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If not specifically covered within a Knowledge Base document, default to the Chicago Manual of Style and Merriam-Webster dictionary.
Quality
Content must be educational, engaging, and match the appropriate Lexile Grade Level. This can be verified with a free Lexile Text Analyzer.
Remember the text complexity of any continuous text included. Consider the qualitative and quantitative factors, student background knowledge, and the task’s complexity.
Content must follow the Bias, Appropriateness, and Inclusivity guidelines and meet work order criteria, including adherence to any associated standards.
Content must be direct, concise, and in an active voice when possible.
Mechanics
Content must be grammatically correct, free of spelling errors, and properly punctuated. Consult our Style Guide for formatting specifics.
Content must adhere to the following rules.
Commas
The Oxford comma must be used.
Alice brought apples, pears, crackers, and cheese to the picnic.
There should not be a comma before too at the end of a sentence.
Mike brought apples too.
An introductory word, phrase, or clause at the beginning of a sentence must have a comma. (Please try not to begin sentences with but or so.)
While watching the video, take notes.
In this activity, circle all correct answers.
Although it did not rain, our game was postponed.
However, Carol decided to attend the concert.
Now, find an interesting image online.
Then, add it to your slide deck.
Do not add a comma when these words, phrases, or clauses appear at the end of the sentence.
Take notes while watching the video.
Circle all correct answers in this activity.
When a word, phrase, or clause appears within a sentence, it only needs to be separated by commas if it is not essential to the sentence.
This activity, however, includes images.
The book, which happens to be my favorite, is on sale.
The book that I just read was exciting.
Students who cheat will be disqualified.
Sally, who often cheats, struggles with school.
Two independent clauses combined with a coordinating conjunction require a comma.
Alice brought apples, and Mike brought cheese.
Kim loved coloring, but her brother did not.
Would you like to drive, or would you rather walk?
If you make the reservation, I will drive.
I ran out of gas, so I had to walk to town.
Independent and dependent clauses do not need a comma when combined.
I wanted to ride my bike and walk through the park.
Meg loved to cook but did not like to wash the dishes.
Sally did not know if she wanted tacos or burritos for dinner.
Our facts are current so that you can stay informed.
Hyphens
Two or more adjectives used together before a noun must be hyphenated.
She purchased an off-market brand.
She purchased the item off market.
If two or more compound adjectives are used, all but the last hyphen should be suspended.
This is a six- to seven-week course.
Adverbs used together are never hyphenated.
The newly painted fence looks great.
It was a very fancy party.
The student was well prepared.
Ages used to modify a noun must be hyphenated.
The 13-year-old student completed the project.
My six-year-old niece loves ice cream.
When used as an adjective after the noun, it is not hyphenated.
The student is 13 years old.
My niece is nearly seven years old.
The graphic organizer T chart is not hyphenated.
Plurals
An apostrophe (‘) is never used to pluralize a word, letter, abbreviation, name, or date.
balloons
Xs
FAQs
ABCs
Smiths
1920s
If you make a plural possessive, do not add -s.
She handed out the students’ homework.
Craig was the friends’ leader.
Word Choice & Usage
The following words are always one word.
anybody
homeschool
standout (adj)
cannot
lowercase / uppercase
everybody
railroad
The following words are always two words.
rain forest
stand out (v)
The words moon and sun are never capitalized. The word earth is only capitalized when using it as a proper noun.
The earth rotates on its axis.
The earth is round.
It took NASA’s Perseverance about seven months to travel from Earth to Mars.
Do not capitalize words that are not officially proper nouns.
Follow the writing process.
Obama was the president.
Send a letter to your aunt.
Refer to the United States or the United States of America. Do not capitalize of, and only capitalize the if it begins the sentence. Only use the word U.S. as an adjective and include periods.
We traveled to the United States from Mexico.
She is a citizen of the United States of America.
We learned about the U.S. government.
Only use the phrase all of when it precedes a pronoun. Use the word all when it precedes a noun.
All students must complete the assignment.
All of you must complete the assignment.
Circle all correct answers.
Do not add an -s to words incorrectly, such as the following.
backward
toward
forward
upward
Use the traditionally American version of words, such as the following.
canceled
judgment
pajamas
humor
offense
traveler
Avoid these common errors.
last ⇒ final
previous ⇒ preceding
each ⇒ refers to an individual within a group
every ⇒ refers to the group as a whole
fewer ⇒ refers to items that can be counted (fewer choices)
less ⇒ refers to items that cannot be counted (less sunshine)
affect ⇒ verb meaning to change something
effect ⇒ noun for something experiencing change
then ⇒ describes a point in time
then ⇒ describes a comparison
lie (down) ⇒ when you yourself are reclined
lay (down) ⇒ when you recline an object
farther ⇒ a distance
further ⇒ to extend
compliment ⇒ say something nice
complement ⇒ works well together
into ⇒ indicates movement, action, or transformation
in to ⇒ means in order to
onto ⇒ indicates movement
on to ⇒ is part of a phrasal verb
lose ⇒ to misplace
loose ⇒ to untighten or release
Capitol ⇒ a legislative building
capital ⇒ all other instances
were vs. was ⇒ Were is subjunctive. If I were hungry, I would eat. I ate when I was hungry.
what vs. which ⇒ Which is used when the answers are finite. What did she do? Which shoes should I wear?
as vs. while vs. because vs. since ⇒ As and while mean occurring simultaneously, because is the reason, and since is a time word. As I slept, I snored. My sister could not sleep because I was snoring. I have snored since I was five. NOTE: ONLY because means because.
Verify the correct spelling and punctuation for events and holidays.
Daylight Saving Time
Groundhog Day
Presidents’ Day
New Year’s Day
Veterans Day
Valentine’s Day
NOTE: Writers strive to comply with these guidelines.
Editors must comply.