English Language Arts
Grade 7
15 min
Formatting titles
Formatting titles
Tutorial Preview
1
Introduction & Learning Objectives
Learning Objectives
Distinguish between major and minor works for proper title formatting.
Correctly apply italics to titles of major works.
Correctly use quotation marks for titles of minor works.
Accurately capitalize words in titles according to standard conventions.
Identify and correct errors in title formatting.
Format titles of books, articles, poems, and songs correctly in their writing.
Explain the importance of consistent title formatting in academic and creative writing.
Ever wonder why some titles are slanted (like this: *Harry Potter*) and others are in quotation marks (like this: "The Raven")? 🤔 It's not magic, it's formatting!
In this lesson, you'll unlock the secrets to correctly formatting titles for books, articles, poems, movie...
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Key Concepts & Vocabulary
TermDefinitionExample
Major WorkA complete, stand-alone work that is usually published as a whole. These are often large in scope.A novel (*The Giver*), a full-length movie (*E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial*), an entire album (*Thriller*), a play (*Romeo and Juliet*), a magazine (*National Geographic*).
Minor WorkA smaller work that is part of a larger, major work. It cannot stand alone.A chapter from a book ("The Sorting Hat"), an article from a magazine ("Secrets of the Deep Sea"), a poem ("Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening"), a song from an album ("Billie Jean").
ItalicizationThe use of slanted text (like *this*) to indicate a major work's title. If writing by hand, underline the title instead.The novel *Wonder* is a great read. (If handwritte...
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Key Rules & Conventions
Rule 1: Italicize Major Works
Titles of major works (books, movies, plays, albums, magazines, newspapers, TV series) should be italicized.
Use italics when typing. If writing by hand, underline the title. This visually sets apart the complete work.
Rule 2: Use Quotation Marks for Minor Works
Titles of minor works (chapters, articles, poems, songs, episodes of a TV series) should be enclosed in quotation marks.
Quotation marks signal that the title refers to a part of a larger work, not the whole thing.
Rule 3: Capitalize Most Words in Titles
In titles, capitalize the first word, the last word, and all 'major' words (nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, pronouns, and subordinating conjunctions).
This rule applies to both italicized and quoted titles. Remember...
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Challenging
A student needs to cite an article titled 'A Journey to a New Planet' which was published in *Science Today* magazine. Which sentence demonstrates a complete and correct application of all formatting rules?
A.I read "a Journey to a new Planet" in the magazine *Science Today*.
B.I read "A Journey to a New Planet" in the magazine *Science Today*.
C.I read *A Journey to a New Planet* in the magazine "Science Today."
D.I read "A Journey To A New Planet" in the magazine *Science Today*.
Challenging
Based on the learning objectives, why is it important to use consistent and correct title formatting (italics for major works, quotation marks for minor works) in your writing?
A.It clarifies the relationship between works, showing the reader what is a large, stand-alone piece versus a smaller part of a whole.
B.It makes the paper look longer and more professional.
C.It is the only way to avoid plagiarism when mentioning another work.
D.It is a creative choice left up to the author's personal style.
Challenging
Consider the book title *A Wrinkle in Time*. Why is the first word 'A' capitalized, even though 'a' is listed as a minor word?
A.Because it is a proper noun in this title.
B.Because it is the most important word in the title.
C.Because it is followed by a word that starts with 'W'.
D.Because Rule 3 states that the first word of a title is always capitalized, regardless of what the word is.
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