Twenty sentences need fixing across five pages of this 4th grade punctuation homework. The first six are lines of speech, such as "Can we play kickball today asked Mark," that need quotation marks and commas. The next six are compound sentences missing the comma before and, but, or, or so. A mixed set and a short story about building a blanket fort make students decide which rule applies. It practices L.4.2.b and L.4.2.c, and the answer key gives every corrected sentence.
L.4.2.b
“Use commas and quotation marks to mark direct speech and quotations from a text.”
Questions 1 to 6, 14, 16, 18, and 19 all need commas and quotation marks around the exact words someone says.
L.4.2.c
“Use a comma before a coordinating conjunction in a compound sentence.”
Questions 7 to 13, 15, 17, and 20 need a comma before the coordinating conjunction.
A reminder box explains where quotation marks and commas go. Students rewrite six lines, including "I forgot my lunch box at home whispered Sarah" and "The coach yelled Run to first base!"
Students add the missing comma to six sentences, from "The sun was shining but it was still cold outside" to "Sam likes to read mystery books and he loves puzzles."
Four sentences about cleaning a messy room. Students decide whether each needs dialogue punctuation or a compound sentence comma.
In a story about building a fort with blankets and chairs, sentences 17 to 20 are missing punctuation. Students rewrite each one, including Emma's question.
Homework
It is written as homework, and the reminder boxes mean students can do it without you. Send Parts 1 and 2 one night and Parts 3 and 4 the next.
Common mistake
On questions 3 and 18, many students put a comma where the question mark should go. Write the fixed version of sentence 18 on the board before they start.
Editing link
Before students edit their own narratives, have them do Part 4. The fort story looks like student writing, so the skill carries over.
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