ELA GRAMMAR WALKTHROUGH.

Summary

This video breaks down a series of grammar questions from a specialized high school practice test, providing detailed explanations for each answer. It covers topics like verb tense consistency, sentence structure, the use of commas, and how to combine sentences for clarity. The speaker emphasizes strategies for identifying vague pronouns and non-essential modifiers. Throughout, the video encourages viewers to carefully analyze sentence patterns, consider alternatives, and select the most specific and accurate answers. Overall, it provides useful grammar tips for students preparing for standardized tests.

Takeaways

• 📚 Precision is key: The most specific revision for 'talked to some people who did the best in the contest' is 'interviewed the top three contestants.'
• 🕰 Verb tense matters: The shift from past to present tense within a sentence creates inconsistency. Keep verb tenses aligned.
• ✅ Non-essential modifiers: Phrases like 'which is located on Midway Street' are non-essential and should be enclosed in commas.
• 📝 Lists and commas: When listing tasks, ensure items are separated with commas to clarify distinct actions.
• 🔄 Combining sentences: Avoid redundancy by eliminating repeated subjects. Use modifiers for clarity.
• 👧 Clarify pronouns: Vague pronouns like 'she' in a sentence about two people (Eliza and Brianna) should specify which person is being referenced.
• 🏀 Adjective rule: When using two adjectives like 'agile' and 'athletic,' a comma is needed if both adjectives can be reversed or separated by 'and.'
• ❌ Avoid unnecessary commas: Don’t place commas between nouns and verbs or between essential phrases in a sentence.
• 💡 Modifiers and clarity: Essential information, like being the first to achieve something, shouldn’t be separated by commas.
• 📖 Stay updated: Grammar rules and test formats may change, so it’s important to stay informed about updates in test structure.

Q & A

What is the most precise revision for 'talked to some people who did the best in the contest'?

The most precise revision is 'interviewed the top three contestants,' as it is specific and clearly refers to the best performers in the contest.

Why is 'spoke to the three contestants who did well' not a good option for revision?

'Spoke to the three contestants who did well' is still vague and doesn’t specify if they were the top performers, making it less precise.

What is the issue with verb tense in the sentence 'over time a natural gas becomes more common'?

The issue is an inappropriate shift in verb tense. The rest of the paragraph is in past tense, but 'becomes' is in present tense, which disrupts the consistency.

Why is the comma placement correct in 'The animal shelter, which is located on Midway Street, is looking for volunteers'?

The commas correctly surround a non-essential modifier ('which is located on Midway Street') that provides additional information but is not critical to the sentence’s meaning.

What problem occurs in the sentence 'walking dogs cleaning kennels'?

The lack of a comma between 'walking dogs' and 'cleaning kennels' makes it unclear whether the dogs are doing the cleaning, which is incorrect. A comma is needed to separate these list items.

Why is 'Although there have been flyby missions near Jupiter since 1973' not the best way to combine the sentences?

'Although' introduces a contrast that doesn’t exist between the ideas. The sentence isn’t describing opposing concepts, so the connection feels awkward.

What is the error in 'which have been happening since 1973'?

The sentence mistakenly implies that Jupiter’s moons have been 'happening' since 1973, when it’s the flyby missions that have been occurring. The pronoun 'which' should refer to the missions, not the moons.

Why is the pronoun 'she' problematic in the sentence about Eliza and Brianna?

The pronoun 'she' creates ambiguity because it’s unclear whether it refers to Eliza or Brianna. This needs to be revised to specify which girl is being referred to.

What rule justifies the comma between 'agile' and 'athletic' when describing Wilt Chamberlain?

The comma is required because the adjectives 'agile' and 'athletic' are coordinate adjectives, meaning you can flip their order or add 'and' between them without changing the meaning.

Why is it incorrect to insert a comma between 'Wilt Chamberlain' and the verb in the sentence about scoring 100 points?

Inserting a comma between the subject ('Wilt Chamberlain') and the verb disrupts the sentence structure and is grammatically incorrect, as it separates essential elements of the sentence.

Outlines

00:00

📝 Breaking Down Sentence Revisions for Clarity

This section covers how to choose the most precise revision for a sentence about a cooking contest. The original sentence is vague, and the goal is to find a more specific option. After analyzing the choices, 'interviewed the top three contestants' is determined to be the most precise revision because it clearly identifies the best performers, while other options remain too vague or repetitive.

05:01

🔍 Identifying Verb Tense Shifts

In this part, the focus is on identifying inappropriate shifts in verb tense. The example sentence describes a historical event in past tense but includes a suspicious present-tense verb, 'becomes.' The explanation highlights the consistent use of past tense, concluding that the present-tense verb is incorrect and should be revised to match the rest of the passage.

⚡ Correcting Sentence Structure with Commas

This segment explains how to properly use commas in a complex sentence about an animal shelter seeking volunteers. The sentence includes a non-essential modifier ('which is located on Midway Street') and a list of tasks. The analysis emphasizes the importance of correctly placing commas to separate items in a list and avoid confusion.

🚀 Combining Sentences for Clarity and Conciseness

Here, the goal is to combine two sentences about flyby missions near Jupiter in a way that clarifies their relationship without redundancy. The best solution involves a sentence structure using a non-essential modifier, avoiding unnecessary repetition and ensuring clarity. The wrong options include confusing modifiers or improper conjunctions.

👥 Resolving Vague Pronouns

In this section, the focus is on fixing vague pronouns in a paragraph about two girls, Eliza and Brianna, who sing at school events. The issue arises when the pronoun 'she' is used ambiguously, leaving the reader unsure whether it refers to Eliza or Brianna. The explanation emphasizes the need for clearer noun-pronoun references.

🏀 Correcting Adjective Comma Placement

The final section discusses where to place commas between adjectives in a sentence about basketball player Wilt Chamberlain. Two adjectives ('agile' and 'athletic') describe Wilt, and the rule for separating them with a comma is applied. The analysis also addresses why incorrect comma placements would disrupt sentence structure or clarity.

Keywords

💡Precise Revision

A precise revision refers to the most accurate and specific way to improve the clarity or meaning of a sentence. In the video, the term is discussed in relation to how a sentence can be made clearer by choosing a more exact description of 'people who did the best in the contest,' refining it to 'interviewed the top three contestants,' which gives more specific information.

💡Verb Tense

Verb tense indicates the time an action occurs, such as past, present, or future. The video emphasizes checking for inappropriate shifts in verb tense within sentences to maintain consistency. For example, in one passage, most verbs are in the past tense, but one sentence shifts to present, which creates confusion and needs to be corrected.

💡Non-essential Modifier

A non-essential modifier provides extra information that can be removed without changing the meaning of the sentence. In the video, this concept is used to explain why commas are necessary around phrases like 'which is located on Midway Street,' as they add extra details about the animal shelter without altering the core message.

💡List Structure

List structure refers to how items are organized and separated in a sentence, typically using commas. The video points out the importance of separating list items clearly, such as distinguishing between 'walking dogs' and 'cleaning kennels' with a comma to avoid misreading the sentence.

💡Vague Pronoun

A vague pronoun occurs when it is unclear which noun a pronoun is referring to. In the video, 'she' is used in a way that makes it unclear whether it refers to Eliza or Brianna, necessitating revision for clarity. This is highlighted as a common issue in writing that needs correction for clear communication.

💡Comma Usage

Comma usage is a key focus of the video, especially in relation to sentence structure and clarity. Commas are used to separate elements such as adjectives ('agile, athletic') or to mark non-essential modifiers. Proper comma placement is discussed to avoid confusing sentence meaning, like where to place a comma between adjectives describing Wilt Chamberlain.

💡Independent Clause

An independent clause is a group of words that contains a subject and verb and can stand alone as a sentence. The video refers to independent clauses when explaining why certain commas should not separate key parts of a sentence, like the subject and verb in 'Wilt Chamberlain became.'

💡Infinitive Verb

An infinitive verb is the basic form of a verb, usually preceded by 'to,' such as 'to help.' The video mentions infinitive verbs when discussing verb tense consistency, as the infinitive form ('to help people') does not affect the tense pattern in a paragraph that uses mostly past tense.

💡Flyby Missions

Flyby missions refer to space missions where a spacecraft passes close to a planet or celestial body to gather data without entering orbit. The video uses this term when discussing how to combine sentences about flyby missions near Jupiter, explaining how they have been happening since 1973 and how they allow scientists to collect data.

💡Essential Modifier

An essential modifier provides crucial information necessary for understanding the sentence. In the video, the phrase 'the first and only player to score 100 points' is an essential modifier that cannot be separated from the main sentence by a comma, as it conveys vital information about Wilt Chamberlain's achievement.

Highlights

Revision for the words 'talk to some people who did the best' to 'interviewed the top three contestants' offers more precision.

Analyzing sentence structures helps identify vague pronouns and unclear references, crucial for precise revisions.

Recognizing verb tense shifts within a passage ensures consistency, such as identifying the shift between 'became' and 'struggled.'

Commas are essential in separating items in a list, such as distinguishing 'walking dogs' from 'cleaning kennels.'

Non-essential modifiers, like 'which is located on Midway Street,' should be surrounded by commas for proper sentence flow.

When combining sentences, avoid unnecessary repetition of the subject, like the double mention of 'flyby missions' in a paragraph.

Verb tense consistency must be maintained, such as identifying that 'moons have been happening since 1973' is incorrect.

Correcting vague pronouns is critical, like changing 'she' to the specific name 'Eliza or Brianna' in a paragraph.

Adjective separation with commas depends on whether adjectives can be reversed or 'and' can be added between them.

Correct placement of commas can affect the clarity and flow of the sentence, such as separating 'agile' and 'athletic.'

Essential details, like being the first player to score 100 points, should not be separated with commas to avoid confusion.

Using commas correctly around modifiers ensures clarity, especially when describing specific actions or qualities.

Correct sentence structures rely on recognizing independent and dependent clauses, ensuring commas are placed correctly.

Verifying each answer choice by process of elimination ensures accuracy in selecting the best grammatical revision.

Understanding essential versus non-essential information helps guide proper comma usage in complex sentence structures.

Transcripts

it's updated some take the grammar

questions today from the practice test

in the specialized high school student

handbook check it out read this sentence

during a nightly news segment about a

cooking contest a reporter talked to

some people who did the best in the

contest which of these is the most

precise revision for the words talk to

some people who did the best in the

contest

okay so we have conversed with some of

the people who won the contest spoke to

the three contestants who did well

discuss the contest with some winners

interviewed the top three contestants

okay so we're talking about people you

got to go back to the original sentence

to go what do they really mean right

they're being vague but they're trying

to say something

so it says some people who did the best

so we're talking about the best of the

best of the people who are in the

contest right so this is good won the

contest who did well that's just as

vague if not more vague than the people

who did the best so we know that B isn't

correct with some of the winners that's

very specific top three contestants

that's very specific okay so what else

talk to some people right that's very

vague as well conversed with some of the

people that's actually just a more

lengthy way to say the same thing talk

to some people you know so that's not it

discussed the gist discussed the contest

with some of the winners yeah I guess

you are discussing the contest and then

interviewed the top three contestants

now we're in between these two which one

is more specific discussing the contest

or interviewing them right well

discussing the contest can mean a lot of

things they're specifically interviewing

so that the answer is D okay read this

paragraph I'm not going to read it out

loud so just pause the video and read it

really quick and then I want to get back

to the answer okay which sensin which

sentence should be revised to correct an

inappropriate shift in verb tense so all

we need to be looking for is verb tense

here dudes

so when cole was he was used okay to

heat homes it frequently left they so it

stained the walls brothers blah blah

blah who owned notice how all these are

past past past we're starting to get a

like pattern here of cleaning products

companies created a doughy substance to

help people remove this suit to help

people that's just the infinitive verb

over time a natural gas becomes more

common okay so this one is a little

suspect already because it's not past

tense people had little need for soot

cleaners and the mcvickers family

company struggled okay so these two

verbs this verb in this verb are both in

the same sentence right so this is kind

of like a present tense and this is past

tense and past tense and past tense and

past tense and past tense so obviously

we don't really need to switch up the

verb tense Midway so that's why this one

is incorrect since three bank all right

so the next one read this sentence go

ahead and pause the video to read this

if you need to

which edits should be made in the

sentence notice comma comma comma comma

so are we gonna be looking at verb tense

or you know pronouns no we're just going

to be looking at commas which means that

a sentence structure yeah so the animal

shelter comma which is located on Midway

Street comma is looking for volunteers

to help with a variety of tasks all

right so let's just look at that so the

animal shelter and we have comma comma

surrounding which is located on Midway

Street that's actually good to go

because this is a modifier describing

what the animal shelter is and it is a

non-essential modifier yeah so is

looking for some volunteers notice it's

embedded in the middle of an independent

sentence right so then we have such as

variety of tasks comma such as walking

dogs cleaning kennels comma hand feeding

new board kittens comma and supporting

the pet adoption process so if you

haven't noticed already the sentence is

ending a list right

we have walking dogs cleaning kennels

hand feeding new bored kittens

supporting the pet adoption process this

right now reads that this list item is

walking dogs cleaning kennels and I'm

pretty sure that the walking dogs don't

clean the kennels so you need a comma to

separate these two items of a list just

like the other items of the

are separated with commas so that is our

answer here Bank

three more homies so read these

sentences flyby missions near Jupiter

have been happening since 1973 flyby

missions allow scientists to collect

data about Jupiter and moons notice

they're asking actually really quickly

their their what is the best way to

combine these sentences to clarify the

relationship between the ideas notice

that both main subjects of the sentence

are flyby missions and flyby missions

yeah so we don't really need to say them

twice that's actually kind of

repetitious so let's see the best way to

combine them I would take a second to

read these answer choices cuz I'm just

gonna break them down flyby missions

near Jupiter comma which allows

scientists to collect data about the

planet and its moons comma have been

happening since 1973 this is very

similar to the non-essential modifier we

were talking about in the previous page

this one's pretty good I'm gonna keep my

eye on e although there have been flyby

omissions in your Jupiter since 1973

they have allowed scientists to collect

data about the planet and his moons that

although is kind of a weird connection

because this isn't really opposites

right so that doesn't work

flyby missions near Jupiter allow

scientists to collect data about the

planet and its moons comma which have

been happening since 1973 so here we

also have a modifier that ends the

sentence so it ends with a period

instead of a comma right and notice what

the noun next to it is moons so it makes

it seem like the moons have been

happening since 1973 that is actually

incorrect because of that since 1973

flyby missions have been happening near

Jupiter comma but they allow scientists

to collect data about the planets and

moons is this a but do we really need it

is this part of the sentence opposite

from this part of the sentence no

awesome and notice how even though I

thought I had the right answer I checked

all the other ones just in case read

this paragraph go ahead and read it

pause the video if you need to I'm gonna

go over it

so notice how weird our nouns here too

we're trying to correct a vague pronoun

so that means that we need to look at

the pronouns and the nouns very

specifically here are our nouns ELISA

and Brianna have been singing in their

school here's a pronoun

since they were in the fourth grade the

girls always sing to do it at the school

talent show and they take turns singing

the national anthem before school

sporting events outside of school she

also sings in a choir okay so which one

is it Eliza or Brianna we don't know it

just switched is she all of a sudden

instead of there and they and they so

this is the problem here it needs to

specify which girl it is since three

okay number six in 1962 the agile

athletic Wilt Chamberlain became the

first and only professional basketball

player in the United States to score 100

points in a single game that is

ridiculous okay so let's talk about this

sentence and see where a common needs to

go look at comma comma comma comma so

we're dealing with sentence structure in

1962 the athletic or agile athletic Wilt

Chamberlain became the first and only

professional basketball player in the

United States to score 100 points in a

single game this whole thing is just an

independent clause crazy right so let's

see where the clot would see where this

comma goes if we're not dealing with

dependent independent or you know

non-essential modifiers let's check it

out

in sort of come out to agile so they're

trying to put a comma between agile and

athletic now both of these are

adjectives and do you guys remember the

rules for where the comma goes between

two adjectives there's two rules you

have to be able to flip the adjective

and you have to be able to put the word

and in between so if I've said the

athletic agile Wilt Chamberlain

that sounds pretty decent and the agile

and athletic Wilt Chamberlain that

sounds pretty decent too so this does

require a comma so I'm gonna keep my eye

on e just to make sure in sort of come

after Chamberlain in 1962 the agile

athletic Wilt Chamberlain comma that

that's that's very weird that's not like

what why to put why put a comma between

the noun and the verb of the sentence

that doesn't that doesn't really work so

no insert a comma after only became the

first and only comma professional

basketball player that's not necessarily

I

I actually wouldn't even know why you

would why you would put that that just

seems like a very kind of a wrong answer

choice there's no sentence structure

because this is all one independent

thing there's no real modifiers in here

either insert of comma after states the

only basketball professional basketball

player in the United States comma to

score 100 points in a single game that

would try to make this a non-essential

modifier but it's extremely important to

the sentence because it's talking that

he's the first and only player to do

this so we definitely need it it's

definitely essential so I would not

separate it with a comma

he is our answer okay dudes so that is

how you can go through the grammar

section that's how the test will be

starting keep in mind the chat the test

is changing this year so stay on your

toes and I will of course keep you

updated with the latest information as

soon as we know it good luck guys