English ACT - STOP and GO Punctuation Review

What is STOP punctuation?

Period (.) Semicolon (;) Question Mark (?) Exclamation Mark (!)

-can ONLY come in between two complete ideas

What is GO Punctuation?

Use a comma to slow down, but not stop, ideas. If you don't need to stop or slow down, don't use any punctuation.

What are the four different reasons a comma would be used?

Stop, Go, Lists, Unnecessary Info

When is a comma used to stop?

hint: FANBOYS

A comma plus any of these is the equivalent to STOP punctuation between two complete ideas

FANBOYS: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so

When is a comma used to go?

A comma can link an incomplete idea to a complete idea, in either order.

ex. After Snowball stopped dancing, the trainer gave the bird another treat.

When is a comma used for lists?

Use a comma to separate items on a list.

-Whenever you have three or more items on a list, always use a comma before the "and."

When is a comma used for unnecessary info?

Use a pair of commas around unnecessary information.

-If information is necessary to the sentence in either meaning or structure, don't use the commas.

When do we use colons and single dashes?

They can link a complete idea to either an incomplete idea or another complete idea. The complete idea must come first, and the second idea will be a definition, explanation, or list.

When do we use conjunctions?

Add a conjunction to make an idea incomplete, or take one out to make the idea complete.

What are the 4 C's?

Complete, Consistent, Clear, and Concise