1. D.L.P. – Week Seven GRADE EIGHT

2. Day One – Skills Elimination of a double subject Avoid redundancy to avoid the repetition of a subject. (Incorrect: The man on the boat he was so tall. Correct: The man on the boat was so tall.) Capitalization of a proper noun – people with titles Names of people are always capitalized. If the person has a title such as Mr. or Dr., the title is also capitalized. Animal’s names are also capitalized. Use of an adverb to modify a verb Adverbs are used to describe verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs. An adjective cannot be used to describe a verb. (opened quick must be opened quickly) An adjective cannot be used to describe another adjective. (real exciting must be turned into really excited.)

3. Philip Nolan in “The Man without a Country” he is a young officer in the United States Army in 1805. DAY ONE – SENTENCE ONE Philip Nolan in “The Man without a Country” is a young officer in the United States Army in 1805.

4. Nolan meets vice president Aaron Burr and is mighty impressed by him. DAY ONE – SENTENCE TWO Nolan meets Vice president Aaron Burr and is very impressed by him.

5. Day Two – Skills Correction of a misplaced modifier A misplaced modifier occurs when the word(s) used to describe something are not placed in the sentence properly. Sometimes the modifier is simply too far away from what it describes. At other times, the modifier is placed near something else that it mistakenly describes. Pronoun case in compounds Pronouns are used differently depending on what case they are. Subject pronouns, also known as nominative pronouns can work as subjects or predicate nouns. They are I, we, you, he, she, it, and they. Objective pronouns can work as direct objects, indirect objects, or objects of the preposition. They are me, us, you, him, her, it, and them. Possessive pronouns show ownership. They are my, mine, our, ours, your, yours, his, her, hers, its, their, and theirs. Note that possessive pronouns do not have apostrophes. To use pronouns correctly, they must be in the right case. See the explanation in the above entry. When the pronoun is compound, it must still be in the case to match the function of the pronoun in the sentence. (Maxine and I are friends. I talked to him and her.) If the pronoun is paired with a noun, the noun will precede the pronoun in the pair (Bobby and me). Correction of a run-on sentence with separate sentences Run-on sentences occur when two complete thoughts run together without proper connection or punctuation. Run-ons can be corrected in one of three ways. First, simply separate the two sentences with proper end punctuation. However, if the two sentences can be connected by meaning, connect them with a comma and the proper conjunction. Finally, the two sentences can have a semicolon placed between them if the clauses relate closely in meaning. Note that the sentence following the semicolon would not begin with a capital unless that word is a proper noun or the pronoun I.

6. Nolan later agrees to help Burr carry out a plan, flattered by Burr’s attention. DAY TWO – SENTENCE ONE Flattered by Burr’s attention, Nolan later agrees to help Burr carry out a plan.

7. Burr’s plan gets he and his followers into grave trouble, they are all tried for treason, and Nolan is convicted. DAY TWO – SENTENCE TWO Burr’s plan gets his followers and him into grave trouble. They are all tried for treason, and Nolan is convicted.

8. Day Three– Skills Use of punctuation in dialogue Quotation marks are used around the exact words that someone speaks. Punctuation to separate the spoken and non-spoken words is included inside of the quotation marks. Use of a comma after an introductory participle When a participial phrase comes at the beginning of a sentence, set it off with a comma. Remember, a participle looks like a verb so it often ends in “ing” or “ed.” Participles work like adjectives, so they are not needed in the sentence and can be removed, but they do add good description. (Excited by the news, Elizabeth jumped up and down.) Use of punctuation with the title of a ship or plane The names of planes and ships are capitalized just like any other title. They also are underlined or written in italics.

9. At his trial, Nolan cries out, I wish I may never hear of the United States again. DAY THREE – SENTENCE ONE At his trial, Nolan cries out, “I wish I may never hear of the United States again.”

10. Shocked the court sentences Nolan to life at sea, beginning immediately on the ship Nautilus. DAY THREE – SENTENCE TWO Shocked, the court sentences Nolan to life at sea, beginning immediately on the ship Nautilus.

11. Day Four– Skills Use of a hyphen Some compound words are connected by a hyphen. To be certain if a word needed a hyphen, consult a dictionary. Hyphens are also used at the end of a written or typed line of text if the complete word does not fit. Use the hyphen between syllables of the word. Correction of a split infinitive An infinitive is formed when the word to is added to a verb. (to sing, to write) An infinitive should never be split. That means that no words should ever come between the to and the verb. (Correct: To write properly is the goal in English class. Incorrect: To properly write is the goal of English class.) Sentence combining – subordinate conjunctions Two ideas can be combined into one sentence by making one sentence into a subordinate (dependent) clause. If the dependent clause begins the sentence, a comma must follow it.

12. Nolan spends his next fifty five years with companions who are ordered to never mention the United States to him. DAY FOUR – SENTENCE ONE Nolan spends his next fifty-five years with companions who are ordered never to mention the United States to him.

13. Nolan’s sentence is never lifted. He serves his country honorably. DAY FOUR – SENTENCE TWO Since Nolan’s sentence is never lifted, he serves his country honorably.

14. Day Five– Skills Correction of a misplaced modifier A misplaced modifier occurs when the word(s) used to describe something are not placed in the sentence properly. Sometimes the modifier is simply too far away from what it describes. At other times, the modifier is placed near something else that it mistakenly describes. Agreement of pronoun with antecedent A pronoun is a word that takes the place of a noun. An antecedent is the noun that the pronoun replaces. They must agree. For example, if one is singular, then the other must be. If one is masculine, then the other must be. Style – Avoidance of here and there after a demonstrative adjective The words here and there are adverbs. It is correct to use them to refer to a place. (The book is over there.) The words here and there are also called expletives when they are followed by a linking verb. An expletive has no meaning. Read these two sentences: There are ten people on the team. Ten people are on the team. Technically, they add nothing to the meaning of the sentence. They are perfectly fine words to use, but they should be avoided at the beginning of important sentences such as thesis statements and topic/ending sentences since they have no meaning. The words here and there are not adjectives. They should not be used before a noun. (This here book….that there roadway) Easily confused words – lose/loose The word lose is a verb that means not to win. The adjective loose means not tight.

15. Philip Nolan is a fictional character, created more than 140 years ago by Edward Everett Hale, although he seems real. DAY FIVE – SENTENCE ONE Although he seems real, Philip Nolan is a fictional character, created more than 140 years ago by Edward Everett Hale.

16. This here story shows how someone doesn’t fully appreciate their country until loosing it. DAY FIVE – SENTENCE TWO This story shows how someone doesn’t fully appreciate his country until loosing it.