Download DLP Week Two - Belle Vernon Area School District

D.L.P. – Week Two
G R A DE SE VE N
Day One – Skills
• Spelling – ie/ei
Most English words follow the rule, “I before e except after c.” Hence, these words are spelled as such:
piece and ceiling.
• Capitalization – Proper Nouns – Geographical Locations
Words that designation direction are not capitalized. (I went east on Route 70.) However, when these
same words are used to designate a region of the country, they are capitalized. (I traveled to Eastern
Michigan.)
• Capitalization – First Word in a Sentence
Sentences must begin with a capital letter to signal that a new thought has begun.
• Punctuation – End Marks
Sentences must end with proper punctuation to signal that a thought has ended. Declarative sentences
or statements end in a period. Interrogative sentences, which are also known as questions, must end in a
question mark. Imperative sentences are punctuated based on how they are said. Commands that are
forceful would end in an exclamation point, but a calmly stated command would merit a period. Finally,
exclamatory sentences end in exclamation points since they are spoken with such enthusiasm.
D AY O NE – SE NT E NCE O NE
In “The Ransom of Red Cheif,” Bill
Driscoll and the narrator took Red
Cheif down to the south.
In “The Ransom of Red Chief,” Bill
Driscoll and the narrator took Red
Chief down to the South.
D AY O NE – SE NT E NCE T WO
they wanted his father to pay a
large ransom
They wanted his father to pay a
large ransom.
Day Two – Skills
• Verb Usage – To be
The verb “be” is a linking verb. Oddly, it is never used without another helping verb before it. (will be) The
verb “be” is conjugated as am, are, is, are in the present tense, was, were in the past tense, and be in the
future tense with either will or shall preceding it. The other two linking verbs been and being come from
other tenses of this verb.
• Pronoun Usage – Case
Pronouns are used differently depending on what case they are. Subject pronouns, also known as
nominative pronouns can work as subjects or predicate nouns. They are I, we, you, he, she, it, and they.
Objective pronouns can work as direct objects, indirect objects, or objects of the preposition. They are me,
us, you, him, her, it, and them. Possessive pronouns show ownership. They are my, mine, our, ours, your,
yours, his, her, hers, its, their, and theirs. Note that possessive pronouns do not have apostrophes.
• Numbers – As Words or Numerals
If the number is less than one hundred, it must be written as a word unless it is a score, weight, height,
time, or date. If the number is over one hundred, be consistent in how it is written. Do not mix and match
some words with some numerical aspects. (2 thousand is incorrect. It should be two thousand. 5 dollars is
incorrect. It should be five dollars.)
D AY T WO – SE NT E NCE O NE
They be planning to ask for two
thousand dollars in ransom.
They were planning to ask for
two thousand dollars in ransom.
D AY T WO – SE NT E NCE T WO
Bill and him had about 600
dollars between the two of
them.
Bill and he had about six
hundred dollars between the
two of them.
Day Three– Skills
• Punctuation – Comma – Direct Quotations
The spoken and non-spoken parts of a sentence must be separated. Typically, that is done with a
comma. (“Hello,” Mom said. I said, “How are You?”) The exception would be when an
exclamation or question mark is used to separate the two parts. (“How are you?” she asked.
“How wonderful!” Bob yelled.)
• Punctuation – Quotation Marks – Direct Quotation
Quotation marks are used around the exact words that someone speaks. Punctuation to
separate the spoken and non-spoken words is included inside of the quotation marks.
• Capitalization – Proper Nouns – People
Names of people are always capitalized. If the person has a title such as Mr. or Dr., the title is
also capitalized. Animal’s names are also capitalized.
D AY T HR E E – SE NT E NCE O NE
Bill said Hey, little boy! Would
you like to have a bag of candy
and a nice ride?
Bill said, “Hey, little boy! Would
you like to have a bag of candy
and a nice ride?”
D AY T HR E E – SE NT E NCE T WO
The boy hit bill in the eye with a
piece of brick.
The boy hit Bill in the eye with a
piece of brick.
Day Four– Skills
• Run-on Sentences
Run-on sentences occur when two complete thoughts run together without proper connection or
punctuation. Run-ons can be corrected in one of three ways. First, simply separate the two sentences with
proper end punctuation. However, if the two sentences can be connected by meaning, connect them with a
comma and the proper conjunction. Finally, the two sentences can have a semicolon placed between them in
the clauses relate closely in meaning. Note that the sentence following the semicolon would not begin with a
capital unless that word is a proper noun or the pronoun I.
• Punctuation – Apostrophes in Possession
An apostrophe is used to show possession or ownership. If the word showing ownership is singular, then the
apostrophe is placed before the s. (boy’s) If the word is plural and ends in an s, then the apostrophe is placed
after the s. (groups’) However, if the plural word does not end in an s, then the apostrophe is placed before
the s. (children’s)
Joint possession means more than one person owns something. If one thing is owned by more than one
person, the apostrophe and s appear only on the final person in the group. (Bob and Mark’s car)
• Sentence Combining –Using Immersion
Two sentences can be combined simply by including the information from one sentence into the other. This
helps to prevent short, choppy sentence. (Mary is tall. Mary is my friend. These can be combined by
immersing one into the other and saying, “My friend Mary is tall.”)
D AY FO UR – SE NT E NCE O NE
The boy is a brat he sits on Bills
chest and tries to cut off his
scalp.
The boy is a brat. He sits on
Bill’s chest and tries to cut off
his scalp.
D AY FO UR – SE NT E NCE T WO
The kidnappers have to pay to
get rid of Red Chief. They pay
$250.
The kidnappers have to pay
$250 to get rid of Red Chief.
Day Five– Skills
• Punctuation – Comma – Participial Phrases
When a participial phrase comes at the beginning of a sentence, set it off with a comma. Remember, a
participle looks like a verb so it often ends in “ing” or “ed.” Participles work like adjectives, so they are not
needed in the sentence and can be removed, but they do add good description. (Excited by the news,
Elizabeth jumped up and down.)
• Punctuation – Titles
When referring to a title when writing, it must be punctuated properly. Shorter works are placed in
quotations. Shorter works include poems, short stories, songs, a chapter in a longer book, or a newspaper
or magazine article. Longer works include books, names of magazines or newspapers, and movies.
• Agreement – Subject and Verb
The subject and verb of a clause must agree in person and number. This involves something called
conjugation. Every verb can be conjugated as to first person, second person, or third person and as
singular or plural. Take the verb go. Use the nominative pronouns I, you, and he as singular and we, you,
and they as plural. Make the verb go match the pronoun. “I go” means the verb is first person singular.
“They go” makes it third person and plural. Note the third person singular – “he goes.” When an action
verb is third person singular, it typically ends in an “s.” Be careful to not let words between the subject and
verb such as prepositional phrases sway the verb choice.
D AY FIVE – SE NT E NCE O NE
Running as fast as they can the
kidnappers head out of town.
Running as fast as they can, the
kidnappers head out of town.
D AY FIVE – SE NT E NCE T WO
The Ransom of Red Chief is a funny
story even though kidnapping are
not a funny subject.
“The Ransom of Red Chief” is a
funny story even though
kidnapping is not a funny subject.