1. Sentence Fragment Run-On & Comma Splice

2. I believe that…TEST When checking for a fragment or not, say the words “I believe that” and read what the author wrote. If it makes sense, then it’s a sentence If not, then what was written is a fragment You try: 1)While running through the halls, the girls tripped and fell. 2)Dancing at homecoming. 3)The sumo wrestler ate 50 pounds of rice to keep his weight up.

3. It might be a run on…TEST If there is no period, semi-colon, or comma and conjunction joining more than one idea together…it might be a run on If there are over 15 words in the sentence it might be a run on. If you have 2 different subjects doing 2 different things in the sentence and you didn’t use a comma and conjunction, it might be a run on.

4. When reading The Bell Jar in present times, lunacy and sex had never been talked about in a book before, and society is much more accepting of nonconformists now than they were in the 1950s, so Plath was breaking all the unwritten laws of society in writing this book.

5. Comma splice You cannot create a complex sentence just using a comma. If you added a comma and no other joining words to the sentence (and, or, for, but, yet, etc.) you have created a comma splice

6. Comma Splice Test your skills Nancy waited in line for 3 hours to vote, Jill only waited for 20 minutes. Hopefully you will want to go to the mall with me this weekend, but if not, then I will just go by myself. During the winter, I really hate the long days of dark. I much prefer the sunny days of summer.

7. Let’ review Sentence fragments are incomplete thoughts. It doesn’t matter how long the fragment, if it does not express a complete thought, it is a fragment. Run-on sentences are like the Energizer Bunny….they keep going and going and going The comma is a lot like pizza…we all really like it, but too many slices of pizza will make you sick and not enough pizza leaves you still hungry. And not putting this comma in creates a run on.

8. You Try---correct sentences if they need to be corrected. Because I have to write this biography this weekend I will be unable to attend the party. I will be much happier when this presentation is over, since I really do not like grammar. After, a long day, when I am really worn out, I enjoy vegging out to television I don’t really watch, I just space out.