Parent Tips: Lesson 1.10

When we teach comma conventions or any writing convention, we acknowledge that adults don’t always agree on everything. Witness: the Oxford comma. Instead, we teach the agreed-on conventions, the principles in play, and the various use cases of that principle; this includes edge cases.

If you were taught that there is only one way to use commas, or that it is unacceptable to split an infinitive, our principle-based approach might feel uncomfortable. It’s very common in the U.S. to have a personality-driven education in grammar and punctuation. As in, you were taught what your specific English teacher believed. You probably never had to read or discuss any theory on language, and your teacher would have scoffed at the idea that there were other ways to wield a comma. That’s OK! We want to be clear to you and your old English teachers that we also believe strongly in the need to respect formal Standard English conventions. Misplaced commas also drive us bananas. We’re just adding an extra dimension to your kid’s grammar education—because kids are hungry to understand the why behind the convention.