- 3 days ago
Category
📚
LearningTranscript
00:00Rule number one. Every declarative sentence must end with a period or a full stop.
00:07For example, she loves chocolate, period.
00:12He is my best friend, period.
00:15My dad wants to go to a restaurant for dinner, period.
00:20We have a meeting in two hours, period.
00:23So for every declarative sentence or statement, you must end it with a period or a full stop.
00:31Rule number two. Capitalize the first letter of a sentence.
00:36Examples. She loves chocolate.
00:38So you can see we have to capitalize she.
00:42He is my best friend.
00:44My dad wants to go to a restaurant for dinner.
00:48We have a meeting in two hours.
00:51So always capitalize the first letter of a sentence.
00:56When a sentence ends with a question mark, a period, or an exclamation mark,
01:00you would leave a space, one space, and begin the next sentence with a capital letter.
01:06For example, she loves chocolate.
01:10He loves pizza.
01:12We have to capitalize he and leave a space between the period or the full stop and the next sentence.
01:21Rule number three.
01:23Capitalize proper nouns.
01:25So what is a proper noun?
01:28A proper noun is a specific name for a common noun.
01:33So for example, a common noun would be boy, but a proper noun would be the name of a boy.
01:39For example, David, we would not capitalize boy, unless of course it was the first letter of a sentence,
01:47but we would capitalize the name, David.
01:50Common noun, day.
01:52Day is not capitalized, but Friday is capitalized because it's a proper noun.
01:59It's the name of a day.
02:01Month is a common noun.
02:03July is a proper noun.
02:06Country is a common noun.
02:08Canada is a proper noun.
02:11City, common noun.
02:13New York, proper noun.
02:15Ocean, common noun.
02:18Atlantic Ocean, proper noun.
02:20Okay?
02:21So for example, he is a boy.
02:24His name is David.
02:26We would capitalize David because it's a name.
02:29It's a proper noun.
02:30The best day of the week is Friday.
02:34So you can see, day is the common noun.
02:37It's not capitalized.
02:39But Friday is a proper noun, so it is capitalized.
02:43My favorite month is July.
02:45Number four.
02:47Do not use an apostrophe to form a plural.
02:51Examples.
02:52This is incorrect.
02:54They have two cars.
02:55A lot of people make the mistake of adding an apostrophe to try to make this plural.
03:02Another incorrect example.
03:04I love cats and dogs.
03:06Both of these are incorrect.
03:09Correct would be, they have two cars.
03:13We just add the S at the end to make it plural.
03:16I love cats and dogs.
03:19Rule number five.
03:21Apostrophes are used for contractions or to show possession.
03:26So for example, I don't know is a contraction.
03:33Don't is a contraction for do not.
03:36We can merge these two words together and add an apostrophe to make it don't.
03:44You're funny.
03:46You're is a contraction for you are funny.
03:51So we use an apostrophe to make a contraction.
03:54He's in a bad mood.
03:56He's is a contraction for he is.
04:01We also use apostrophes to show possession.
04:05For example, Jack's new car is beautiful.
04:08Jack's new car means the car belongs to Jack.
04:14When we put an apostrophe S, it means that the object belongs to this person here.
04:23To the subject.
04:25My teacher's wife is really nice.
04:29This means that the wife of the teacher.
04:33His wife.
04:35Rule number six.
04:36Every question or interrogative sentence must end with a question mark.
04:42So if you are asking a question, you have to end it with a question mark.
04:47Examples.
04:48Do you like pizza?
04:50Question mark.
04:52Are you tired?
04:54Should we go to the cinema tonight?
04:57All of these are interrogative sentences or questions and must end with a question mark.
05:03Rule number seven.
05:05Use an exclamation mark at the end of a sentence to express excitement, strong emotion, or a sense of urgency.
05:14So, this is an exclamation mark.
05:17You look beautiful.
05:19When we add an exclamation mark, we're expressing excitement.
05:24Wow, you look beautiful.
05:25If we ended this sentence with just a period, it would be more like, you look beautiful.
05:31But when we add an exclamation mark, it's showing excitement.
05:36I am so excited.
05:38That was a terrible choice.
05:41So, we can use an exclamation mark to show happiness and excitement, but also, we can use it when you're
05:48angry.
05:55We often use exclamation marks in imperative sentences or commands.
06:01If a teacher says to a student, sit down, for example, you might use an exclamation mark.
06:08For all of these, you could also use a period, but when we use an exclamation mark, it's showing more
06:14excitement.
06:14Rule number eight.
06:17Use commas to separate items in a series of three or more things.
06:23For example, if you said, I bought coffee and tea.
06:27You do not need a comma because this is just two different things.
06:32But if we have a list of three or more things, we use commas.
06:38I bought coffee, comma, tea, comma, and milk.
06:43Some people don't like to use this comma here, the comma right before the conjunction, in a list.
06:50This is called the Oxford comma, and there's a lot of people who like to use it, and other people
06:56don't like to use it.
06:57I do have a video on the Oxford comma, which I will link to in the description below.
07:03But I recommend you use the Oxford comma.
07:05It makes things more clear that you're talking about three different items.
07:11Jake has been to India, comma, Pakistan, comma, and China.
07:17Okay?
07:18So we use commas in a series of three or more things to separate the items.
07:24Rule number nine.
07:26Use a comma to separate independent clauses, which is a complete thought or a complete sentence,
07:33when they are joined by the following conjunctions.
07:37For, and, nor, but, or, yet, so.
07:44A way to remember this, the conjunctions, is fanboys.
07:49If you can remember fanboys, then you can remember which conjunctions.
07:55Example, I want to go out tonight, but I need to study.
07:59This is incorrect.
08:01I want to go out tonight is a complete sentence.
08:05It is an independent clause.
08:07It works by itself.
08:09And I need to study is also an independent clause.
08:13So when we join two independent clauses together with a conjunction, like, but, we have to add
08:22a comma before it.
08:24So, I want to go out tonight, comma, but I need to study.
08:29He is a doctor and she is a lawyer.
08:32Again, these are two independent clauses, joined by a conjunction, so we have to add a comma
08:39before the conjunction.
08:41He is a doctor, comma, and she is a lawyer.
08:45Rule number ten.
08:47Use a semicolon between closely related independent clauses.
08:53So, we just talked about independent clauses.
08:56Something that's a complete sentence.
08:58For example, I love coffee, you love tea.
09:02We can combine these with a semicolon.
09:06You could also separate this into two different sentences, or add a comma and a conjunction.
09:14For example, I love coffee, comma, and you love tea.
09:20Or, I love coffee, but you love tea.
09:24Or, you could also separate it into two different sentences, ending, I love coffee, with a period,
09:32and starting the next sentence, with you, and capitalizing the letter.
09:37The next example, Karen is a teacher, semicolon, Susie is a nurse.
09:44Luigi doesn't like seafood, semicolon, he prefers pasta.
09:49You can see that in all of these examples, they are closely related.
09:54Both of the independent clauses are closely related, so we can connect them with a semicolon.
10:01Rule eleven.
10:02Use a colon to introduce a list of items.
10:06For example, they serve many types of food.
10:10Colon, Chinese, Indian, and American.
10:13So here, we have an independent clause right here.
10:18They serve many types of food.
10:20And to join this independent clause, with this list here, we can add a colon.
10:27There are three things every child needs.
10:30Colon.
10:31Education, food, and family.
10:34The colon is connecting this list here, with the independent clause.
10:43Rule number twelve.
10:45Use a hyphen to join two or more words that serve as a single adjective, before a noun.
10:52Examples.
10:54Well-known author.
10:56Kind-hearted woman.
10:58Brand-new television.
11:00Chocolate-covered peanuts.
11:02So, we're trying to make an adjective combining these two words.
11:09And this here is a noun.
11:12So, for example, brand-new.
11:15We need both of these words.
11:17We need to combine them both, to make an adjective.
11:21Same with chocolate-covered.
11:22These are combined.
11:24We're making an adjective with two words.
11:27So, we're going to add a hyphen to join these words, before a noun.
11:32And rule thirteen.
11:36Use a hyphen with compound numbers.
11:38You should hyphenate compound numbers between twenty-one and ninety-nine.
11:44Examples.
11:46Twenty-one.
11:48Eighty-three.
11:49Ninety-nine.
11:51Of course, you would not hyphenate twenty, because it's just a word all by itself.
11:58But, if you want to say twenty-three, then you would hyphenate twenty and three to make
12:04a compound number.
12:05So, in a sentence example, I have ninety-nine problems.
12:10She is thirty-two years old.
12:15Okay, so now I have eight different sentences.
12:18We're going to practice correcting these sentences, following the basic punctuation rules that I
12:24just taught you.
12:25So, I'm going to read through these eight sentences, and I want you to write down how we can correct
12:32them, because all of them are incorrect.
12:35Number one.
12:36My birthday is in December.
12:39Number two.
12:40Patty loves cats.
12:42Sean loves dogs.
12:44Number three.
12:45I went to the supermarket and bought cheese, eggs, and ham.
12:50Number four.
12:51Luke is twenty-seven years old.
12:54Number five.
12:55I want to go to the beach, but I think it's going to rain soon.
13:00Number six.
13:02Are you angry?
13:04Number seven.
13:05We bought two new cars.
13:08Number eight.
13:09You're a great guy.
13:12Okay, so let's go through these and correct them together.
13:15In the first sentence, we have two errors.
13:18First of all, we have to capitalize M, because it's the beginning of the sentence.
13:24So, this should be capital M.
13:27My birthday is in December.
13:30And we have to capitalize D, because December is a proper noun.
13:34It's the name of a month.
13:36We have to capitalize months.
13:38Number two.
13:39We have two different options.
13:41Patty loves cats.
13:43Sean loves dogs.
13:45This right here is a comma splice.
13:48A comma is not strong enough to connect two independent clauses.
13:52So, we can either make this into a semicolon, or we could add a period and make it two separate
14:01sentences.
14:03Number three.
14:04I went to the supermarket and bought cheese, comma, eggs, comma, and ham.
14:11Because we have a list of three or more things, we need to separate the list, the individual items,
14:19using commas.
14:21Number four.
14:23Luke is 27 years old.
14:24Here, we're going to add a hyphen between 20 and 7, because it's a compound number.
14:32Number five.
14:33I want to go to the beach, but I think it's going to rain soon.
14:37Well, here, we have an independent clause, I want to go to the beach.
14:44And, I think it's going to rain soon.
14:47And both of these are connected by conjunction.
14:50But, a conjunction is not strong enough to combine two independent clauses.
14:56We need to add a comma before it.
15:00So, I want to go to the beach, comma, but I think it's going to rain soon.
15:06Number six.
15:07Are you angry?
15:09This is a question, so we cannot end this in a period.
15:12It's a question.
15:14Are you angry?
15:15Question mark.
15:17If the answer was, I am angry, we would end it with a period.
15:22But, this is a question.
15:24Number seven.
15:25We bought two new cars.
15:27In this case, we have used the apostrophe to make a plural.
15:32And, remember, we don't do that.
15:34We would write cars without the apostrophe to make it plural.
15:40And, the last one.
15:42You're a great guy.
15:44Here, this is a contraction for, you are a great guy.
15:49So, we have to add an apostrophe between you and re to make the contraction for, you are.
16:00So, let me know how many you got out of eight correct in the comment section below.
16:05So, let's add one more question.
16:06You
Comments