Capitalization and Commas, commas,

and commas.

What is a comma, really?

• A comma is a punctuation mark– just like . ; ? ! –used to indicate a separation of ideas or of elements within a sentence.

First we must know…Independent clause

• An independent clause is a group of words that contains a Subject and Verb and expresses a complete thought. An independent clause is a sentence.

• Example: Mr. Elliott planned lessons all weekend.

The Rules…

• Use a comma before a conjunction (and, for, but, now, so) that joins two independent clauses in a compound sentence– For Example: There are two minutes left before

class begins, and I have not finished my homework

–Try it out: My dog rips apart all of our furniture but I love him anyway,

Items in a series (3 or more)• Use commas to separate items in a series. Be

sure to insert a comma before the conjunction that precedes (comes before) the last item.– Example: I love watching hockey, football,

basketball, and bowling.

–Try it out: The Giver is about isolation control utopia and loss,,,

“Direct Quotations”

• Use a comma before a direct quotation. – REMEMBER… commas (and periods) go inside the

quotation marks– For Example: Jonas said to his mother, “I did not

have any dreams last night.”

–Try it out: He placed his hand on Jonas’ shoulder and said “Power and Honor are not the same thing”

,.

Something Else… Dependent Clauses

• A group of words that has both a subject and a verb but (unlike an independent clause) cannot stand alone as a sentence.– For Example: A helium nucleus has two protons,

whereas hydrogen has only one– If you can give me two reasons, I will allow it

Dependent Clauses or Introductory Phrases

• Use a comma after relatively lengthy introductory phrases or dependent clauses– For Example: In the novel The Giver by Lois Lowry,

Jonas realizes that his community is not perfect.

–Try it out: After a midafternoon nap I was ready to head to the mall.

,

Capitalization

When do we capitalize?

• I know how to capitalize; I know how to write in english!

– Perhaps not… English is a proper noun and should be capitalized.

What is a Proper Noun?• A Noun: name, people, place, or thing. A proper

noun: – 1) Names a specific [usually a one-of-a-kind] item– 2) Begins with a capital letter no matter where it occurs in a

sentence.

• I must take English and math.English is capitalized because it comes from the proper noun England, but math does not come from Mathland.

Let’s run down The Rules• 1. Capitalize the first word in a sentence– Hopefully, this is a rule that we all know.

• 2. Capitalize the names of people, cities, states, and countries.– For Example: Barack Obama recently visited

Vatican City in Rome.– Let’s Try: After a brief tour in england, lady gaga

played a hometown gig in new york city. Let’s Try: After a brief tour in England, Lady Gaga played a hometown gig in New York City.

3. Capitalize the names of days, months, and holidays.

• Remember… do not capitalize the names of the four seasons– For example: The first Wednesday in January was

my favorite day of the winter; It happened to be New Years Day.

– Let’s Try: we always celebrate halloween on the last saturday in october, because it allows us the whole day to dress up.

Let’s Try: we always Celebrate Halloween on the last Saturday in October, because it allows us the whole day to dress up.

Story Titles• 4. Capitalize the first word, last word, and all

other important words in book and story titles–What are non-important words? to, the, than,

so, in, for, as, a, and, an• But, when in doubt…. Capitalize

– Today, we read chapter 19 of The Giver• Remember… you must also underline titles

of novels and other long works

5. Capitalize the names of languages, religions, and nationalities

–Let’s Try: Many americans study buddhism. some canadians speak chinese.

Let’s Try: Many Americans study Buddhism. Some Canadians speak Chinese.

Pronouns

A Pronoun• Is a word that takes the place of a

noun. In the sentence “Joe saw Jill, and he waved at her,” the pronouns he and her take the place of Joe and Jill, respectively.

3 Types of Pronouns

• 1. Personal Pronoun: Personal pronouns are used in place of a common or proper noun. The personal pronoun is usually to the left of the verbPersonal Pronouns: I, me, he, she, it, him, her, you,

we, they, themlet’s try- Fiona could not understand that Jonas felt

love for her. (replace these nouns with pronouns)She could not understand that

he felt love for her

2. Subject Pronouns• Pronouns that take the place of the subject

• The noun that does the action

– Subject pronouns are usually to the left of the verb.

– Subject Pronouns: I, you, he, she, it, they, we– 2. His friend and (he/him) were excited to see the

new Xmen movie.• His friend and he were excited to see the new Xmen

movie.

Let’s try some more:

– 1. Jonas, Asher, and (me/I) went to the House of Old.• Jonas, Asher, and I went to the House of Old

remove the other subjects from

the sentence to make the

choice clearer.

3. Possessive Pronouns• Possessive pronouns are used

to indicate who (or what) owns something.– Possessive Pronouns: His, hers,

its, yours, ours, theirs– Let’s try: They located Jonas’

bike, but the bicycle’s tires were flat and Jonas’ footprints were nowhere to be found.

They located his bike, but its tires were flat and his footprints were nowhere to be found