Grammar Rules

Grammar Rules

Grammar and punctuation guidelines will be posted weekly as new assignments are given.

Getting Started with Commas

Comma Guidelines:
    1.  Put a comma between independent clauses of equal value when    
        there are three or more, and they don’t have commas in them.
        example:  Katie bought the food, Tommy cooked the meal, and Sue washed the dishes.

    2.  Put a comma in front of a coordinating conjunction (but, or, yet, so, for, and nor) to join the parts                     (independent clauses) of a compound sentence.
        example:  Leonard went to see a romantic film, and
        Harriet went to a science-fiction movie.

    3.  You don’t need the comma if the two parts (clauses) are very
        short.
        example:  You pitch and I’ll catch.

    4.  Do not put a comma between two or more verbs that have the
        same subject.
        example:  David loves computers and got a job as a
        computer artist.

    5.  Use a comma to separate three or more words, phrases, or clauses in a series.
       example:  (words in series)  In seventh grade students take English, geography, science, and math.
                        (phrases in a series) Books were placed on the shelves, in the book bags, and on top of the                                                                 desks.
                         (clauses in a series)  We need to know where we would catch the plane, when it would leave,                                                             and how much baggage we were allowed.

Apostrophe Guidelines:
    1.  Use apostrophes to make nouns possessive.(Possessive nouns
        show ownership.)

        a.  Add ‘s to make any singular noun possessive.
            example: Monica’s hat blew across the street.
             This is true for singular nouns which end in s also.
            example:  The waitress’s tray crashed to the floor.

        b.  If the last letter of a plural noun is s,j ust add an apostrophe
            to make the noun possessive.
            example:  The girls’ dresses were all the same
                    shade of blue.

        c. If the last letter of a plural noun is not s, add  ‘s to make the
            noun possessive.
            example:  Strange noises came from the men’s
                    room.

    Always remember:  Possessive nouns always have apostrophes.
                     Possessive pronouns never have apostrophes.
                    examples:  yours, hers, its, ours, theirs

2.  Use an apostrophe in a contraction to show where the missing letter or letters used to be.  Example:  If you hadn't received an A+ on the test, the teacher would have curved the grades.

3. Do not confuse common possessive pronouns with contractions.
    Examples:  its and it's ( it is)
                       whose and who's (who is)
                       your and you're ( you are)

Using Direct Quotations

Quotation Guidelines:
    1. Put quotation marks around the direct quotation (the exact words that came out of a person’s mouth).
        example: Harriet told me, “I love living in New York City.”

    2.  Capitalize the first word of a direct quotation.
        example: Jessica told Aaron, “That’s a great haircut you got.”

    3.  If the direct quotation is broken into two parts, don’t capitalize the
        first word of the second part (unless it’s a proper noun).
        example:   “Kate,” shouted Maria, “hurry or we will be late for the game.”

    4.  If the direct quote is broken into two parts, put a comma at the end
        of the first part and another comma before the second opening
        quotation mark.
        example:  “Stan, do you need your school sweatshirt
                for the game,” asked Helen, “or should I put
                it in the laundry?”

Last update: Friday, February 2, 2007 at 2:13:20 PM
Copyright 2010 Mrs. Olson - English 7

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