ACT English Strategies

Sentence

subject, verb, and expresses a thought

Clause

subject and verb

Dependent clause

• cannot stand alone and contains a subject and verb

  • expresses an incomplete thought

Independent clause

• can stand alone and contains a subject and verb

  • expresses a complete thought

Sentence fragment

dependent clause, doesn’t express a full thought

Run on sentence

a lot of independent clauses with no transition or punctuation

4 ways to correct a run on sentence

1. a comma and a FANBOYS word
2. a period
3. turn one of the Ind. clause into a Dep. clause .4. adding a semicolon

4 instances in which it is appropriate to use a comma

1. a comma and FANBOYS word
2. When using an introductory clause there should be a comma
3. In items in a list use all commas especially the one before the "and" NOTE: should be 3 items or more
4. Appositive phrase

Semicolon use

- Only when 2 ind. clauses need a semicolon to be separated
- Covering up a part of the sentence on one side of the semi colon and reading it to see if it is grammatically correct and then doing the same on the other side.

when to use a dash

1. a break in thought (uses one dash)
2. to set off information often items in a list (requires two dashes)

when to use an apostrophe

1. to show ownership
2. contractions

when to use “and I” or “and me”

- if you are the subject in the sentence use "and I"
- if you are the object of the sentence use "and me"
- cover up the " person's name & and" and then read the sentence to see if it makes sense.

which

refers to things only

who

- Refers to the person who is the subject of the sentence; always used after the noun
He = Who

whom

refers to the object or is directly after a preposition

modifier

- an adj. or adv.
- HAS TO BE as close to the word it is modifying

placement rule for single-word modifiers

- as close as possible to the noun or verb
- adj in front of noun
- adv is behind verb

modifying phrase

- Is at the beginning of the sentence
- Should always start with the verb; the verb will end with either "ed" or "ing" (followed by a comma)
- The word that is being modified has to be placed IMMEDIATELY AFTER the comma

comparitive

- compares 2 things
- typically ends in "er"; in the case that you CANNOT add "er" you include the word "more"

superlative

- compares 3 things or more
- typically ends in "est"; in the case where you CANNOT use "est" include the word "most"

2 types of organizational structures

1. Chronological: passage of time
2. Logical: every paragraph is about something different

2 types of wordiness questions

1. Redundancy: repetitive
2. Verbosity: a lot of terminology, unnecessary

how to fix redundancy

only say it once

how to fix verbosity

answer choice is typically the shortest and makes the most sense

passive and active voice

1. Active Voice is subject, verb, and then object
2. Passive Voice is object, verb, and then subject

which is grammatically correct, active or passive?

active

introductory clause

- a dependent clause that introduces an independent clause., main clause + subordinating conjunction
- the comma should be placed after the introductory clause
- to test for an introductory clause, you make sure that the part after the comma expresses a complete thought

appositive phrase

- a phrase that renames or clarifies a noun (nonessential)
- the comma should be placed before and after the phrase
- covering up the part in between the commas and reading the sentence to make sure that it is correct.

verb consistency

- verb tense should all be the same (past, present, & future)
- parallel structure- all verbs in the same sentence should have a similar structure

pronoun consistency

- number and gender
- gender and number is consistent
- CANNOT switch from 'you' to 'one'

what do all verbs ending in -ing need

a helping verb

connections that show addition or continuation

additionally, and, furthermore, indeed, in addition, likewise, & moreover

connections that show cause and effect

as a result, because, consequently, leading to, since, so, therefore, & thus

connections that show contrast

although, but, despite, even, though, however, nevertheless, rather, though, whereas, & while

connections that show sequence

finally, first, if...then, last, later, next second, & then

when not to use they/them

when referring to one person of unknown gender

connections that show emphasis or example

for example, for instance, & in fact

what are the two structures of an ACT english passage

1). Chronological- it will always follow the order of time.
2). Logical- every paragraph is about a different subject, information in the paragraph is always placed LOGICALLY.

singular verb and plural verb relation with subject

- singular verb goes with a singular subject, verb will end in 's'
- plural verb goes with plural subject, verb will not end in 's'