Tip #165 from 365 Teacher Secrets for Parents (McKinley, Trombly): Commas

Today's tip for parents from two talented teachers comes from 365 Teacher Secrets for Parents by Cindy McKinley Alder and Patti Trombly.

#165

Commas

You may be disappointed if you fail, but you are doomed if you don’t try.
~Beverly Sills

Have you ever read a story written by your child (or anyone) where, within the entire first page, there is not a period or comma to be found? Correct use of punctuation, especially commas, is one element of writing that teachers try to impress upon their students. Improper use of commas can change the whole meaning of a sentence and sometimes of the story. Commas can even save a life! (Well, not really, but look at the following example). Imagine a child writing this:

Let’s eat Grandpa.

What he really meant to write was Let’s eat, Grandpa.

In lower elementary school, children are taught to use a comma when there is a pause in the sentence. The most common uses of commas are below.

● Use commas to separate three or more items in a series.

○ For her birthday she wanted a new bike, a jump rope, a book, and a puppy.

● Use commas to separate city and state and dates and years

○ Atlanta, Georgia

○ May 1, 2015

● Use a comma in dialogue to separate the speaker from the dialogue.

○ Her mom shouted, “Be careful!”

Older children can learn more difficult comma rules:

● Use a comma after introductory phrases.

○ If she studies for the test, she will do well.

● Use commas before a coordinating conjunction joining two independent clauses.

○ Example: She wanted to go over her friend’s house, but her mom wouldn’t let her.

Definitions

Coordinating conjunctions: Think of “FANBOYS” as a way to remember the connecting words for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so

Independent clause: a group of words that can stand alone as a sentence

● Use commas to separate extra information (put the extra information between commas)

○ Her best friend, Beth, is always late.

(The fact that her friend’s name is Beth is extra information.)

The above comma rules are the most common rules used in elementary school.

Here are other basic punctuation marks you and your child should concentrate on when writing. (You may want to consult his teacher to be sure of the punctuation marks required for his grade.)

● Period: ends a complete sentence;

● New paragraph: when the writer moves to a new thought, idea, or setting; and

● Quotation marks: used when a character in the story is talking. Put the first set of quotation marks before the person speaks and the second set of quotes after the character has finished speaking and after the end punctuation mark. When a new character speaks, a new paragraph should be started.

Try to find ways to practice punctuation in a fun and interesting way. For example, your child could use his favorite cartoon strip from the newspaper to practice the correct use of punctuation. Cartoons are usually full of quotation marks, commas, periods, exclamation points and question marks. You can discuss how the author uses them and why. Your child could use crayons or highlighters to color-code punctuation, such as all commas are yellow (for pausing), all periods are red (for stopping), and all quotation marks are green. The funnies work well for this because they are not in a book that you would prefer your child not write or color in. They are also usually highly interesting and fun to work with. You could even use the Idea #129 from Part 5 and have your child write a comic of his own (or rewrite one already drawn), using the correct punctuation.

See our online workbook for more examples of correct commas usage and a list of Do’s and Don’ts.

Cindy McKinley Alder Patti Trombly

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