Lesson Plan
Southern Nevada Regional Professional Development Program

A Mini lesson on Semicolons

For Teachers 11th - 12th Standards
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "Letter from Birmingham Jail" serves as an exemplar for a mini-lesson on semicolons. Working alone or in small groups, class members first circle all the semicolons in the letter, and then consider how this...
Handout
Syracuse City School District

Capitalization and Punctuation

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
How many of the pupils in your language arts class can differentiate between a colon and a semicolon? Clarify common conventions, including end punctuation, proper capitalization, and sentence structure, with a series of helpful grammar...
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Other

Punctuation Mark Rules: The Semicolon

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
Site provides information concerning the rules and usage of the grammatical element "the semicolon" in English punctuation. Also includes several examples.
Handout
University of Ottawa (Canada)

University of Ottawa Hyper Grammar: Quotation Marks

For Students 9th - 10th
The University of Ottawa developed this site about quotation mark usage. Discusses using quotation marks to set off dialogue, titles, short works, and special terms. Also instructs learners in using quotation marks with other forms of...
Handout
Capital Community College Foundation

Guide to Grammar and Writing: The Colon

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
Instructional resource providing notes and examples on the rules of using the colon, including two forms of presentations as well as a quiz where students can apply their understanding of colon usage.
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Other

Saint Michael's College: Semicolon and Colon

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This site discusses the three major uses of the semicolon and provides examples for each of the uses. Also discusses the use of the colon.
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Other

Punctuation Mark Rules: The Colon

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
A fairly comprehensive look at the uses and misuses of the grammatical element "the colon" in English punctuation. Includes information and several examples.
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Other

Exploring English: Colon: Rules for Use

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This site provides information regarding four common uses of the colon and its correct usage, along with examples.
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Towson University

Towson University: Online Writing Support: Punctuation

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This page provides links to punctuation reference materials for apostrophes, colons, dashes, commas, parentheses, italics, quotation marks, and semicolons.
Handout
Online Writing Lab at Purdue University

Purdue University Owl: Writing Lab: Brief Overview of Punctuation

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This lesson provides a brief overview of semicolons, colons, parentheses, dashes, quotation marks, italics, and underlining.
Handout
English Club

English Club: What Is Punctuation?

For Teachers 9th - 10th Standards
This EnglishClub tutorial reviews the purposes for punctuation. Several examples of punctuation in the context of sentences.
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Other

Tameri: Guide for Writers: Punctuation Rules

For Students 1st - 9th Standards
This site provides the punctuation rules.
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ACT360 Media

Writing Tips: Sentence Builder Punctuation

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
A list of the major elements of punctuation in the English language, including the period, question mark, exclamation mark, comma, apostrophe, quotation marks, colon, semicolon, dash, and hyphen. Provides a brief description and the...
Handout
Other

Tidewater Community College Writing Center: Practical Punctuation Guide

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This site contains practical and useful information about the following: commas, semicolons, colons, dashes, parentheses and brackets, ellipsis points, quotation marks, and apostrophes. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.L.2
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The Tongue Untied

The Tongue Untied: Quotation Marks

For Students 3rd - 8th Standards
Learn more about using quotation marks properly through this informative resource. Students and teachers will benefit from this helpful site.
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Other

Sandhills Community College: Punctuation Guide

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
Lists, defines and describes the uses of many elements of English punctuation, including the period, comma, semicolon, colon, apostrophe, quotation, hyphen, and dash. Includes several examples.
Handout
Other

Sta: Punctuation and Capitalization Rules

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
Use this handy guide for a quick reference to punctuation and capitalization rules. Includes rules for end marks, apostrophes, capitalization, commas, quotation marks, and many more!
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ACT360 Media

Writing Den: Punctuation

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
A brief description of the rules, usage, and examples of the each type of punctuation used when building a sentence.
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Other

Marking His Place: Ben Jonson's Punctuation

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This article proposes a theory for the way the English playwright spelled and puncuated his name with a colon: Ben:Jonson.
Handout
The Economist

The Economist: Economist Style Guide: Punctuation

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This resource provides a brief discussion of each of the following types of punctuation: apostrophes, brackets, colons, commas, dashes, full-stops, inverted commas, question marks, and semi-colons. Examples are included for each type of...