a. Use commas and quotation marks in dialogue.
b. Form and use possessives.
c. Add prefixes and suffixes to base words (e.g., sitting, smiled, cries, happiness).
d. Use commas and quotation marks to mark direct speech and quotations from a text.
e. Use a comma before a coordinating conjunction in a compound sentence.
f. Use punctuation to separate items in a series.
g. Use a comma to separate an introductory element from the rest of a sentence.
h. 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?).
i. Use underlining, quotation marks, or italics to indicate titles of works.
j. Spell grade-appropriate words correctly, consulting references as needed and/or using
spelling patterns and generalizations (e.g., word families, position-based spelling,
syllable patterns, ending rules, meaningful word parts).
Display proficiency in:
k. Use commas in greetings and closings of letters.
l. Use an apostrophe to form contractions and frequently occurring possessives.
m. Generalize learned spelling patterns when writing words (e.g., cage → badge; boy → boil).
n. Use commas in addresses.
o. Use conventional spelling for high-frequency and other studied words.
Proficiency Scale