1. Fragments and Run-Ons Finding Errors in a Paragraph

2. Practice Directions: Number your paper 1-12. Read the paragraphs. Write “correct,” “fragment,” or “run-on” next to each number. (1) I hurdle over the burning log. (2) The tail of my jacket catches fire and I have to stop to rip it from my body and stamp out the flames. (3) The coughing begins soon after and my lungs begin to feel like they’re being cooked. (4) When discomfort turns to distress. (5 ) Each breath sends a searing pain through my chest. Excerpt from The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins 1. 3. 5. 2. 4.

3. Answers  1) correct  2) run-on  3) run-on  4) fragment  5) correct

4. Practice (6) Fear shoots through me but I have enough sense to keep still. (7) I don’t know what kind of wasp lives there. (8) Most people can’t tolerate more than a few stings some die at once. (9) If you live. (10) The hallucinations brought on by the venom have actually driven people to madness. (11) The nest burst open and a furious swarm of tracker jackers take to the air. (12) I feel a first, second, and third sting their venom almost immediately makes me woozy. Excerpt from The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins 1. 3.5.7. 2. 4.6.

5. Answers  6) run-on  7) correct  8) run-on  9) fragment  10) correct  11) correct  12) run-on

6. Repair the punctuation errors in the following paragraph.  Fear shoots through me but I have enough sense to keep still. I don’t know what kind of wasp lives there. Most people can’t tolerate more than a few stings some die at once. If you live the hallucinations brought on by the venom have actually driven people to madness. The nest burst open and a furious swarm of tracker jackers take to the air. I feel a first, second, and third sting and their venom almost immediately makes me woozy.

7. Corrected paragraph  Fear shoots through me, but I have enough sense to keep still. I don’t know what kind of wasp lives there. Most people can’t tolerate more than a few stings; some die at once. If you live, the hallucinations brought on by the venom have actually driven people to madness. The nest burst open, and a furious swarm of tracker jackers take to the air. I feel a first, second, and third sting, and their venom almost immediately makes me woozy.