short-cuts are called abbreviations. We will...
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Key Concepts & Vocabulary
TermDefinitionExample
AbbreviationA shorter way to write a word. It's like a nickname for a word!The abbreviation for the word 'Doctor' is 'Dr.'
Author's PurposeThe reason an author decides to write something in a certain way. For abbreviations, the purpose is usually to save space or make something faster to read.An author's purpose for using 'Feb.' on a small calendar is to make the word fit in the little box.
Proper NounThe special name of a person, place, or thing. Proper nouns always start with a capital letter.The names of the months, like 'January' and 'February', are proper nouns.
Capital LetterThe big letter used at the beginning of a sentence or for a proper noun.In 'Jan.', the 'J' is the capita...
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Key Rules & Conventions
The Capital and Period Rule
Start with a capital letter, end with a period.
Every time you abbreviate a month, you must begin it with a capital letter (because it's a proper noun) and end it with a period to show it's a shortened word.
The Short Month Rule
Do not abbreviate May, June, or July.
These months have short names already, so the author's purpose of saving space doesn't apply. We always write out the full name for these three months.
The Standard Abbreviations
Jan., Feb., Mar., Apr., Aug., Sep., Oct., Nov., Dec.
These are the most common, or standard, ways to abbreviate the other nine months. It's important to learn these so everyone can understand what you write.
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Challenging
A company that sells calendars is deciding on a name. They are choosing between 'The Sept. Calendar Co.' and 'The September Calendar Co.' For a company name that will be on all their products, why would 'The September Calendar Co.' be a better choice for the author (the company owner)?
A.The name 'The Sept. Calendar Co.' is too long
B.Using 'Sept.' can seem too informal or less professional for a brand name
C.People don't know that 'Sept.' means September
D.'Sept.' is harder to pronounce than 'September'
Challenging
An author's purpose is to be perfectly consistent with their own rule. The rule is: 'Only abbreviate months with more than five letters.' In which sentence has the author FAILED to follow their own rule?
A.The project is due on April 10, but the fair is in May.
B.We go on vacation in Aug. and return in Sept.
C.My birthday is in March, and my brother's is in Apr.
D.The game is on Oct. 20, and the party is in July.
Challenging
A historian is writing about an event. They find a very old letter that says, 'The ship will arrive on Mar. 5.' The historian knows the letter was written in a time and place where 'Mar.' was sometimes used as an abbreviation for 'May.' What problem does the original author's choice of 'Mar.' create for the historian?
A.The abbreviation makes the date unclear, creating a challenge for the historian's purpose of stating facts
B.The abbreviation proves the event happened in March
C.The abbreviation makes the letter seem less important
D.The abbreviation saves space, which was the author's only goal
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What grade level is "Abbreviate months of the year"?
Abbreviate months of the year is a Grade 3 English Language Arts lesson on ExcelOS.
What will I learn in Abbreviate months of the year?
You'll be able to: Identify the correct abbreviations for at least 9 out of 12 months of the year; Apply the learned abbreviations to correctly rewrite 5 sentences containing spelled-out months; Explain the rule for abbreviating months that….
Is "Abbreviate months of the year" free to practice?
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How many practice questions are included with Abbreviate months of the year?
This lesson includes 27 practice questions across multiple difficulty levels, each with instant feedback and explanations.