Conventions of Standard English

Spell grade-appropriate words correctly, consulting references as needed.

Use underlining, quotation marks, or italics to indicate titles of works.

Use punctuation to separate items in a series.*

Use verb tense to convey various times, sequences, states, and conditions.

Form and use the perfect (e.g., I had walked; I have walked; I will have walked) verb tenses.

Explain the function of conjunctions, prepositions, and interjections in general and their function in particular sentences.

Use a comma to set off the words yes and no (e.g., Yes, thank you), to set off a tag question from the rest of the sentence (e.g., It's true, isn't it?), and to indicate direct address (e.g., Is that you, Steve?).

Use a comma to separate an introductory element from the rest of the sentence.

Use correlative conjunctions (e.g., either/or, neither/nor).

Recognize and correct inappropriate shifts in verb tense.*