Bell Ringer 6

1. Bell Ringer 6 • Write 2 commas rules that you know and give an example for each rule.

2. Big Comma Fails A few reasons why commas are so important.

3. This person’s life-threatening medical condition.

4. Rachel Ray’s new dish

5. This fashion faux pas

6. These criminals are on a tight deadline.

7. Commas to Avoid Misreading • Correct: In the summer, time seems to go by more quickly. • Incorrect: In the summer time seems to go by more quickly.

8. Commas to Avoid Misreading • Use a comma to separate two numbers for clarity. • During 1973, 570 homes were built in that city.

9. Commas to Avoid Misreading • Any time a word is used twice in a sentence, one after the other, a comma is needed for clarity. • Those who can, can go home. • Exception: When the verb is had had, you do not need a comma. • He had had the mumps before he had the measles.

10. Commas to Avoid Misreading • Use a comma to tell the reader to pause at that point in the sentence. • People who can, preserve their family traditions.

11. Commas to Avoid Misreading • Sometimes a comma is needed before and to show two separate thoughts or actions.

12. Commas to Avoid Misreading • The emergency room was filled with bleeding patients, and doctors. • Without the comma before and, the reader might interpret the adjective bleeding as applying to both the patients and the doctors. • Since the doctors aren’t bleeding, this sentence needs a comma to let the reader know that bleeding patients is separate from doctors.

13. Commas to Avoid Misreading • She ate, and fed the baby. • In this example, a comma is used before the and that separates two verbs. Without it the reader might think that she ate the baby. Eating and feeding the baby are two separate actions.

14. Coordinate Adjectives • Coordinate adjectives are two or more adjectives that modify the same noun equally. • They need to be separated by a comma. • Cool, windy night • These two adjectives both modify the noun equally. You can put and between them or reverse the order, and the phrase still makes sense.

15. Coordinate Adjectives • Two used bookcases • If the adjectives cannot be reversed and don’t sound right with and, they are not coordinate adjectives and don’t need a comma. • Saying two and used bookcases doesn’t sound right, and neither does used two bookcases.

16. Coordinate Adjectives • Sometimes there can be a combination of adjectives that need commas and adjectives that don’t. • Some colorful, decorated eggs • In this example, you wouldn’t say some and colorful, so you don’t need a comma between those two adjectives. But you could say colorful and decorated, so a comma should be used between those two adjectives.

17. Quotation Marks • Direct quote-tells a person’s exact words and uses quotation marks (“”) • His barber said, “I don’t have time today.” • Indirect quote-tells what a person said by using your own words • His barber said that he didn’t have time today.

18. Punctuating Indirect Quotes • Punctuate them as you would any other sentence. They do not use quotation marks or commas to set off the rephrased words. • Mrs. Scott said that she was hungry.

19. Punctuating Direct Quotes • Set off using quotation marks • Also punctuated using commas • Willie said, “I want some ice cream.” • Willie asked, “Do you want some ice cream?” • Willie exclaimed, “This ice cream is spoiled!”

20. Punctuating Direct Quotes • When the speaker is identified at the end of the sentence, put a period at the end of the whole sentence. • “I want some ice cream,” Willie said.

21. Punctuating Direct Quotes • If the quote is a statement, put a comma, not a period, before the final quotation mark. • “I want some ice cream,” Willie said.

22. Punctuating Direct Quotes • If the quote is a question or an exclamation, put the needed punctuation inside the last quotation mark. • “Do you want some ice cream?” Willie asked. • “This ice cream is spoiled!” Willie exclaimed.

23. Punctuating Direct Quotes • If a sentence is interrupted by the speaker, you need commas but no capitalization in the middle of the sentence. • “I want,” he said, “some ice cream.” • “Do you,” he asked, “want some ice cream?” • “This ice cream,” he exclaimed, “is spoiled!”

24. Punctuating Direct Quotes • When a person’s exact words are used, even when it isn’t a complete sentence, the words are put in quotation marks. • Mark thinks that movie is “for the birds.”

25. Double Quotation Marks • When using double quotation marks, use single quotation marks inside. • Corrie answered, “The quote is ‘All that glitters is not gold.’” • She said, “Isaiah refers to ‘an immediate danger’ in his letter.”

26. Double Quotation Marks • If a title appears in the middle of a direct quote, then the title will have single quotation marks around it. • “Did you read ‘The Ransom of Red Chief’ last year?” asked Mr. Abbot.

27. Capitalization • Directions are capitalized when they refer to a section of the country or when they are part of a name. • We live in the South. • She lives in South Carolina.

28. Capitalization • Directions aren’t capitalized when they are directions. • Utah is west of Colorado.