As the school year draws to a close, it is always a good idea to review specific topics we have learned about during our time together. Here are just a few to start us off!

Part One: PUNCTUATION PROOFREADING
Directions: In each sentence below, decide if punctuation has been used correctly or not. If it has, a simple "correct" will do. If it has not, please write "incorrect," and decide which correction(s) should be made.

1. While packing for vacation, I decided to bring books, magazines, and a journal for poolside enjoyment. _____________
2. When I went for a walk around the block I noticed several houses were for sale. _________________________________
3. The new boat which Tom christened recently waited patiently at the dock for his next voyage. ___________
4. "I can't believe school is almost over! he said. ______________________________________________________________
5. "When is the best time to write?" she asked. _______________________________________________________________
6. She told him to "follow his heart" in planning a career. ______________________________________________________
7. Who told you that masks are "unnecessary"? _______________________________________________________________
8. Tom asked, "Is this one of our last assignments"? ___________________________________________________________
9. "Don't listen to what other people say, " she told him. "All that matters is what you think." _______________________
10. "What will you do," he said to Jen, "after you graduate from SCALE?" _________________________________________
11. Sam watched the latest season of a TV show that he'd found on Netflix. ______________________________________
12. Daniel's brother, Brian, will be joining us later. ____________________________________________________________


Part Two: IDIOMS 
Directions: Match each idiom in Column A with its meaning in Column B.

Column A                                                                                               Column B
1. piece of cake                                                                                       A. something difficult that no one wants to discuss
2. the last straw                                                                                     B. easy
3. the elephant in the room                                                                   C. it's up to you to make the next move
4. saw the light                                                                                      D. last in sequence of unpleasant events
5. hot potato                                                                                           E. depart; leave
6. once in a blue moon                                                                           F. out of control
7. bed of roses                                                                                         G. become angry
8. when pigs fly                                                                                      H. understood something more clearly
9. miss the boat                                                                                      I. handle a difficult situation successfully
10. under the radar                                                                                 J. disclose a secret
11. jump to conclusions                                                                           K. rarely
12. no picnic                                                                                             L. easy option
13. out of hand                                                                                        M. never happens; is impossible
14. fly off the handle                                                                              N. controversial subject
15. give the cold shoulder                                                                       O. miss a chance
16. in hot water                                                                                       P. going unnoticed; avoiding attention
17. skeleton in the closet                                                                         Q. treat with coldness or contempt
18. spill the beans                                                                                    R. in trouble
19. weather the storm                                                                             S. secret of an embarrassing nature
20. the ball is in your court                                                                    T. predict a resolution without sufficient information
21. hit the road                                                                                        U. not fun

Part Three: IDIOMS IN SENTENCES
Directions: Use the Idioms from Column A (in Part Two) to complete the following sentences:

1. When Sean is upset with someone he tends to ______________________________________________.
2. Whatever you do, before we go to the surprise party this weekend, do not __________________________________.
3. To do something over and over again that you do not like is __________________________________.
4. I think they found out who committed the crime; he will really be _________________________________________.
5. John felt confident in his cooking ability; he always said creating new meals was a __________________________.
6. The movie ended, and it was time to ___________________________________________________.
7. When you start a new job, it is often said that _____________________________________________. This means that how well you will ultimately do depends on how much effort you are willing to put in.
8. As a movie star who was photographed wherever she went, she tried to live her personal life ______________ in order to preserve some privacy.
9. Susan forgot to play the megabucks during a week in which her numbers came out! Her friends feel bad that she
truly ___________________________________________________________.
10. Forgetting to complete important tasks at work for the fifth time in a row was _____________________________; Jane lost her job because of this!

Part Four: PARALLEL SENTENCE STRUCTURE
Directions: Please decide if the following sentences are parallel, and if they are not, please fix the mistakes!

1. The day was hot, sunny, and it was enjoyable, too. ________________________________
2. We walked along the city streets and welcomed the change in scenery. _________________________
3. He loves jogging, biking, and thinks hiking is fun, too. _________________________________
4. We learned how to read and writing in school. ________________________________________
5. We will read and relax all summer long! _____________________________________________

Part Five: GRAMMAR FUN
Directions: Please answer the following questions about various parts of speech and how they are used. Remember to think about the connotation of each word in question so that you make the best choice!

1. Todd bought a new video game at Game Stop. 
Question: What part of speech is video in this sentence?

2. Do you have a ride to the event on Sunday?
Question: What part of speech is ride in this sentence?

3. The world should always be filled with peace. 
Question: What part of speech is peace?

4. Joan's work computer ran programs faster than her personal laptop.
Question: What part of speech is work in this sentence?

5. Does he often bike to work during the colder months?
Question: What part of speech is bike in this sentence?

6. Please list all your favorite activities.
Question: What part of speech is list in this sentence?

7. Do you ever question the types of news we receive each day?
Question: What part of speech is question in this sentence?

8. Amanda's yellow dress was perfect for the spring concert.
Question: What part of speech is yellow?

9. My new puppy slept on her comfortable new dog bed.
Question: What part of speech is dog in this sentence?

10. There are fourteen students enrolled in this class.
Question: What part of speech is fourteen?

Part Six: WRITING--ANECDOTES!
Directions: Please write an anecdote about one of the following topics!

• a favorite toy you once played with
• a song that reminds you of an event in your life
• a restaurant you visit/visited often 
• a situation you encountered in a store 
• a happy moment you will always remember
• a time when you tried your best and it paid off!!

Part Seven: MORE WRITING--ESSAYS!
Directions: Please write a persuasive essay about one of the following topics:
​

• your view on the future of remote learning for adults
• your idea about what time a school day should begin for teenage students 
• your opinion on how well Governor Baker has handled the pandemic so far
• your view on why a particular TV program, movie, or song is the best ever created!
• your feeling about why it's important for people to embrace their culture and to preserve their heritage
• your opinion about the best way to spend summer vacation
• your choice of topic!

​

Directions: Parallel sentence structure ultimately means that your sentences are all aligned properly! They have the same verb tenses, point of view (if applicable!), and overall grammatical structure. This makes your writing easier and more enjoyable to read!

Example of parallelism: During the summer months, Tom enjoyed swimming, hiking, and running.
[Notice that the gerunds (verbs that function as nouns) all end in -ing. This makes the sentence parallel as well as more "pleasing to the ear."]

Example of a sentence WITHOUT parallel structure: During the summer months, Tom enjoyed, swimming, hiking, and he liked to run.
[Do you see the difference? While we still understand the meaning of the sentence, it just doesn't sound as good when all the -ing gerunds are the same!

Using parallel sentence structure gives your writing the professional polish it deserves!

​Your Turn:
Can you make the following sentences parallel?

1. He told me to bring a new notebook, college-ruled paper, and pencils that I should have previously sharpened.

2. I need to get a good night's sleep, have a good breakfast, and I will leave my house early.

3. Would you rather have a collie, a beagle, or a dog that comes from a mixed breed?

4. Do you enjoy hiking in the woods or would you rather swim in the lake?

5. He was instructed not to look at the answers, not to look at his phone, and he shouldn't talk to his neighbor as well.

Note: Be ready to talk about which changes you made (and why)!

PART TWO:
Directions: Please read the following three sentences; they are the beginning of a story you will finish! The goal of this assignment is to maintain parallel sentence structure. You can allow the story to go in any direction you choose, but the grammatical structure should remain the same (and in this case, so should the narrator's point of view!). Have fun!

Shari was excited about her upcoming vacation. She still couldn't believe she would finally visit Hawaii with her childhood friends -- it would truly be a dream of a lifetime. However, when the day of the trip arrived, a loud knock on her front door and her shock at who was standing on her doorstep were about to change everything!

Your turn!!