A few great resources for teaching conventions, and for thinking about how we teach conventions:
Graves. A Fresh Look at Writing. Chapter 12: “Help Children Learn Conventions.”
Routman. Literacy at the Crossroads. Chapter 7: “Spelling, Grammar, Handwriting, and Other ‘Questionable’ Practices.”
WRITE SOURCE Punctuation Pockets, student handbooks and Sourcebooks. (Houghton Mifflin) Go on-line, or call 1-800-289-4490 to order a catalog.
Here’s an activity you can use after teaching paragraphing, and the use of quotation marks in dialogue. Take a passage from any published book (the passage below is from my book Secret Pal Surprises). Re-type the passage, removing paragraphing and quotation marks. Give students copies of the passage. Working alone or in pairs have students rewrite the passage inserting quotation marks, and paragraphing as needed. Compare results to the original passage. (Note: paragraphing may vary somewhat.)
Altered passage:
Jake shoved something behind a coat. What are you doing here? he growled at Tommy. I-I was looking for something. Tommy snatched his glue bottle off the table and hurried back to his desk. As he plopped into his seat, Elizabeth, who sat across from him, looked up. Are you okay? she asked. You look sick or something. I’m fine. Tommy watched Elizabeth’s legs swinging back and forth under her chair. She was so short her feet didn’t touch the floor. Jennifer, who sat in back of him, tapped him on the shoulder. Maybe you should go to the nurse’s room, she said. Tommy rolled his eyes. Jennifer spent more time in the nurse’s room than any other kid in Mrs. Hall’s third grade class. She always had a sore throat, or a stomach-ache. I’m fine, he said. He opened his math book so they would leave him alone.
Here’s the same passage with the addition of misspelled words. If students haven’t had a lot of experience with conventions, you may want to start them looking for just one thing at a time. (i.e. end punctuation, spelling, paragraphing, etc.)
Jake shuved somthing behind a coat. What are you doing her? he growled at Tommy. I-I was looking for somthing. Tommy snatched his glue botel off the table and hurryed back to his desk. as he plopped into his seat Elizabeth who sat across from him looked up are you okay? she asked. You look sick or somthing. i’m fine. Tommy watched Elizabeth’s legs swinging back and forth under her char she was so short her feet didn’t tuch the floor. Jennifer who sat in back of him taped him on the shoulder. maybe you should go to the nurse’s room she said. Tommy rolled his eyes. Jennifer spent more time in the nurse’s room than any other kid in mrs. Hall’s third grade class, she always had a sore throat, or a stomach-ache. I’m fine, he said. he opened his math book so they would leve him alone.
Unaltered passage:
Jake shoved something behind a coat. “What are you doing here?” he growled at Tommy.
“I-I was looking for something.” Tommy snatched his glue bottle off the table and hurried back to his desk.
As he plopped into his seat, Elizabeth, who sat across from him, looked up. “Are you okay?” she asked. “You look sick or something.”
“I’m fine.” Tommy watched Elizabeth’s legs swinging back and forth under her chair. She was so short her feet didn’t touch the floor.
Jennifer, who sat in back of him, tapped him on the shoulder. “Maybe you should go to the nurse’s room,” she said.
Tommy rolled his eyes. Jennifer spent more time in the nurse’s room than any other kid in Mrs. Hall’s third grade class. She always had a sore throat, or a stomach-ache.
“I’m fine,” he said. He opened his math book so they would leave him alone.
WORDS OF WISDOM
“Eighteen rules for Good Riting” from the Farmer’s A1manac, plus the first one from William Safire’s Fumblerules.” (The Almanac rules are from 1975. )
And don’t start a sentence with a conjunction.
Each pronoun agrees with their antecedent.
Just between you and I, case is important.
Verbs has to agree with their subjects.
Watch out for irregular verbs which has cropped into our language.
Don’t use no double negatives.
A writer must not shift your point of view.
When dangling, don’t use participles.
Join clauses good, like a conjunction should.
Don’t use a run-on sentence you got to punctuate it.
About sentence fragments.
In letters theme reports articles and stuff like that we use commas to keep a string of items apart.
Don’t use commas, which aren’t necessary.
It’s important to use apostrophe’s right.
Don’t abbrev.
Check to see if any words out.
In my opinion I think that an author when he is writing shouldn’t get into the habit of making use of too many unnecessary words that he does not really need.
And, of course, there’s that old one: Never use a preposition to end a sentence with.
Last but not least, lay off clichés.
From the Writing Curriculum Files of Children’s Author, Suzanne Williams www.suzanne-williams.com