COMMON WRITING PROBLEMS

Name __________________________ Date __________

LESSON 1 PUNCTUATION

As You Write . . .

Activity 1.1 Using Correct Punctuation

It’s easy to overuse commas in writing. Make sure you have a reason to use a comma. Avoid using a comma because it sounds correct.

Directions: The following sentences are lacking punctuation. Rewrite the sentences using the correct punctuation. 1. Jenna my favorite cousin took the pizza out of the oven and said Who wants a slice? _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________

2. Miss Munson said Your quiz grades show me one thing we need to review the chapter. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Looks like I’ll be working until 1100 this assignment is due tomorrow. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ 4. Robert Frost’s poem Nothing Gold Can Stay is in the book The Outsiders. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ 5. Spanish speaking immigrants and even those who speak a little English can gain self confidence from that night class. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ 6. Derek washed the car and then waxed it but he forgot to vacuum the inside. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ 7. My grandma always used to say A stitch in time saves nine Gina said. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ 8. I’ve asked you several times four to be exact to turn down that music Mrs. Blevins said. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________

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COMMON WRITING PROBLEMS

Name __________________________ Date __________

LESSON 2 CAPITALIZATION

As You Write . . .

Activity 2.1 Using Correct Capitalization Directions: Rewrite the sentences using the correct capitalization. 1. My Mom’s favorite book is Gone With The Wind.

In general, nouns that refer to specific things are capitalized. General nouns are not.

___________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ 2. Last autumn, two Lieutenants who served in the Vietnam war toured the west, speaking at Universities. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ 3. Tell grandma that uncle Tim’s house is just East of here. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ 4. I need to finish my assignment for science and then read a chapter of the Giver for english class. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ 5. The Senator witnessed president Obama signing the bill. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ 6. My neighbor graduated from King memorial high school when it was located on the Southwest corner of main and state streets. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ 7. Henry’s band played the song “Wake me up when September Ends” at the school’s Talent Show. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________

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COMMON WRITING PROBLEMS

Name __________________________ Date __________

LESSON 3 VERBS

As You Write . . .

Activity 3.1 Making Subjects and Verbs Agree

Compare your subjects to their verbs. Make sure both are either singular or plural. Don’t confuse an interrupting phrase with the subject of your sentence.

Directions: Underline the subject of each of the following sentences. Then underline the correct form of the verb from the choices in parentheses. 1. An announcement about the new rules (has, have) been made. 2. Ross’s gym bag, as well as his shoes and watch, (was, were) stolen last week. 3. A forest of evergreen trees (covers, cover) the north side of the mountain.

4. The coach, as well as several team members, (was, were) quick to protest the call. 5. A collection of all the band’s hit singles (is, are) available on one CD. Activity 3.2 Using Correct Moods of Verbs Directions: Correct the problems with mood in the following sentences. 1. If I was you, I’d wear safety goggles. 2. Cut off three inches of wood, and then you should sand the end with sandpaper. 3. We could travel to Arizona where we will see the Grand Canyon. 4. If we want to buy tickets, we can purchase them today.

Activity 3.3 Using Active and Passive Voice Verbs Directions: Rewrite each sentence that you think should be in active voice. If you think that passive voice is correct in the sentence, write C. 1. The car wash was sponsored by the Spanish club. 2. The early-dismissal announcement was made right after lunch. 3. The preschoolers were taken to see the new tiger cub at the zoo. 4. Running is not allowed in the halls.

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COMMON WRITING PROBLEMS

Name __________________________ Date __________

LESSON 4 FRAGMENTS AND RUN-ON SENTENCES Activity 4.1 Fragments and Run-ons Directions: The following paragraph contains several sentence fragments and run-on sentences. Revise the paragraph so that it contains complete sentences. I think vending machines should be allowed in schools to help schools

As You Write . . . Check your sentences to see where one thought ends and the next one begins. Remember that the punctuation you’ve included should match the thoughts you’ve expressed.

raise money. There never seems to be enough money for education no one wants to pay more taxes. If a school was allowed to keep a certain percentage of its vending machine sales. That amount would add up over the school year. The money could be used for programs that the school couldn’t afford otherwise, like extracurricular activities. This would be a way to raise money without raising taxes students and teachers would feel good about buying food from the machines. Because they would know that part of their money was going toward school expenses. ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________

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COMMON WRITING PROBLEMS

Name __________________________ Date __________

LESSON 5 VERBALS Activity 5.1 Identifying Verbals Directions: Underline the verbal phrase in each sentence. On the line identify it as a gerund, participle, or infinitive phrase. 1. Our plans include crossing the Rio Grande. ______________________________________________________________

As You Write . . . Using a variety of verbal phrases can make your writing more interesting. Using them at the beginning of some sentences can help you vary your sentence style.

2. I have learned to find many rivers on maps. ______________________________________________________________ 3. Stretching for 210 miles, the Thames River flows through southern England. _________________________________________________________________________________ 4. The Congo, known also as the Zaire, is very long. _________________________________________________________________________________ 5. To raft on the Colorado River is a dream of mine. _________________________________________________________________________________ Activity 5.2 Using Verbals Directions: On the lines, finish the following sentences by inserting the verbal phrase indicated in parentheses. 1. (Infinitive phrase) is a very hard thing to do. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ 2. (Participial phrase), she hit a home run. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ 3. I would never want (infinitive phrase). _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ 4. (Gerund/gerund phrase) is one of my hobbies. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ 5. (Participial phrase), Margo fell and broke her leg. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________

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COMMON WRITING PROBLEMS

Name __________________________ Date __________

LESSON 6 POINT OF VIEW

As You Write . . .

Activity 6.1 Third-Person Point of View Directions: The following paragraph is supposed to be written from a third-person point of view. Circle the numbers of the sentences that contain a point-of-view shift. In the space above the sentence, edit the writing so it reflects the thirdperson point of view.

Look for shifts in point of view. Maintaining a third-person point of view means eliminating pronouns like I, you, and we, and replacing them with neutral terms such as one, a person, or most people.

(1) Students who participate in sports should not have to take P. E. (2) If you’re out for a sport, you’re probably getting lots of exercise. (3) For example, I’m out for basketball, and we have to practice every night after school for two hours! (4) Also, if athletes were not required to take P. E., they could use that period as a study hall. (5) Sports take up a lot of your time. (6) Besides practices, you have games a couple of times a week. (7) Finally, students who participate in sports need all the rest they can get. (8) Making students participate in P. E. will make them more tired and possibly open them up to more injuries. (9) I say, if you’re out for a sport, you should be able to sit out P. E. “on the bench”! LESSON 7 EFFECTIVE DETAILS Activity 7.1 Vivid, Specific Words Directions: Rewrite the following details, using the method indicated in parentheses. 1. The coach was thrilled with her team’s performance. (Use specific words.)

As You Write . . . Make sure your details provide readers with the same “picture” that you have in your mind.

2. Mrs. Marsalis keeps her classroom spic and span. (Avoid clichés.)

3. The puppy is so clumsy! (Provide examples.)

4. The noise from the basement scared me half to death. (Avoid clichés.)

5. My cell phone is my connection to the world. (Provide examples.)

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COMMON WRITING PROBLEMS

Name __________________________ Date __________

LESSON 8 PARALLEL STRUCTURE Activity 8.1 Faulty Parallel Structure Directions: Correct the faulty parallel structure in the following sentences. 1. My aunt is a talented violinist, a generous friend, and good at cooking. ______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ 2. The driftwood was dry, smooth, and had a silvery color to it.

As You Write . . . Check for parallel structure by skimming your paper, pausing at the words and and or. Check on each side of these words to see whether the items joined are parallel. If not, consider rewriting them.

______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ 3. When she enters high school, Alyssa plans to study painting, drawing, and how to make prints. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ 4. To be or not being; that is the question. —Shakespeare’s Hamlet _________________________________________________________________________________ 5. Years later, Marcus would remember the smell of the fire and seeing the leaping flames. _________________________________________________________________________________ LESSON 9 PRONOUNS Activity 9.1 Using Pronouns Correctly Directions: Underline the correct pronouns, nouns, and verbs from the parentheses in the items below. 1. Anyone (is, are) eligible to enter the drawing as long as (he or she, they) (attend, attends) the school. 2. Several of the volunteers (was, were) rewarded for (his or her, their) outstanding service to the community. 3. Either Vince or MacKenzie will ride (his or her, their) bike in the parade. 4. Some merchants offered to close (his or her, their) (store, stores) an hour early. 5. The announcement read, “All campers (is, are) responsible for making (his or her, their) (bed, beds) every morning.” 6. If students want to succeed in college, (he or she, they) must study hard.

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COMMON WRITING PROBLEMS

Name __________________________ Date __________

LESSON 10 SENTENCE VARIETY

As You Write . . .

Activity 10.1 Editing for Sentence Variety Directions: The following paragraph lacks sentence variety and specific details. Rewrite the paragraph. Vary the sentences by combining specific details and using conjunctions and subordinate clauses. Replace general words and phrases with more specific ones.

The day was bright outside. The sun was shining. The birds were

Check your sentences for length and structure. Vary your sentences by adding phrases or clauses and by starting them in different ways. Try combining short, choppy sentences for a smoother effect and breaking up sentences that are too long.

singing. I walked along, thinking of all the things I was going to do that day. In the afternoon I was going to a game with my sister, and then we were going out to eat. That night there was a party at this one boy’s house. But before all that I had to do this school project that involved some complicated things. So even though the day was nice, I could not really enjoy it. ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________

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COMMON WRITING PROBLEMS

Name __________________________ Date __________

LESSON 11 TRANSITIONS Activity 11.1 Appropriate Transitions Directions: Read through the paragraph. Write appropriate transitions in the blanks. Possible transitions include: for example, in fact, however, in addition, therefore, as a result, and consequently. Your body needs special cells to fight germs; otherwise, you would be overcome by viruses and bacteria.

, every day your body makes billions of white blood cells. These

defender cells travel throughout your bloodstream;

, they can attack germs

anywhere in your body. Some white blood cells will attack any germ along the way. , these cells often die quickly. Other blood cells attack only a certain type of germ. They carry special weapons called antibodies. Antibodies stick to the germs. , they also have a kind of memory that helps them attack that kind of germ next time it attacks your body. Your defender cells,

, sometimes need help from

outside the body. This is why vaccines were introduced. Vaccinations introduce harmless germs into the body.

, your cells make antibodies that fight off the germs and prevent the

body from getting the disease.

LESSON 12 SPELLING Activity 12.1 Spelling Correctly Directions: Cross out 10 misspelled words in the paragraph below. Write the correct spelling above each mistake. If you are adventureous, try rideing the swift-moving waves at the beach with a surf board. A fast-paced volleyball game can provide both eggercise and excitment. Additionally a skillful cast of a net might bring a reward of live bait. Nothing is more challenging than battling the surf to reel in a fish. All ages injoy the task of building a mighty sand castle before the tide washs it away. With so many exciting things to do, its almost imposible to expereince boredom at the beach.

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