33 min read

Proofing & Language

Spell check, Editor, readability, translation, and hyphenation.

Spell check, Editor, and UK English

Northgate Academy uses UK English . Select all (Ctrl+A) \to Review \to Language \to Set Proofing Language \to English (United Kingdom) . Review \to Editor (or Spelling & Grammar) flags spelling, grammar, and clarity. Thesaurus (Review \to Thesaurus) suggests alternatives for overused words like "nice" in the welcome letter.

Word count and readability

Review \to Word Count shows pages, words, characters. Readability statistics appear in the Word Count dialog when Show readability statistics is enabled under File \to Options \to Proofing . Hyphenation (Layout \to Hyphenation) breaks long words at line ends — use sparingly in parent handbooks.

Hands-on steps

Goal

$Set UK proofing on the handbook.$

$James Okonkwo adds this to NorthgateHandbook.docx as part of one polished student handbook, policy pack, and open-day collateral before families arrive.$

Select document

Where

Document

Do this

Ctrl+A to select all.

You should see

$All text selected.$

Before you continue

Before you go on

Before you click Next, confirm on your computer: 1 You completed every hands-on step above — not just read them. 2 NorthgateHandbook.docx is saved (Ctrl+S / Cmd+S). 3 You can explain why this skill matters for open day at Northgate Academy — not just where the button lives. Dr. Helen Marsh spot-checks this chapter before Saturday 14 March 2026 .

Practice

Where do you set UK English for spell check?

More lessons in Microsoft Word · Next: AutoCorrect & AutoText · Previous: Bookmarks