• Items in a series

• Direct address, introductory words, appositives, and parenthetical expressions

• Conventional uses (dates, letters and addresses)

• After introductory adverbial clauses

• With quotation marks

• Before coordinating conjunction in compound sentences consisting of two long independent clauses.

• Tag questions

• Opposing elements

• With adjectives before nouns

ESL Ideas      (B=Beginning, I=Intermediate, T=Transitional)
(B) Students highlight commas in a newspaper article or other written material. 
(I, T) Students keep a writing log for which the teacher provides sentences that are incorrect which students then correct independently or with peers.

Using Commas
(I, T) Activity is an online self-checking quiz that explains and provides examples for two common uses of the comma: the conjoining use, and the listing use

OWL: Commas After Introductions
(I, T) Activity is an online self-checking quiz that explains comma rules for the following: introductory clauses, introductory phrases, introductory words, and when not to use a comma

OWL: Commas with Nonessential Elements
(I, T) Activities are online self-checking quizzes that explain rules for using commas with nonessential elements including a comparison table: Nonessential vs. Essential

OWL: Using Commas
(I, T) Five Activities are online self-checking quizzes that provide explanations of comma rules including sentence examples

OWL: Proofreading for Commas
(I, T) Explains rules and provides examples for using commas in the following circumstances: compound sentences, comma splices, introductory commas, disruptive commas, series commas, and commas with nonessential elements

 

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