Language Arts Wednesday March 5, 2014

Opening 13ish Rules for Using Commas Rule #1: Use a comma before any coordinating conjuction (FANBOYS) that links two independent clauses. Ex. I went running, and I saw a duck.

Opening If you eliminate the second “I” from the example, the clause lacks a subject and it no longer needs a comma. Ex. I went running and saw a duck.

Opening 13ish Rules for Using Commas Rule #2: Use a comma after a dependent clause that starts a sentence. Ex. When I went running, I saw a duck.

Opening Commas always follow dependent clauses at the start of a sentence. If a dependent clause ends a sentence, however, it no longer requires a comma (unless you are using it for emphasis). Ex. I saw a duck when I went running.

Opening 13ish Rules for Using Commas Rule #3: Use commas to offset appositive phrases from the rest of the sentence. Ex. While running, I saw a mallard, a kind of duck.

Opening If the appositive occurs in the middle of the sentence, both sides of the phrase need a comma. Ex. A mallard, a kind of duck, attacked me.

Opening 13ish Rules for Using Commas Rule #4: Use commas to separate items in a series. Ex. I saw a duck, a magician, and a video store when I went running.

Opening The last comma is known as the Oxford Comma and helps reduce ambiguity.

Opening 13ish Rules for Using Commas Rule #5: Use commas after introductory adverbs that answer the question how (or end in –ly). Ex. Finally, I went running. Ex. Unsurprisingly, I saw a duck when I went running.

Opening 13ish Rules for Using Commas Rule #6: Use a comma when using quotation marks.  If a speech tag (or attribution) comes before the quote, place the comma outside the quotation marks. ex. The runner said, “I saw a duck.”

Opening  If the speech tag (or attribution) comes after the quote, place the comma inside the quotation marks. Ex. “I saw a duck,” said the runner.

Opening 13ish Rules for Using Commas Rule #7: Use a comma to separate each element in an address. Also, use a comma after a city- state combination within a sentence. Ex. I work at 8150 N. Congress Avenue, Kansas City, MO Ex. Chicago, Illinois, is a great city.

Opening 13ish Rules for Using Commas Rule #8: Use a comma to separate the elements in a full date (weekday, month and day, and year). Ex. March 15, 2013, was a strange day.

Opening However, you don’t need a comma when the sentence only mentions the month and year. Ex. March 2013 was a strange month.

Opening 13ish Rules for Using Commas Rule #9: Use a comma when the first word of a sentence is a freestanding “yes” or “no”. Ex. Yes, I saw a duck when I went running. Ex. No, the duck didn’t bite me.

Opening 13ish Rules for Using Commas Rule #10: Use a comma when directly addressing someone or something in a sentence. Ex. My mom often asks, “Sarah, is your paper done yet?”

Opening

13ish Rules for Using Commas Rule #11: Use a comma between two adjectives that modify the same noun in the same way. Ex. I saw the big, mean duck when I went running.

Opening  Only coordinate adjectives (adjectives that appear in sequence with one another to modify the same noun) require a comma between them.

Opening Two part test for coordinate adjectives: a)Can you replace the comma with and? b)Can you reverse the order of the adjectives and keep the same meaning? If you can do both, then you have a coordinate adjective. Ex. Did you read about Poe’s short, miserable life? Ex. Did you read about Poe’s short and miserable life?

Opening 13ish Rules for Using Commas Rule #12: Use a comma to offset negation in a sentence (even if it occurs at the end of the sentence). Ex. I saw a duck, not a baby seal, when I went running. Ex. I saw a baby seal, not a duck.

Opening Also, use commas when any distinct shift occurs in the sentence or thought process to avoid confusion. Ex. The cloud looked like an animal, perhaps a baby seal.

Opening 13ish Rules for Using Commas Rule #13: Use commas before every sequence of three numbers when writing a number larger than 999. (Two exceptions are writing years and house numbers). Ex. 10,000 or 1,304, 687

Work Time WriteSource pg. 589 (on a piece of scratch paper/back of notes) #2-6: identify the word that the comma comes after. #8-11: identify the phrase that would be set off with commas.

Closing Why is it important to know the many different uses of commas?