Key Points of Grammar

1. Dr. Stephanie Hester, Faculty of HUMSS Study Skills Clinic Stephanie.hester@adelaide.edu.au Key Points of Grammar

2. Key Assessment Areas in the Faculty of HUMSS

3. In the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, students are assessed on key skills including: • Grammar and Expression • Research (locating and analysing information) • Referencing • Essay Writing

4. Which of these are about: • Grammar and Expression? University of Adelaide

5. Complete Sentences Punctuation Apostrophes In this presentation

6. Sentence Fragments • Do you ever get that green wiggly line that asks you to consider revising your Sentence Fragment? Sometimes it can be hard to know what a sentence fragment is. The best way to understand sentence fragments is to first look at what makes a complete sentence. 6

7. Parts of a complete sentence • A ‘complete’ sentence needs a subject and a verb (or a doing word). • Frankhates grammar. • Judyloves grammar more than life itself. • Bennyis turning into a tractor. Life Impact The University of Adelaide 7

8. Sentence fragment • Without a verb and subject a sentence becomes a ‘fragment’. • Judyloves grammar. More than life itself. • Judyloves grammar more than life itself. 8

9. Quiz Where is the subject in each of these sentences? • Peter wanted to be a professional inline skater. • Up the hill and down again ran the escaped ferret. 9

10. Building Compound Sentences A compound sentence is a sentence made up of simple ‘independent clauses’ that have been joined together with conjunctions or semi-colons. • Barry was beginning to wish he hadn’t come to the O-Week Grammar Tutorial and he was considering faking an asthma attack to escape. • Barry was beginning to wish he hadn’t come to the O-Week Grammar Tutorial; he was considering faking an asthma attack to escape. Points to Note: 1. Independent clauses work as sentences by themselves. • Barry was beginning to wish he hadn’t come to the O-Week Grammar Tutorial. He was considering faking an asthma attack to escape. 2. Conjunctions include and, but, both, for, therefore, however, yet. 10

11. Comma Splice • Independent clauses, or simple sentences, cannot be joined by a comma alone. This is called a comma splice. • We are going to the ferret race, it will be smelly. • We are going to the ferret race; it will be smelly. ☺ • We are going to the ferret race and it will be smelly. ☺ 11

12. Semicolons • A semicolon is used when both parts of the sentence are independent clauses, and are therefore ‘strong’ enough to work as simple sentences. • Semi-colons are especially effective when used to join two clauses that are related in thought. • I am still pumped about O-Week; it’s going to take more than a grammar tutorial to bring me down. 12

13. Colons • A colon stands between a clause that raises some kind of expectation and the clause/phrase/word that fulfils that expectation. ALMOST ALWAYS THE TWO PARTS OF THE SENTENCE AREN’T STRONG ENOUGH TO STAND ALONE. • I realised immediately who had stolen all the jelly donuts: Dracula! • Colons can also be used to introduce a quotation or example or a list. • I love three things: chocolate, bananas and chocolate bananas 13

14. Commas • The comma can be used to insert a pause into a sentence. • The elephant is large, but friendly. • Commas can mark out a bit of a sentence, or ‘phrase’, that you could remove from a sentence without affecting it. • The elephant, although large, is very friendly. • Commas can be used to separate items in a list. If there are multi-word items in the list, use semicolons as separators. • The elephant was large, friendly, happy and pink. 14

15. Quizzes Which of the following sentences is not correct? A. I knew who was following me, what could I do? B. I knew who was following me but what could I do? C. I knew who was following me; what could I do? D. I knew who was following me: what could I do? 15

16. I knew who was following me, what could I do?: This is an example of a comma splice. B. I knew who was following me but what could I do? C. I knew who was following me; what could I do? D. I knew who was following me: what could I do?

17. Which of the following sentences is correct? • We need a few things; chocolate, movies and a room. • We need a few things: chocolate, movies and a room. • We need a few things, chocolate, movies and a room. • We need a few things; chocolate; movies; a room.

18. We need a few things; chocolate, movies and a room. • We need a few things: chocolate, movies and a room. • We need a few things, chocolate, movies and a room. • We need a few things; chocolate; movies; a room. Remember: Colons are used to start a list. Semi-colons divide ‘independent’ clauses (with subjects and verbs). Commas separate items in a list (but don’t come before one).

19. Apostrophes 19

20. Apostrophes - Singular • Apostrophes are used to show who owns something. • You put an apostrophe before the s to show one person owns something. • The dog’s mobile phone. • Mr. Baker’s bowtie. • Sometimes, when something or someone’s name already ends in s, you can just put an apostrophe after the name, without an extra s (this is a personal preference, to an extent). • Mr. Dickens’ lengthy novels 20

21. Apostrophes - Plural • Apostrophes go after the s when you are indicating more than one person or thing owns something. • The dogs’ joint bank account. • The boys’ boxed sets of Games of Thrones. • Note: sometimes you will encounter a word that acts as a plural, such as ‘children’ or ‘women’. In this case, you place the apostrophe before the s. • The children’s playground. • The women’s boxed sets of Breaking Bad. Life Impact The University of Adelaide 21

22. Apostrophes in contractions (abbreviations) • Apostrophes can indicate you have contracted or joined two words together: • It’s (it is) just not cricket • She’ll (she will) be apples • You don’t use an apostrophe in ‘its’ when you are demonstrating the ‘it’ owns something. • The cat and its servants. (You couldn’t write this out as the cat and it is servants). 22

23. Which of the following are correct? • The dog’s off it’s leash • The dog’s off its leash • The dogs off it’s leash • The dogs off its leash 23

24. The dog’s off it’s leash • The dog’s off its leash • The dogs off it’s leash • The dogs off its leash • The apostrophe shows possession (the leash of the dog). If you wrote out B, it would be ‘The dog is off its leash.’

25. Which of the following is correct? A. A Room of Ones Own is a popular womens book. B. A Room of Ones Own is a popular women’s book. C. A Room of One’s Own is a popular womens’ book. D. A Room of One’s Own is a popular women’s book.

26. A. A Room of Ones Own is a popular womens’ book. B. A Room of Ones Own is a popular women’s book. C. A Room of One’s Own is a popular womens’ book. D. A Room of One’s Own is a popular women’s book. Both apostrophes show a ‘single’ person or thing owns something. The room belongs to ‘one’; ‘women’ is singular.

27. Further Resources Consider ways in which your Grammar Journey can continue: • Use our especially devised resource in Academic Preparation - http://www.hss.adelaide.edu.au/current-students/support/academic-skills/ • Check out the wide range of resources online and in-text in the Barr Smith Library: http://libguides.adelaide.edu.au/academic_writing • Join our Facebook Page to post your questions: ‘Uni Adelaide HUMSS First Year Group 2014’ 27