July 1, 2025

Hi, everyone!
Today's main lesson will center around the use of the semicolon. I chose this particular punctuation mark after reading that people are not using it as often as they have in the past, and we do not want this wonderful punctuation mark to go away! Haha! I hope you have fun with the exercises in today's lessons!

Part One
Idiom of the Day
The apple doesn't fall far from the tree.
Directions: Please read the following sentence, and use context clues as help in figuring out what this idiom means. I bet you will guess right away!
Sentence: Torrence Brown is a gifted artist whose work appears in many art galleries around the country; his son David is now picking up a paintbrush, and people are already saying the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.
Write down what you think this idiom means:
Explain how you made this decision (for example, which words and phrases helped you understand the idiom's meaning):
Your Example: Use this idiom in a sentence that shows you understand its meaning!

Part Two
Grammar Challenge
Who or Whom
Directions: As a recap, who is always used as a subject pronoun and can be replaced with words such as he, she, it, or they. Whom is an object pronoun, which means it is receiving the action. Whom can be replaced with words such as him, her, or them. Use these examples in helping you make choices in the following sentences.

1. (Who, Whom) is she talking about?
2. (Who, Whom) will take you to school tomorrow?
3. (Who, Whom) did you say will be the new president of our Student Leadership Council?
4. I don't know (who, whom) I should call to ask questions about my insurance policy.
5. Do you know (who, whom) is playing as part of the opening act at the concert tonight?
6. Did you see (who, whom) caused the accident?
7. I am not sure (who, whom) I should give these papers to. (Note: You could also say, "I am not sure to (who, whom) I should give these papers." Either way is acceptable, but it's important to know that we can end sentences in prepositions in this day and age!)
8. (Who, Whom) is Jeanie calling on her phone?
9. (Who, Whom) is the protagonist in the story we are reading?
10. I searched all around the mall, but I could not find the person (who, whom) was giving out 50% off coupons to be used in any store!

Your Turn: Please create sentences that show you understand how to use who and whom effectively!

Part Three
Writing
Directions: Select one of the sentences from Part Two (which you just completed), and use it to start a story of your own. Be sure to use the same verb tense and point of view, but the story is now yours to tell! Enjoy!

Part Four
Punctuation Practice
Our Main Lesson Today: The Semicolon    ;

The semicolon has two main purposes: to link two independent clauses or sentences that have something in common OR to separate groups of words that belong together and would be unclear if only a comma were used.

Example One: I could not wait to go to the beach; I could already feel the soft breeze in my hair and feel the powdery sand between my toes.
Explanation: In the above example, each set of words before and after the semicolon could be a sentence of its own. It would be absolutely fine if we decided to write them that way. But because the second group of words relies on the first group of words to make sense, a semicolon ties them together neatly and effectively!

Example Two: Some of my favorite places include Phoenix, Arizona; San Diego, California; Daytona Beach, Florida; Lake George, New York; and, of course, Boston, Massachusetts!
Explanation: Each of the above groups of words names a city and a state. If we were to simply put commas among all of them, it would be difficult to see which places belonged together!

Your Turn: Please connect each group of sentences with a semicolon in its proper place.
1. Students are doing well at SCALE. They are working hard and learning a lot.
2. This is a great day for taking a hike. Walking on different types of terrain is always good physical activity.
3. You are an excellent swimmer. Taking the Red Cross test to become a lifeguard would be a great idea for you to pursue.
4. This is a wonderful movie. I can't wait to find out who committed the crime!
5. I love your shoes. I've been looking for a pair just like them!
6. His new car is a Maserati. I wonder how he could afford such an expensive model.

Your Turn Part Two: Please decide where to place both semicolons and/or commas in the following sentences!
Note: Some sentences will have only semicolons, while others will have only commas. There is only one sentence that contains both commas and semicolons!
1. I will drive through Tewksbury Massachusetts Andover Massachusetts Methuen Massachusetts and end up in Salem New Hampshire.
2. She loves gardening in the spring at her cottage in Cape Cod skiing in the winter at Sugar Loaf Mountain and ice skating in late fall at the Stoneham Rink.
3. I am going to the store to get some lemons limes strawberries and bananas.
4. He is buying new shoes a new suit and a new suitcase in which he will pack everything for his trip.
5. Don't worry about me I will be just fine.

Bonus: Find a rhetorical question used in today's lesson and list it here:

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Answers will be provided later today, so be sure to come back for them!!!!

ANSWERS:
Part One 
Idiom
The apple doesn't fall far from the tree implies that sons and daughters are often just like their parents in specific ways. An apple is a fruit from the tree in which it is grown, and if we were to think about it literally, when it falls off a branch, it falls quite near to the tree. We are just like the apple in that we often have characteristics or behavioral traits that are just like people in our families! Did you guess the correct answer?

Part Two
Who or Whom
1. Whom
2. Who
3. Who
4. whom
5. who
6. who
7. whom
8. Whom
9. Who
10. who

Please note that only words that began sentences were capitalized above!

To check your answers, insert a subject pronoun, such as he for the word who, and you will see that it makes sense.    Who always goes with the verb in your sentence!

To check whom, insert an object pronoun, such as him for the word whom, and hopefully you will see that this makes sense, as well! The object pronoun is receiving the action, such as in the following sentence: 

                                   Whom did Marc throw the football to?
                                   Marc threw the football to him.

Note: If you are presented with a question, it is often a good idea to answer the question with a pronoun in place of who or whom, as we just did in the example above. 

Part Three
I hope you enjoyed writing a story using a line from the previous exercise. Why not do a second or third one today? The more you practice writing, the better you get!! Enjoy the process, as always!

Part Four
Semicolons
1.  Students are doing well at SCALE; they are working hard and learning a lot.
2. This is a great day for taking a hike; walking on different types of terrain is always good physical activity.
3. You are an excellent swimmer; taking the Red Cross test to become a lifeguard would be a great idea for you to pursue.
4. This is a wonderful movie; I can't wait to find out who committed the crime!
5.  I love your shoes; I've been looking for a pair just like them!
6.  His new car is a Maserati; I wonder how he could afford such an expensive model.

Did you notice that the semicolon was inserted where the period had been in every case? Did you also notice that the very next letter after the semicolon must be a lowercase letter EXCEPT in words such as I or I've, which are always capitalized?

Note: I wonder how he could afford such an expensive model is our borderline rhetorical question because it could also be considered a simple thought!

Part Four
Second Section
1. I will drive through Tewksbury, Massachusetts; Andover, Massachusetts; Methuen, Massachusetts; and end up in Salem, New Hampshire.
2. She loves gardening in the spring at her cottage in Cape Cod; skiing in the winter at Sugar Loaf Mountain; and ice skating in late fall at the Stoneham Rink.
3.  I am going to the store to get some lemons, limes, strawberries, and bananas.
4. He is buying new shoes, a new suit, and a new suitcase in which he will pack everything for his trip.
5.  Don't worry about me; I will be just fine.

As you can see, there are times when a semicolon can be used to separate groups of things, and there are times that it is not needed (as in Sentence 4) because the meaning is quite clear with the comma alone. Compare the answers above to your own work; do you need more work using the semicolon? Drop me a note to let me know in the Writing Form on this website!

​I hope you are having a great Wednesday!!! 





                                   


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