Middle School Grammar Help
In middle school, using proper grammar is required to do well on written assignments. Teachers will deduct points from papers that consistently break grammar rules. Therefore, it's important to know what mistakes to look for when editing your work. Keep reading to learn about some of the common grammar mistakes middle school students make.
Help with Middle School Grammar
Run-on Sentences
A run-on sentence usually occurs when you try to make a sentence do too much. The sentence is usually lacking proper punctuation and doesn't flow well. An example of a run-on sentence is below.
- Daniel went to the store the other day he bought the new video game.
To avoid run-ons, you should break up long sentences and create separate sentences. You can also turn one of the sentences into a subordinate clause and add a comma. Furthermore, you can add a comma and a coordinating conjunction (e.g., and, but or so) to break up the sentence properly. These options are demonstrated below using the example sentence above.
- Separate Sentences
- Daniel went to the store the other day. He bought the new video game.
- Subordinate Clause and Comma
- When Daniel went to the store the other day, he bought the new video game.
- Comma and Coordinating Conjunction
- Daniel went to the store the other day, and he bought the new video game.
Fragments
Fragments occur whenever you don't complete the sentence. This usually happens because you've forgotten to include the subject and verb. Examples of both scenarios are provided below.
- The beautiful girl next store.
- Moved out yesterday.
When you find fragments in your writing, complete the sentences by providing the subject that is performing the verb or providing the verb that the subject is performing.
- The beautiful girl next store moved out yesterday.
Subject and Verb Agreement
You also need to pay attention to subject and verb agreement in your sentences. If the subject is singular, use a singular verb. If the subject is plural, use a plural verb. It's important to know that adding an -s on the end of verbs makes them singular. Examples of incorrect and correct subject/verb agreement are provided below.
Incorrect
- The choir members sings beautifully.
- Travis are an excellent student.
Correct
- The choir members sing beautifully.
- Travis is an excellent student.
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