Capitalization of Nouns

Nouns get capitalized when they’re at the beginning of a sentence, or if they’re proper nouns.

The red squirrel is endangered.

Red squirrels are endangered.

How many cookies do you want, Andrew?

Some nouns can be common or proper; capitalize the proper nouns and leave the common nouns in lower case.

My mother made me a cake.

Mother made me a cake.

Did you make me a cake, Mother?

The Earth is round.

Spades are for digging in the earth.