“Conjunction Junction—what’s your function?”
Did you start to sing along? Can you picture the images?
How old are you????? Lol
Most kids today are not raised on “School House Rock,” which is such a shame! Because you really can’t forget the songs, jingles, rhymes—and dare I say—rules learned from those little ditties. (You can still find them on YouTube!)
And those little ditties are really needed when it comes to commas! Commas are a mystery to many people–and rightly so! They are extremely subjective at times across the board. And then, different handbooks and authorities stress different rules for them, making them even more elusive.
Today I would like to give you a little lesson on creating a compound sentence (two sentences joined together as one) using a comma-coordinating conjunction between the two sentences.
Download this Tricky Trick sheet for your student(s) here!
Before you watch the video in which I teach this skill (as part of my Checklist Challenge for most writing projects in all 100 of my books!), let me give you some details in writing:
1. Coordinating conjunctions (cc’s) include the following with the acronym FANBOYS: For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So
2. A comma must be used with the cc when combining two complete sentences into one.
3. With a comma only (no cc), you would be creating a comma splice, also known as a run-on sentence–two sentences joined together incorrectly.
4. Each side of the compound sentence must be able to stand alone in order to be combined with a comma-cc.
5. Complete sentence (CS) on the left: The spider’s prey seldom escapes & a complete sentence on the right: it is caught in a sticky web: The spider’s victims seldom escape, for they are caught in a sticky web.
6. -If a CS is not on one side or the other of the cc, no comma is used: The spider’s prey seldom escapes and oftentimes gets eaten (no CS after and, so no comma).
CS ,cc CS SAMPLES…
1. The spider’s victims seldom escape, for they are caught in a sticky web.
2. The victims are stuck, and they become “dinner.”
3. They can not free themselves, nor can they be freed.
4. They sit in the web and wait, but they do not wait for long.
5. The spider lets the victim sit in the sticky mess for a while, or it carries the victim away to eat it right away.
6. The spider is ruthless, yet it is also known for its special “web designs.”
7. The spider has special skills, so it puts these skills to good use.
Watch the Live Online Class Video of me teaching how to create compound sentences with FANBOYS!
Wish you could teach your students parts of speech word lists effortlessly? Check out my Think Fast Grammar Quiz downloadable product! It teaches kids prepositions, subordinators, FANBOYS, interjections, Being/Helping/Linking verbs and more effortlessly with mnemonics and more!
Trackbacks/Pingbacks