1. “The Dash”—It’s Very Useful.
Grade 8 | The Dash

2. What do you Notice?
“. . . He likes Soda--everybody likes Soda--but he can’t stand me.”
- S.E. Hinton, The Outsiders
“I stared at my father’s photograph—his thin face stern, lips latched tight, his eyes peering permanently to the right.”
-Paul Fleischman, Seed Folks
Grade 8 | The Dash

3. Invitation to Imitate Imitate the sentences we studied yesterday.
“. . . He likes Soda--everybody likes Soda--but he can’t stand me.”
-S.E. Hinton, The Outsiders
“I stared at my father’s photograph—his thin face stern, lips latched tight, his eyes peering perminantely to the right.”
- Paul Fleischman, Seed Folks
Grade 8 | The Dash

4. Invitation to Imitate Your turn…
I’d better have passed my test—it’s ninety percent of my class grade—or I’ll have to go to summer school.
-Anonymous Teacher
I eyed Abby’s terrible haircut—her ends uneven, strands frayed hopelessly, her bangs slanting stubbornly to the left.
-Anonymous Teacher
Grade 8 | The Dash

5. Invitation to Revise
Rewrite the following sentences, placing a dash where it is needed.
James can’t make it he caught the flu from his sister but hopefully he’ll be better by tomorrow.
“Maybe he’s rebelling aginst his dad the two weren’t close.”
-The Janson Directive, Robert Ludlum
Grade 8 | The Dash

6. Invitation to Edit
“. . . He likes Soda—everybody likes Soda—but he can’t stand me.”
“ He likes Soda–everybody likes Soda–but he cant stand me.” 
“ He likes Soda–everybody likes Soda–but he can’t stand me.”  
“ He likes Soda–everybody likes Soda, but he can’t stand me.  
“. . . He was liking Soda–everybody was liking Soda–but he was unable to stand me.”
Grade 8 | The Dash

7. Invitation to Write
Directions: Read the following excerpt from Who Wants Arthur, by Amanda Graham then write a short passage describing Arthur as he practices being a rabbit. Use dashes correctly. When you are finished, highlight or circle the dashes you used. "Arthur was a very ordinary dog. He lived in Mrs. Humber’s Pet Shop with many other animals. But Arthur was the only dog. All of the other dogs had been sold because dogs were very popular—all the dogs except Arthur. He was just an ordinary brown dog, who dearly wanted a home, with a pair of old slippers to chew. On Monday morning, Mrs. Humber put some rabbits in the window. By the end of the day, the window was empty—except for Arthur. Nobody wanted an ordinary brown dog. Everybody wanted rabbits. So that night, when all was quiet, Arthur practiced being a rabbit."
Grade 8 | The Dash