Punctuation and capital letters

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• vwo
• Leerjaar 4

Punctuation and capital letters

Lesson goals

Understand and apply correct punctuation in complex sentences, including commas, semicolons, and colons, to improve clarity and coherence.

Master the rules of capitalizing proper nouns (names, places, titles) and the beginning of sentences to ensure accurate grammar usage.

Identify and correct punctuation errors in writing to enhance sentence structure, flow, and readability.

1. Capitalizing the First Word in a Sentence

2. Capitalizing Proper Nouns (Names of Specific People, Places, and Things)

3. Capitalizing Titles:

Capitalize the first and last words of a title, as well as major words in between (not articles, prepositions, or conjunctions unless they are the first or last word).

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

The Great Gatsby

4. Capitalizing Days, Months, and Holidays

5. Capitalizing Nationalities, Languages, and Religions

Punctuation

When do we use a , (comma) ?

To Separate Items in a List

Rule: Use commas to separate three or more items in a list.

Example:

I bought apples, bananas, oranges, and grapes.

She likes reading, swimming, hiking, and biking.

After Introductory Words or Phrases

Use a comma after an introductory word, phrase, or clause at the beginning of a sentence.

Example:

After school, we went to the movies.

However, I don’t think it will work.

Well, I’m not sure what to do.

Comma After a Conjunction: When Do You Use It?

Coordinating Conjunctions (FANBOYS) with Two Independent Clauses:

                                                              I went to the store, and I bought some fruit.

                                                                 She studied for hours, but she still didn't pass the exam.

Subordinating Conjunctions (e.g., "because," "although," "if")

Subordinating conjunctions (e.g., because, although, if, when, since) link a dependent clause to an independent clause.

No comma is needed when the dependent clause comes after the independent clause.

Comma is needed when the dependent clause comes first.

independent+dependent

Examples Without Comma (Dependent Clause After Independent Clause):

I didn’t go to the park because it was raining.

Explanation:

"I didn’t go to the park" is a complete sentence (independent clause).

"because it was raining" is a dependent clause — it can’t stand alone as a sentence.

No comma before "because" because the dependent clause comes after the independent clause.

Examples With Comma (Dependent Clause First):

Because it was raining, I didn’t go to the park.

"Because it was raining" is a dependent clause — it cannot stand alone as a sentence.

"I didn’t go to the park" is a complete sentence (independent clause).

Comma needed because the dependent clause comes first.

semicolon ;

Dashes indicate that the reader should pay more attention to the material between the dashes.

1. True
2. False

The colon in this sentence is correct:
"We covered many of the fundamentals in our writing class: grammar, punctuation, style, and voice."

1. True
2. False

Maak uit de reader:

Grammar 1,2, 4 blz 18

Grammar 6, 7 blz 20

Lees blz 25, 26 en 27

+Het werkblad