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4 Steps to Conquer SAT Punctuation Questions
A huge part of mastering the Writing and Language test starts with knowing WHAT KIND of question you are being asked to answer.
STEP ONE: Look carefully at what is changing in the answer choices you are provided.
For example:
When Emily, a prima ballerina, steps out onto the stage to dance, she immediately captures the audience’s attention with her graceful movements and precise control.
Answer choices:
A. NO CHANGE
B. dance, and she
C. dance; she
D. dance she
The question above is a punctuation question. You are being asked to decide whether to use a pause (a comma with the coordinating conjunction “and” ), a complete stop (a semicolon) , no punctuation, or NO CHANGE.
STEP TWO : Go to the passage and read well above and below the underlined text. In this example, as with many punctuation questions, you will need to start by determining whether the sentence contains one independent clause or two independent clauses.
Check to see how the sentence reads with NO CHANGE.
STEP THREE: Eliminate incorrect answers by plugging in your choices:
In this case, NO CHANGE, looks like a pretty good answer so far, put a question mark by “A” as a possibility.
The sentence starts with an incomplete clause “When Emily, a prima ballerina steps out onto the stage”. An introductory sentence that is an incomplete clause (or fragment) will need a comma after it when it is followed by an independent clause, as in this example. Therefore, eliminate “B” because the first part of the sentence is not an independent clause.
When you check “C”, notice that there is a semicolon between dance and she. A semicolon is a complete stop, like a period at the end of a sentence. This means that both the clause before AND after the semicolon must be independent clauses. In this case, we have already noted that the first clause is dependent, not independent. In other words, the phrase, “When Emily, a prima ballerina steps out onto the the stage” , cannot stand alone. It is a fragment. Therefore, you can eliminate “C”
Answer choice “D” has no punctuation between the words dance she . In eliminating other answer choices, we have already noted that punctuation of some kind will be needed after the introductory clause that ends with the word “dance”. Eliminate “D”
The only answer remaining is “A” NO CHANGE
STEP FOUR: Plug in the answer choice you selected (in this case NO CHANGE) and read the sentence again to be sure it looks and sounds correct.
The correct answer is NO CHANGE.
Rinse and repeat this process for punctuation questions on the SAT and ACT.
Helpful links for more grammar practice:
Cary Cookie 