Tip of the Day 

(*there are always exceptions!*)

Double negatives

1.  Use only one negative word at a time in English.  Two negatives actually make a positive!  Some negative words include: no, nobody, none, never, neither, barely.
Ex: Don't ever use two negatives.  NOT: Don't never use two negatives.  

Spelling rules

2.  When you add a suffix that begins with a consonant (all the letters that aren't vowels or y), do not drop the silent e.
Ex: forgive + ness = forgiveness; manage + ment = management

3.  When you add a y or a suffix that starts with a vowel (a, e, i, o, u), to a word that ends with a silent e, drop the silent e (except when the suffix starts with a vowel and you add it to a word that ends with ge or ce).
Ex: scare + y = scary; joke + ed = joked; (change + able = changeable; notice + able = noticeable)

4.  Adding suffixes (endings): When you add full to the end of a word, drop the second l.  Ex: peace + full = peaceful; spoon + full = spoonful

5.  Double the final consonant when you add a suffix that begins with a vowel (ing, ed) to a word that ends with a vowel and a consonant (top, sit).
Ex: sit + ing = sitting; top + ed = topped

6.  When you make a noun plural, you usually just add s.  If the word ends with a y and the letter before the y is a vowel, do this (1 turkey, 2 turkeys).  If the letter before the final y is a consonant, drop the y and add ies (1 country, 2 countries).

7.  When you add the suffix ing to a word that ends with ie, drop the e and change the i to y.
Ex: tie + ing = tying; lie + ing = lying

8.  Most words that end in o take just an s at the end to make them plural.
Ex: banjos; stereos


Pronouns - subject or object

9.  It can be hard to know whether to use the subject pronoun (I, you, he, she, it, we, they) or the object pronoun (me, you, him, her, it, us, them).  If the pronoun is part of the subject, use the subject pronoun (My friend and I laughed at the movie).  If the pronoun is a direct object, use an object pronoun (The nasty dog bit Sally and me).

Who or whom?

10.  Know when to use who and whom.  Who is a subject pronoun, and is used when a sentence or clause needs a subject or predicate nominative (Who will be there?  I saw who did it).  Whom is an object pronoun, and is used when a sentence needs a direct object, indirect object, or object of a preposition (Whom did you tell?  You did the favor for whom?  To whom did you give the present?).


Commas

11.  Use a comma before a conjunction that joins the independent clauses in a compound sentence.
Ex: My fish eats lobster, and my bird eats worms.

12.  Use a comma after a dependent clause that comes at the beginning of a complex sentence.
Ex: Even though there's snow, I will ride my bike.

13.  Put a comma between a city and a state.
Ex: Poughkeepsie, NY

14.  Put a comma between the day and year in a date.
Ex: May 26, 1981.

15.  Use a comma to separate three or more words or phrases in a series.
Ex: I see a girl, an apple, and three ducks in this painting.

16.  After the greeting and closing in a friendly letter, use commas.
Ex: Dear Ms. Green        Yours truly,

17.  Set apart mild interjections with commas.
Ex: Oh, I didn't know you are a vegetarian.

18.  Use commas to set off the person you're speaking to.
Ex: Martha waited all day for you, Pat.

19.  If you write words that interrupt the main idea of a sentence, set them apart with commas.
Ex: Maya, for example, hates chocolate.

20.  Separate two adjectives that modify the same noun with a comma.
Ex: The enormous, purple monster gave the young, innocent boy nightmares.

21.  When you write a short, direct quotation in the middle of a sentence, use a comma in front of it.
Ex: After they told her about their plan she shouted, "What, are you crazy?"

22.  Put a comma at the end of a direct quotation that is a statement (not a question or exclamation), when it comes at the beginning of a sentence.
Ex: "Tomorrow is a new day," Scott reminded Heather.


Apostrophes

23.  Use apostrophes in contractions (He's sad that you're leaving and she's staying), in possessive nouns (Andrew's pencil's eraser is bright green), and when you refer to the plural of individual letters and words (You wrote too many y's in your happy's).


Subject-verb agreement

24. The subject and verb in a sentence must agree in person (1st, 2nd, or 3rd) and number (singular or plural).  A first person takes a first person verb (I am the guru).  A second person subject takes the second person verb (You are my hero).  A third person subject takes a third person verb (Jonathan is very clever).  A singular subject takes a singular verb (The elephant swims).  A plural subject takes a plural verb (The elephants swim).

Capitalization

25.  Capitalize the first word in a sentence, the pronoun I, proper nouns, and proper adjectives (first and last names like Jessica Rabbit; California; Swedish).

26.  Capitalize titles that show the rank or position of people when used with their names, like Dr. Jones, Ms. Lewis, and General Washington.  Also capitalize a person's title when it is used instead of a person's name, as in the sentence - "Congratulations, President, you've been re-elected."  Finally, capitalize family members when the words stand alone in a sentence (without a possessive pronoun) or when they are followed by a person's name, like "Aunt Cathy and Grandma baked a cake."

27.  Days of the week and months of the year take capital letters - Tuesday, Saturday, May, September, etc.  The seasons, however, do not take capitals (spring, summer, winter, fall/autumn).

28.  Use capitals for the first word in the greeting of a friendly letter - Dear friends, My favorite uncle.  Use capitals for all words in the greeting of a business letter - My Fellow Students, Dear Mister.  Use capitals for the first word in the closing of a letter - Warmest regards, Thank you.

29.  Capitalize the first, last, and all the main words in the titles of books (The World According to Garp), movies (The Door in the Floor), songs ("I Am a Rock"), plays or musicals (The Kiss of the Spider Woman), magazines (National Geographic), newspapers (The Sunday Times), and television shows (The Brady Bunch).
30. Use capitals when writing the names of school subjects when they are the names of languages or specific courses listed in the school catalogue (Spanish, Honors Chemistry, Music 3).  Don't capitalize just plain mathematics, history, or science.


Sentences - basics needed
    Subject + predicate
(comparison of adjectives, adverbs)
(Irregular plurals)
(Contractions)
easily confused and misused words
sexist language
Their/they're/there
Semicolons
Irregular verbs