E.Q.How Do I Successfully

Use A Comma?

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SERIES RULE• However many items there are in a

series, there will be one less comma.• Ex: I ate toast, cereal, and oatmeal

for breakfast.• Ex: I had to make steak, fries,

macaroni and cheese, and soup for dinner.

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Do NOT Use a comma if the items in a series are joined by “and” or “or”.

• Ex: I had to clean the kitchen and the living room and the bathroom.

• Ex: We were given the choice to run or hop or skip to the game.

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Adjective Rule

Place a comma after two or more adjectives that come before a noun, except for the last adjective.

last adjectiveEx: I looked at his dirty, stinking, old socks.

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Adjective Rule last adjective

• Ex: I had a long, hectic, tiring day

last adjective• Ex: For lunch, we had a smooth,

creamy, broccoli soup.

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Turn to Exercise 3 – Page 702

•WE DO 1,5,6,10 For #9, where do the commas go?

• YOU DO 1, 4, 7, 9Directions: If the sentence does not need a comma, write “correct”. Write only the word or words that come before the comma.

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Compound Sentence Rule

• Use a comma before for, and, nor, but, or, yet and so when the conjunction joins two independent clauses.

• Remember “FAN BOYS!”

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Compound Sentence Rule• Ex: Patrick brought the sandwiches, and

Cindy brought the potato salad.• Ex: Amelia studied for her test, yet she

still made a poor grade.What is another word for “yet” in the sentence

above?The cost of living is rising, for consumers pay higher prices than they did last year. What is a word that could replace “for”?

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•Hans brought charcoal and lighter fluid but forgot the matches.

No comma needed – Why?

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• Terence went to the store because he had to purchase items for his lunch. (“Because” is not a coordinate conjunction)• Because he had to purchase

items for his lunch, Terrence went to the store.

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Turn to Exercise 4 – Page 703

•WE DO: 1 – 5•YOU DO: 6-10

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Sentence or Fragment?

Subordinate conjunction Sentence or Fragment?

• Although disposable plates are convenient. Subordinate conjunction DC or SC Sentence or Fragment?

• Since I made an “A” on my comma test.

See page 499, tan box, for subordinate conjunction list

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Subordinate Conjunctions Begin Subordinate Clauses

• Examples: Since, such, because, while, which, if, although, who, etc. Subordinate conjunction

& non essential

• Amelia Cortez, who lives across the street from me, won a scholarship. Subordinate conjunction

& non essential

• The capital of Massachusetts is Boston, which is sometimes called the Athens of America.

• The islands are able to support animal and plant life, while most others are deserts.

Subordinate conjunction & non essential

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Turn each of the two fragments into a complex sentence by

adding an independent clause.

• Although disposable plates are convenient.• Since I made an “A” on my comma test.

• Write three of your own sentences, beginning with although, since, and because.

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Write a sentence with this pattern:IC Comma DC comma IC

• Example: IC DC• The Scarlet Ibis, which is the

national bird of Trinidad, begins its flight at sunset. IC• Now write your own sentence using

this pattern.

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EXAMPLE

• An example of IC no comma DC no comma IC IC DC but essential

• The sophomores who were on the honor roll were listed in the newspaper.

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Example of IC COMMA DC

IC

• One conductor on the underground railroad was Harriet Tubman, who was born a slave in 1821. ( a non-essential clause also called a subordinate or dependent clause)

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PARTNERS• Write a sentence for each of the

following sentence patterns:1. IC DC2. IC, DC3. DC, IC4. IC, DC, IC5. IC DC ICI know what you are thinking. Don’t be nervous. We will come back to this page.

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Participal & Participal PhraseDefine participal/participal phrase

• Ex: Shivering, the couple hurried into the movie theatre.

• Ex: Kelly, waiting outside the stage door, got the band leaders together.

• Ex: Calling for a time out, the referee blew his whistle and signaled.

• Ex: Developed in London, the bridge grew quite a crowd.

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Parenthetical Expressions

• Ex: Sure, I know what is going on.• Yes, he is my friend.EXCEPTION: Strong exclamations

Wow! What an idiot!

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PHRASE vs CLAUSE?What is the difference between a phrase and a

clause?

Use a comma to set off an introductory prepositional phrase or if two or more prepositional phrases in a row come at the beginning of a sentence.

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Prepositional Phrase Examples• One prepositional phrase:

On the long bus ride home, we sang songs.• Three prepositional phrases in a row:

By the light₁ of the harvest moon₂ in September₃, we went on an old fashion hayride.What is the difference between the first and second example?

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See page 709 Exercise 6

•WE DO 1 – 5•YOU DO 6 - 10

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Appositive

•A descriptive word or word phrase that describes a noun or pronoun that comes somewhere before it.

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Appositive

• Ex: A senator from Kansas, Nancy Landon Kassenbaum, was the principal speaker.

• Ex: Do you know him, the boy wearing the blue shirt?

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Which sentence contains an appositive?

• The children, aged two to six, made sandcastles.

• The children, that were aged two to six, made sand castles.

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Write your own appositive example

•Ex:Michael Jordan, Number 23, is a Hall of Famer.

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Dates and Addresses“Rule of Thumb”: There should be a comma for each date and address there is in a row – even for the last one, unless it ends the sentence.• Ex: On Saturday, June 21, 1999, I

moved to Nashville, Tennessee, with my wife and children.• Ex: His new address is 814 Mission

Avenue, Miami Beach, Florida.

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EXCEPTIONS

•Miami, Florida 37516•My sister’s birthday is March 1.• The Bowens moved to 419

Cedar Road in Chicago on September 10 of 1987.

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Salutation & Closing of a LetterSalutation:

Dear Mary, Dear Senator Jones:Closing:

Sincerely yours,Your friend,

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Abbreviations• Ex: Jr. Sr. M.D.• Ex: John Jones, Sr., has been

named mayor• Ex: Ellen Hamilton, M.D., is my

doctor.• Ex: He went to see James Bowen,

Sr. (one period)

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Clause Fragment

• Subordinate or dependent clause(Sometimes called a non-essential clause.) What does non-essential mean?Example:• Because Fred was a conformist.

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•Complete Review B •Page 710

QUIZ

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Run-On Sentence• Example:• A foot was the length of a foot, a yard

was the distance from a person’s nose to the end of his thumb when his arm was stretched out. (comma splice)• Write a run-on sentence. Now have

the person who sits behind you correct it.

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Phrase Fragment

Example:

On the north side of town.

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Let’s Practice!• We will now go back to the various

sentence patterns and practice. You and your partner will soon write your own sentence for each pattern on the page.• Be ready for a COMMA TEST tomorrow!