“Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes.” — Song of Solomon 2:15
Lesson
What You Will Learn
- Use commas correctly in the most common situations
- Use apostrophes correctly and fix its/it's and there/their/they're
- Find and fix run-ons, comma splices, and fragments
- Create a style sheet to keep names, spellings, and numbers consistent
Lesson Notes
Commas That Matter Most
Song of Solomon 2:15 warns that the little foxes spoil the vines. Small errors can spoil good writing by distracting the reader. Learn these comma uses:
- After an introductory word or phrase: When I close my eyes, I can still hear them.
- Before and, but, or, so when it joins two complete sentences: I was tired, but I kept going.
- In a series: cousins on the porch, cousins in the yard, and cousins on the floor. (The comma before and is called the serial comma; Chicago style uses it.)
- Around extra information: My aunt, who never missed church, sang alto.
- For direct address: Come here, baby.
Apostrophes and Sound-Alikes
- Possession: my grandmother's house (one grandmother); my grandparents' house (more than one).
- Contractions: it's = it is or it has; they're = they are; don't = do not.
- Not for plurals: paper plates, not plate's; the 1990s, not the 1990's.
- Its / it's: its shows possession (the dog wagged its tail); it's means it is or it has. Test: if it is fits, use it's.
- There / their / they're: there is a place or starts a sentence (There was a pie); their shows possession (their laughter); they're means they are.
Run-Ons and Fragments
A run-on joins two complete sentences without proper punctuation. A comma splice joins them with only a comma: Grandma didn't mind, she said a full house was a blessed house. Fix it with a period, a semicolon, a comma plus and/but/so, or a word like because.
A fragment is a group of words punctuated as a sentence but missing a subject, a verb, or a complete thought: Because she loved to feed people. Attach it to the sentence before or after it, or add what is missing.
Writers sometimes use a short fragment on purpose for effect (Silence.). That is a choice. Make sure your fragments are choices, not accidents.
Consistency and the Style Sheet
Readers notice when Mama Ruth becomes mama Ruth, or Elm Street becomes Elm St. Many publishers use a style guide, such as The Chicago Manual of Style, to settle questions like these. Writers and editors also keep a style sheet: a one-page list of decisions for one manuscript.
A simple style sheet has sections for names and titles (Mama Ruth, Pastor Green), places, spellings and words (okay, not OK), numbers (for example, spell out numbers one through one hundred, as Chicago style generally does), capitalization and hyphenation (two-bedroom house), and Scripture (KJV; book names spelled out). Each time you make a choice, write it down.
Key Terms
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Comma splice | Two complete sentences joined only by a comma |
| Fragment | An incomplete sentence missing a subject, verb, or complete thought |
| Serial comma | The comma before and or or in a list of three or more |
| Style sheet | A list of spelling, name, number, and style decisions for one manuscript |
In-Class Activities
Error Hunt
This paragraph was written for this course with ten errors in it (apostrophes, its/it's, there/their/they're, commas in a series, a comma splice, and a fragment). Find and correct all ten, then copy the paragraph correctly.
Every summer my grandmothers house filled up with cousins. Its hard to explain how loud it was. There were cousins on the porch cousins in the yard and cousins asleep on the floor. Grandma didn't mind, she said a full house was a blessed house. Their was always something cooking. Because she loved to feed people. My aunts would say, “Their just kids,” whenever we got too loud. The dog would wag it's tail at anyone who walked by. We ate on paper plate's at a long table under the pecan tree. When I close my eyes, I can still hear there laughter.
Build a Style Sheet
This passage (written for this course) has five consistency problems. Find them, decide on one form for each, and write a five-line style sheet. Then copy the passage correctly.
Mama Ruth raised six children in a two bedroom house on Elm Street. On Sundays, mama Ruth baked 7 pies. If I asked for a slice early, she'd say, “OK, just one.” By the time I was twelve, I could bake seven pies myself. “Okay,” she told me that summer, “now you can teach somebody else.” Elm St. was quiet back then.
Assignment: Copyedit and Start Your Style Sheet
Copyedit your working copy in separate passes, one error type at a time:
- Commas (introductory, compound sentences, series, extra information, direct address).
- Apostrophes, its/it's, and there/their/they're.
- Run-ons, comma splices, and fragments (keep only fragments you chose on purpose).
Start your style sheet with at least eight entries across the categories in the lesson. Bring your nearly final copy to Module 8.
Graded with the Module Assignment Rubric.
Reflection Journal
Song of Solomon 2:15 speaks of little foxes that spoil the vines. What small habits or attitudes, in your writing or your life, could spoil good fruit if left alone? What would it look like to catch them early?
Prayer focus: Ask God for faithfulness in small things and patience with the careful work of getting details right.
Weekly Reading & Devotions
The Little Foxes
Song of Solomon 2:15 warns about the little foxes, that spoil the vines. In writing, the little foxes are small errors: a missing apostrophe, their for there, a comma splice. None of them is huge, but together they pull a reader out of your story.
You do not have to memorize a grammar book. Learn the handful of rules that readers notice most: commas in a few key places, apostrophes for possession and contractions (never plurals), its versus it's, there versus their versus they're, and how to fix run-ons and fragments.
Consistency matters too. If your grandmother is Mama Ruth on page one, she should not become mama Ruth on page three. Publishers use style guides, such as The Chicago Manual of Style, and writers keep style sheets: a simple list of decisions for one manuscript.
If grammar has made you feel small in the past, hear this: these rules are tools, not tests of your intelligence. Every professional writer looks things up. Faithfulness in little things is a skill anyone can learn.
Think About It
- Which little foxes show up most in your writing? ______________________
- How do you feel about grammar, and where did that feeling come from? ______________________
- What are the first five entries on your style sheet? ______________________
Daily Devotions for Week 7
The Little Foxes
Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes.— Song of Solomon 2:15 (KJV)
Small things can spoil good fruit. Catching them early protects what is growing.
Reflect: What little fox needs catching in your life?
Pray: Lord, help me catch the little foxes.
Do: Check every its and it's in your draft.
Not One Jot
For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.— Matthew 5:18 (KJV)
God cares about the smallest marks of His Word. Small marks in our writing matter too.
Reflect: What small detail have you been overlooking?
Pray: Lord, make me careful with small things.
Do: Check every apostrophe on one page.
Faithful in Least
He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.— Luke 16:10 (KJV)
Faithfulness in commas and capital letters builds a habit of faithfulness everywhere.
Reflect: Where can you be faithful in something small this week?
Pray: Lord, make me faithful in little.
Do: Fix every comma splice in your piece.
Approved Workman
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.— 2 Timothy 2:15 (KJV)
Careful study makes a workman unashamed. You can learn these skills.
Reflect: What skill are you studying to master?
Pray: Lord, make me a workman who needs not be ashamed.
Do: Review the Quick Guide grammar rules for ten minutes.
No Variableness
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.— James 1:17 (KJV)
God never changes. Consistency in our work is a small reflection of His faithfulness.
Reflect: Where do you want to be more consistent?
Pray: Father of lights, thank You for never changing.
Do: Add five entries to your style sheet.
Module Quiz
- 1.
Which sentence is correct?
- 2.
Which is a comma splice?
- 3.
Choose the correct sentence.
- 4.
An apostrophe should be used to make most words plural, as in paper plate's.
- 5.
What is a style sheet, and name three kinds of entries it might include?