I recognize that this lesson is appropriate for the typical 4th grader, but these 2 "Y" words continue to be some of the most misused on social networking sites and in emails. Truth is, your writing will improve if you're careful about using these correctly!
Your - is a Possessive Pronoun Adjective. That means that it indicates ownership. Period. That is, and always has been, and forever will be, its only proper use.
Remember that adjectives modify nouns (or the pronouns which represent them), so you can test your usage by asking this question: "Whose writing? YOUR writing." If you cannot sensically answer the question "whose" about the noun nearest "your" then you are choosing the wrong word.
You're - THIS is the one which gets ignored in favor of the adjective "your" but they are never, ever interchangeable. This one is a contraction (a shortening) of "you" + "are."
ANYTIME YOU ARE INTENDING TO SAY "YOU ARE" YOU MUST USE THIS CONTRACTION!! (emphasis mine)
Examples of misuse:
Your going to come to my party this weekend, aren't you?
I was wondering if your planning to grocery shop today.
Your exactly right.
Stephanie said that your about to lose your job.
In each highlighted case, the meaning is "you are."
Now you know...or you REMEMBER from your childhood...so you are fully equipped to write with sound grammar! And I'll thank you for it.
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