Data Analysis – English II (Fall, 2014)

DATA: The class average for the Grammar Pre-Test was a 62%. No one got above a 90%.INFERENCE: English II students need to improve their knowledge and usage of punctuation and capitalization.

DATA: I randomly selected twenty Hero Journey Narrative Essays and counted the number of comma mistakes on the first two pages. 235. DATA: That is 11.75 comma mistakes per essay. That is 5.88 comma mistakes per page. That’s minus 5.88 points per essay.DATA: Stretch that out over your high school English career and the average students will get deducted 52.88 total points because of comma mistakes. That is equal to one entire essay. INFERENCE: We better start with commas.

10 Comma Rules

1. Adjective Rule

RULE: Place a comma between two or more adjectives in a row.

EXAMPLE: The big, black cat escaped from its house last night.

MY EXAMPLE:

Words that describe nouns.

2. FANBOYS Rule

RULE: Put a comma before a FANBOYS only if the FANBOYS is combining two sentences/clauses.

EXAMPLE: I like pizza, but he doesn’t.BAD EXAMPLE: I like apples, and pizza. MY EXAMPLE:

A group of words that contains both a subject and a verb.

A conjunction joins words,

phrases, and

clauses together.

3. Complex Rule

RULE: If a sentence starts with a subordinate conjunction, place a comma between the two sentences/clauses.

EXAMPLE: Because I studied, I got an “A.”BAD EXAMPLE: Because of you, I am sick. MY EXAMPLE:

Links a dependent

clause to the main clause.

4. List Rule

RULE: Place commas between items in a list of three or more things.

EXAMPLE: Please go to the store and buy me some milk, eggs, cheese, and bread.

BAD EXAMPLE: The property must be split up between my brother, myself and my sister.

MY EXAMPLE:

5. Introduction Rule

RULE: Put a comma after words, phrases, or clauses that come before a main clause in a sentence. This is similar to RULE # 2.

EXAMPLES: – Also, I like spaghetti.– In 1998, Joey was born.

MY EXAMPLES:

6. Non-Essential Rule

RULE: Any information in the middle of a sentence that is not important to the understanding of the sentence needs two commas – one before the non-essential phrase and one after.

EXAMPLE: My uncle, who is 80 years old, is coming to visit this weekend.

BAD EXAMPLE: The woman, is my sister, who interviewed you.

MY EXAMPLE:

7. Date, Address, Name Rule or D.A.N. Rule

RULE: Use commas when writing dates, addresses, and titles in names. REMEMBER: A comma is placed after the date, address, or name title too.

EXAMPLES:– On September 11, 2001, terrorists attacked America.– My address is 25 Geneva Rd., South Yarmouth, MA

02665.– Dr. James Andrews, Jr., lives over there.

8. Dialogue Rule

RULE: Put a comma between tag lines and dialogue. Remember to put a comma after the dialogue if the sentence continues.

EXAMPLEs: – He said, “I love you.”– The girl yelled, “Stop,” and lunged towards the car.

MY EXAMPLE:

9. Modifier Rule

RULE: Use a comma to separate a modifier that is at the end of a sentence.

REMEMBER: A dangling modifier usually begins with an –ing verb.

EXAMPLES: – Jane waved goodbye from the ship, laughing hysterically.– Laughing hysterically, Jane waved goodbye from the ship.

MY EXAMPLE:

10. Statement - Question Rule

RULE: Use a comma to turn a statement into a question.

EXAMPLE: That was the turn, wasn’t it?MY EXAMPLE:

Practice

Write one new example for each comma rule.1. Adjective Rule2. FANBOYS Rule3. Complex Rule4. List Rule5. Introduction Rule6. Non-essential Rule7. D.A.N. Rule8. Dialogue Rule9. Modifier Rule10. Statement-Question Rule

Comma Warm-Up

1. Richard Wright M.D. was born on July 1 1964 in the tiny town of Winmore Wisconsin.

2. As I was walking to the car a man came up behind me and knocked me unconscious.

3. “Hey” said Barbara “The train is leaving.”4. People who have survived cancer tend to

appreciate life a little bit more than most.5. Steven who once won a dance contest stole

the spotlight dancing horribly.6. Watching TV playing computer games and

eating snacks are Devon’s favorite things to do on the weekend.