This is your main working page for Essential Grammar, Usage, Punctuation. Use this page to find out what to name your files, see when projects are due, go to the online textbook and other resources for this course.
This course includes quizzes and exercises. Bookmark this schedule page so that you can return after completing a quiz or exercise.
When you complete a unit, click the Completed button for that unit. If you mistakenly mark a unit as completed, contact your instructor (or just wait until you've actually completed it).
Links have been removed from this page. To take this fully linked course, contact admin@mcmassociates.io.
Unit 1. Course Overview
Go to course overview to see how this course is set up.
Take the sentence diagnostic to see which areas of grammar, usage, punctuation, and style you may need to brush up on.
Leave up to an hour and a half for this diagnostic; when you have finished, print your results; your instructor will automatically receive your results and may contact you about them. Complete this diagnostic by the date shown below.
| Recommended due date: unit_date |
Unit 2. Parts of Speech & Parts of Sentences
The following readings and exercises give you a quick review of grammar—in this first unit, the actual physics, the inner workings of the English language. To handle "grammar," usage, and punctuation issues, you often need to know where phrases, clauses and predicates start and stop. You get that here in this unit.
Note: The following links provide much more reading and practice than you may need. Do only as much of the practice work as you feel is necessary.
| Recommended due date: unit_date |
Unit 3. Grammar and Usage
Read the introduction to the units on grammar and usage
Complete these units by the date shown below. Your instructor automatically receives your results. You are welcome to treat these grammar, usage, and punctuation units as a quick-review refresher.
- Study fragments and learn how to recognize and revise them.
- Study comma splices & run-ons and learn how to recognize and revise them.
- Study subject-verb agreement and learn how to recognize subjects and verbs that do not agree and revise them.
- Study pronoun-reference agreement and learn how to recognize pronouns and their referents and make them agree.
- Study pronoun case and learn how to recognize the case of pronoun usage and how to pick the right pronoun.
- Study problems involving parallelism and learn how to recognize and revise them.
- Study problem modifiers (dangling, squinting, misplaced modifiers) and learn how to recognize and revise them.
| Recommended due date: unit_date |
Unit 4. Punctuation and Spelling
Study the following punctuation units as indicated by the results of your diagnostics or as suggested by your instructor. Complete these units by the date shown below:
- Study commas.
- Study semicolons and learn how to use them correctly.
- Study colons and learn how to use them correctly.
- Study apostrophes and learn how to use them correctly.
- Study hyphens and learn how to use them correctly.
- Study dashes and learn how to use them correctly.
- Study other punctuation marks—including apostrophes, quotation marks, parentheses, brackets—and learn how to use them correctly.
- Study the distinctions between similar-sounding words (the ones most commonly confused) to get some practice using them correctly.
| Recommended due date: unit_date |
Unit 5. Writing Project 1
Read about any three of the following, take the quizzes, but do just one of the writing projects. Complete this unit by the date shown below:
- Description. Use the description planner to study description; see the chapter, examples, assignment, and related materials; and then get some practice writing detailed descriptions of mechanisms or other objects.
Name this project yourname_desc1.doc; revisions: desc2. (If you do not use Word, name your file according to whichever file extension your software uses: for example, .docx for MS Word.)
or
- Definition. Use the definition planner to study extended definitions; see the chapter, examples, assignment, and related materials; and then get some practice providing extended explanations of complex terminology. Name this project yourname_def1.doc; revisions: _def2. (If you do not use Word, name your file according to whichever file extension your software uses: for example, .docx for MS Word.)
or
- Classification. Use the classification planner to study writing about classification (categories); see the chapter, examples, assignment, and related materials; and then get some practice providing extended discussion of categories. Name this project yourname_class1.doc; revisions: class2. (If you do not use Word, name your file according to whichever file extension your software uses: for example, .docx for MS Word.)
or
- Process. Use the processes planner to study process discussions; see the chapter, examples, assignment, and related materials; and then get some practice explaining natural or mechanical events or phenomena. Name this project yourname_proc1.doc; revisions: proc2. (If you do not use Word, name your file according to whichever file extension your software uses: for example, .docx for MS Word.)
or
- Causes and effects. Use the cause-effect planner to study writing about causes and effects; see the chapter, examples, assignment, and related materials; and then get some practice providing extended explanations of causes and effects. Name this project yourname_caus1.doc; revisions: caus2. (If you do not use Word, name your file according to whichever file extension your software uses: for example, .docx for MS Word.)
Send this project as an e-mail attachment to your instructor.
| Recommended due date: unit_date |
Unit 6. Technical-Writing Style
Study the following units on technical-writing style as indicated by the results of your diagnostics and as directed by your instructor. Complete these units by the date shown below:
- Study numbers vs words and learn how to choose between using a number (digit) and word for a number.
- Study abbreviations and learn how to use them correctly.
- Study quotation marks and learn how to use them correctly.
- Study capitalization and learn how to use capital letters correctly.
- Study apostrophes and learn how to use them correctly.
| Recommended due date: unit_date |
Unit 7. Writing Project 2
Read about any three of the following, take the quizzes, but do just one of the writing projects. Complete this unit by the date shown below:
- Description. Use the description planner to study description; see the chapter, examples, assignment, and related materials; and then get some practice writing detailed descriptions of mechanisms or other objects.
Name this project yourname_desc1.doc; revisions: desc2. (If you do not use Word, name your file according to whichever file extension your software uses: for example, .docx for MS Word.)
or
- Definition. Use the definition planner to study extended definitions; see the chapter, examples, assignment, and related materials; and then get some practice providing extended explanations of complex terminology. Name this project yourname_def1.doc; revisions: _def2. (If you do not use Word, name your file according to whichever file extension your software uses: for example, .docx for MS Word.)
or
- Classification. Use the classification planner to study writing about classification (categories); see the chapter, examples, assignment, and related materials; and then get some practice providing extended discussion of categories. Name this project yourname_class1.doc; revisions: class2. (If you do not use Word, name your file according to whichever file extension your software uses: for example, .docx for MS Word.)
or
- Process. Use the processes planner to study process discussions; see the chapter, examples, assignment, and related materials; and then get some practice explaining natural or mechanical events or phenomena. Name this project yourname_proc1.doc; revisions: proc2. (If you do not use Word, name your file according to whichever file extension your software uses: for example, .docx for MS Word.)
or
- Causes and effects. Use the cause-effect planner to study writing about causes and effects; see the chapter, examples, assignment, and related materials; and then get some practice providing extended explanations of causes and effects. Name this project yourname_caus1.doc; revisions: caus2. (If you do not use Word, name your file according to whichever file extension your software uses: for example, .docx for MS Word.)
| Recommended due date: unit_date |
Complete this course by unit_date
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