Grammar and spelling

If you look at the 'Pedants' Corner' forum, you will see that this particular bête noire crops up with amazing regularity

Back in the early 1980s DD used to say 'would of', initially because that is what she thought people said. Once she knew correctly, she kept going because she knew it annoyed people. By the time she grew up she had grown out of it and spoke correctly.

Relax, they get over it and if they don't they are just advertising their poor education.

People have different levels of intelligence, and what one person finds easy, another won't.
I have a friend who can barely read and write, but she is skilled in other areas of life.

I have been cursed with a hatred of bad grammar,spelling,and punctuation. I know many will say,” get a life”, but it really annoys me.

While I do find the misuse of ‘there’, ‘their’ and ‘they’re’ frustrating, I try to keep it in perspective. Everybody has different levels of intelligence, as well as different educational backgrounds. These things can’t be helped. I wouldn’t mock somebody for their physical appearance, so try to avoid insulting somebody based on their god given intelligence.

But MissA this thread is about grammar and spelling. I agree there are different kinds of intelligence, but this isn’t actually about intelligence per se, it’s about level of education I suppose.

Well, I don't suppose anyone can really help the level of their education?
Its possible to go on and educate oneself after finishing school, but well... That depends on other circumstances, probably.

It would be so easy, as an adult, to learn the correct spellings of basic words that were poorly explained at school. Words such as there, their, they’re or practice and practise, as a couple of examples. But I hesitate to point these out when I see them misspelled online as it’s considered bad manners, and so people keep making the same errors and others then judge them.

Yes, it is annoying, but if someone is struggling to understand even the basics, then what is the answer? (Apart from banning them from social media unless the promise to do better)

Bah! *they!

It’s not as easy as that for some people. My son has tried 3 times to get his maths gcse, the information just doesn’t seem to stick in his brain. Even calculating basic percentages is a struggle to him. Both myself and my dil have tried to explain simple ways to work these out. He is very well read, knowledgeable about current and historical events and an excellent conversationalist (not that I’m biased ) He holds a very responsible job, where he is exceptionally well thought of. His brain is not wired for maths it seems. I’m sure this is true when it comes to spelling/grammar for many people.

One of my ex boyfriends (ridiculous to call men that) can't read or write.
People always politely ask if he's dyslexic, and he just says "No, I'm thick!".
The fact is, that academically he was a child that always needing telling twice, as his teacher used to say.
He tried really hard at school, but just couldn't do it.

Most of the people I’m talking about don’t know they’re spelling words incorrectly. When I once, hesitantly, pointed her spelling mistake out to my lovely sister in law, she asked me to explain the rules to her, so I did. She ‘got it’ immediately.

I too hate bad grammar and spelling and have been known to correct posters in shops with my handy biro. ?

In addition yet again I hear Steve Wright on BBC 2 using slovenly language such as ‘L O ‘ow you all doing’ and yes I do turn him off but his programmes are popular with many. I despair.

Just to add to my list of irritations I hate shops and pubs with silly names. Sweaty Betty, Slug and Lettuce, Fat Face.
We will be getting ‘Menopausal Miranda’ next.

I know it is considered mad manners to correct grammar and spelling online, but if we did people might learn something. As it is, they will just go on making the same mistakes. I don’t see how that helps anyone.

I agree SpanielNanny My literacy is very good but my numeracy is dreadful. I envy people who can make sense of a spread sheet or treasurers report, I can't.

Totally agree with the grammar, it stands out like a sore thumb to me!! Numeracy on the other hand? Hopeless!!

I try to ignore bad spelling and grammar, however, one thing that always sets my teeth on edge is when someone types "ect" when they mean "etc"

My GD used to say 'would have' but then changed to 'would of'. When questioned she said that was what her teacher said so she thought that must be correct. Where to go from there???

Those of us who remember Molesworth and St Custards do that sometimes, just because :-)

I dare say a lot of it's down to poor teaching. I used to teach English to (mostly) speakers of Arabic, one or two of whom weren't even literate in their own language, and just one two hour session was quite enough to get e.g. its/it's into their heads.
Some people seem to think there's some great mystique to it all, whereas if explained properly, things like there/their/they're, your/you're, are perfectly simple.

The other day a dd showed me a long, shockingly vitriolic email received and forwarded by a friend of hers.

What was funny about it (in a black humour way) was that although the sender had spelt 'definitely' correctly several times (instead of the so-common 'definately') it was peppered with 'you're' instead of 'your'.
So often it's the other way around.

Dds are just as hot on SPAG as I am, so although there's a tendency to think of it as a nitpicking-old-fart thing, I can't think that's necessarily the case.

Have just left a River cruise with Viking, not our first. Their evaluation sheet has categories of Far exceeded expectations, Exceeded expectations, Met Expectations, Below Expectations, Far Below Expectations. Each time we go we are told that the middle category is seen by Viking as a negative, and that any positive ratings should go in the top two. The pedant in me says I came with High expectations from previous experience, and therefore "Met Expectations" is what I mean. I can see the advantages of 1,2,3,4,5!

I'm rubbish with apostrophes. I was told that when one is used incorrectly a puppy dies. I kill a lot of puppies

Maths is a problem with many of us, I don't know how we can improve that easily, but grammar, surely if people speak properly then the written word comes naturally. ( I sometimes have the urge to say shirley, if you see what I mean, and pacifically, and, oh, there are so many, just drives me mad). Punctuation, oh dear, my teacher always said, before you hand your work in, read it through! It usually works.for me