The document discusses grammar lessons on punctuation including semicolons, colons, hyphens and dashes. It provides examples of how to use each punctuation mark correctly, such as using semicolons to join independent clauses or items in a series. Colons can introduce a list, time, or the greeting in a letter. Hyphens are used to divide words across lines or in compound numbers and fractions. Dashes set off abrupt breaks in thought while parentheses loosely connect related information.

1. 10­29­13 semicolons­colons­hyphens­dashes.notebook
October 29, 2013
10/29/13
7th Grade Language Arts
Agenda:
1. Independent Reading
Assignments:
-Grammar Lesson 5-6 (W)
-2 comments on reading response (F)
2. Grammar
-Cause and Effect Rough Draft (F 11/1)
3. Cause/Effect Essay
-Vocabulary Writing (F 11/1)
-Grammar Test (M)
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2. 10­29­13 semicolons­colons­hyphens­dashes.notebook
October 29, 2013
Chapter 11, Lesson 5: Semicolons and Colons
Semicolons in Compound Sentences
-use a semicolon to compound a compound sentence
ex: Enslaved people sang songs with secret messages;
the songs told listeners how to escape.
-use a semicolon between parts of a compound sentence
when the clauses are long and complicated or when they
contain commas
ex: Runaways navigated by the stars; and they lived off
the land, slept outdoors, and walked hundreds of miles to
freedom.
Semicolons with items in a series
-when there are commas within parts of a series, use
semicolons to separate the parts
ex: The travelers took clues from songs, such as a song
about the stars; from quilts, which had special coded
designs; and from other people along the way.
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3. 10­29­13 semicolons­colons­hyphens­dashes.notebook
October 29, 2013
Colons:
-use a colon to introduce a list of items
ex: An escapee carried a few items: a knife, a flint, and a
warm cloak.
**Avoid using a colon directly after a verb or a preposition**
Incorrect: The recipients are: Joe, Sam, and Rita.
Incorrect: Send this message to: Joe, Sam, and Rita.
Correct: Send this message to the following people: Joe,
Sam, and Rita.
-use a colon after the formal greeting in a business letter
ex: Dear Ms. Smith:
-use a colon between numerals indicating hours and minutes
ex: 8:00
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4. 10­29­13 semicolons­colons­hyphens­dashes.notebook
October 29, 2013
Here are two ways conductors on the Underground Railroad hid
messages; in songs and in quilts. "The Drinking Gourd," for
example, sounded like a folk song, however, it was a map to
freedom. The "gourd" was actually the constellation known as the
Big Dipper it points to the North Star. The lyrics of the song told
slaves how to head north; to the free states. The quilts were signal
flags, travelers would see them and know where to go. The
following quilt designs carried directions; the Bear's Paw, which told
people to follow bear tracks in the mountains, the Crossroads,
which said to head to Cleveland, Ohio; and the Flying Geese; which
said to follow geese to water. Unlike real trains, which might leave
at a specific time, say 7 30 P.M., the "freedom trains" left: anytime
after dark.
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5. 10­29­13 semicolons­colons­hyphens­dashes.notebook
October 29, 2013
Chapter 11, Lesson 6: Hyphens, Dashes, and Parentheses
Hyphens:
-use if part of a word must be carried over from one line
*it must have at least two syllables
*separate the word between syllables
*leave at least two letters on each line
FIX these:
co-de a-cross
twe-nty
num-ber
lett-r
-use hyphens in certain compound words
-use hyphens in compound numbers from twenty-one
through ninety-nine
-use hyphens in spelled out fractions
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6. 10­29­13 semicolons­colons­hyphens­dashes.notebook
October 29, 2013
Dashes:
-use dashes to show an abrupt break in thought
Louis Braille-who lost his sight at age three-invented an
alphabet for blind people.
Parentheses:
-use parentheses to set off material that is loosely related
to the rest of the sentence
Each six-dot cell stands for a character (a letter of the
alphabet, a number, a punctuation mark, or a contraction).
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7. 10­29­13 semicolons­colons­hyphens­dashes.notebook
October 29, 2013
Read the following paragraph. Then indicate what punctuation mark- hyphen, dash, or parenthesisis needed in each blank. If no mark is needed, write NONE.
Louis Braille was born in a small town in France nearly two hundred years ago. At age
three, he was accidentally blinded. He learned to find his way around by tapping with a
cane ____ the sound told him where it was safe to step. Ten __ year-old Louis
went to the National Institute for Blind Youth in Paris. He had heard the school had a
library full of books ____he could read___ but it only had a few. The letters in the
books were embossed ____ so the books were large, bulky, and expensive to
produce).
As a student, Louis met Charles Barbier (a retired army captain__. Barbier had
invented a "night-writing" system ___ involving dots and dashes punched into
cardboard - that let soldiers write and read orders in the dark. Louis spent the next
several years simplifying Barbier's system and _____another twenty___seven years
fighting to get the Braille alphabet adopted. He died at the relatively young age of
forty___three.
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8. 10­29­13 semicolons­colons­hyphens­dashes.notebook
October 29, 2013
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