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Wednesday 6 January 2016

Using commas with fronted adverbials

The new National Curriculum requires children to be taught to use fronted adverbials and to indicate these as a grammatical feature by ‘using commas after fronted adverbials’. (Years 3-4 Programme of Study).  This statutory requirement appears in appendix 2: Vocabulary, grammar and punctuation under Year 4.

I have no disagreement at all about teaching children to front adverbials, since these enable them to create different effects for their readers and also provide variation in sentence structure.  However, I think the statement ‘Use of commas after fronted adverbials’ needs a little mediation, since not all fronted adverbials will require to be punctuated.  In fact, hidden away in the glossary of the National Curriculum, it does state ‘When writing fronted phrases, we often follow them with a comma’ (my italics). 

The task for us is to teach children:
  • What function adverbs, adverbial phrases and adverbial clauses have in a sentence, e.g. where, when, how, why things happen.
  • What words, phrases and clauses can fill the adverbial positions in a sentence.  When considering single word adverbs, children need to recognise that these can end in –ly, but also include other words too, such as away, off, well.  Adverbial phrases are often prepositional phrases, but could also consist of a single word adverb an a premodifying adverb, e.g. extremely well, really quickly, very conscientiouslyAdverbial clauses are subordinate clauses that fill the adverbial position.  Very often we teach children the subordinate structure for these, but don’t highlight the adverbial function (other functions of subordinate clauses are nominal and relative).
  • How to construct adverbial phrases and clauses, e.g. a prepositional phrase = a preposition + a noun or noun phrase.
  • How and when it is appropriate to punctuate adverbs, adverbial phrases and adverbial clauses, especially when these are fronted.

Children need to understand that the purpose of punctuation is to help a reader (who is usually not present) understand clearly what the writer intended.  I don’t think that this is discussed explicitly enough with children.  It is not obvious from the classroom context that the purpose for writing is usually for a reader who is not present at the time of writing.  In many instances, children are writing for a teacher, teaching assistant or peers who are in the same room, maybe sitting at the same table.  This means that any misunderstandings in what they have written can be explained verbally. It is extremely difficult for children to read their writing as another reader would: they know exactly what they had in mind and reading with somebody else’s ‘eyes’ is a skill that needs to be learnt.

So, how can punctuation of fronted adverbials help a reader understand the text more clearly?  Well, most punctuation is a matter of convention, rather than definite ‘rights and wrongs’.  In spite of what some may say about ‘rules’ of punctuation, use of commas is optional in many cases and very much depends on personal preference, avoiding ambiguity and promoting clarity of message.  This clarity is not just about the sense the reader can obtain from the text; it is also about creating the effect the writer desires.

Bearing what I have just said about optional use and personal preference I would simply offer the following ideas about use of commas with fronted adverbials.  Not everyone would agree with me!
With this type of adverbial, which can usually be placed in different positions in a sentence, I would be much more likely to consider sense, and the effect I wanted to create. 

In short sentences, or those where I wanted to develop some pace, I would be less likely to use a comma since these do cause the reader to pause mentally (or physically if they are reading aloud).  We should avoid telling children that punctuation makes the reader ‘take a breath’: the reader is very capable of controlling their own breathing, especially if reading silently! However, pausing at the grammatical boundaries in a sentence does give the reader chance to consider what has gone before, take in the meaning, and prepare for the next piece of information.

Consider the following examples.  The sense is clear and I would prefer to build the pace so have not used commas.  
  • That night I tried again.
  • Suddenly it started.
  • Hurriedly they darted under a rock.
Now compare these two similar structures. What difference does the punctuation make?
  • Explosively the fiery lava spurted from the mouth of the volcano.
  • Gradually, the viscous, black oil dripped from the pipe.

I would also use a comma if my opening adverbial was lengthy. (David Crystal discusses the issue of use of commas with longer grammatical structures in his book: Making a point, for anyone interested in further reading.)  With short term memory being what it is, slowing the reader down can give time for the information to be processed:
  • In the silent darkness of the gloomy forest, the red-cloaked child felt nervous.
  • Because of the clear tones of her voice and the beauty of the melody, the audience gave her a standing ovation.

Of course, if the fronted adverbial is a subordinate clause, I would use a comma to demarcate the boundary:
  • Since she was a child, Sophie had wanted to work with horses.
  • Climbing to the top, he had a clear view of the surrounding countryside.

Conjuncts (adverbials with a cohesive function)
With most of these adverbials, I would use commas to separate them from the rest of the sentence.  Conjuncts are used to help the text flow and are therefore on the periphery of the sentence.  They are usually placed at or near the beginning of the sentence, so that the reader can use this early information to link to what has happened in the previous sentences or paragraph:
  • Furthermore, animals do not have as much room to move in captivity.
  • Later that afternoon, he left the house and wandered through the streets again.
  • In the meantime, she would practise making cakes.
  • The prince was, however, not ready for the responsibility of ruling the kingdom.

With some conjuncts though, especially in short sentences, I might omit the comma, e.g.
  • Finally they arrived.

I would use commas to separate these adverbial words, phrases or clauses from the remainder of the information in the sentence, since they are not integral to the sentence, but purely convey the writer’s feelings.  It seems right to me to help the reader distinguish the main message from the writer's feelings, beliefs and opinions.  For example:

  • Frankly, he is unlikely to remain a politician.
  • Seriously, I heard them say so on the radio.
  • To be precise, not all the details are available.
  • With regret, we will not be able to attend.
  • If I can be direct, I don’t agree.

However, once again I think that I might omit the comma if the sentence is very short and the disjunct is a single word.  Consider the structures below.  Does the reader really need the benefit of a comma here?
  • Obviously I care!
  • Clearly it's not.

In the grammar and punctuation tests, children are likely to be required to identify a fronted adverbial punctuated with a comma as the correct option.  I just hope the people setting these tests choose examples where there is no doubt a comma is required for sense and effect.  If that is the case, we can teach children to write well, using adverbials and commas to aid sense and effect, rather than requiring them to punctuate every single fronted adverbial in order to pass a test!



10 comments:

  1. Here, here Sandra. I couldn't agree more.

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  2. I agree with almost everything except one sentence that to me is more confusing the way you have set it out:
    "Since she was a child, Sophie had wanted to work with horses."
    To me, using a comma makes the sentence sound like Sophie is currently a child i.e. 'As she was a child, Sophie had wanted to work with children'.
    This causes confusion half way through the sentence as I expect the sentence to continue in some way like this: "Since she was a child, Sophie was not allowed to stay out too late."

    Thus, "Since she was a child Sophie had wanted to work with horses." reads much better to me.

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    1. As I said in the post, punctuating fronted adverbials is often a matter of personal preference! As the conjunction ‘since’ can be used to mean ‘because’ or ‘from the time’, regardless of whether a comma is used or not, I agree that the two possible meanings could cause confusion to a reader. Perhaps this was not a great example to use – I can see why you would need to reread! Thanks for your contribution.

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  3. Hi
    Thank you I found this very helpful. I'm teaching in year 4 for the first time and want to get this right. Can you recommend any other sources that will provide examples for teaching the use of adverbials with a focus on function and effect in writing?
    You mentioned David Crystal would this help me to develop a better grasp and knowledge, or would you recommend anything else?

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  4. I'm glad you found the post useful! I have a lot of links in the tab cloud for adverbs and adverbials which might help and provide the address below for the information I have given about sentence constituents on my blog for parents. If you copy and paste into your browser you should get it.
    https://grammarpussforparents.blogspot.com/2015/11/words-phrases-and-clauses-filling.html

    David Crystal's books may help. If you like to email me (go to profile area) I can perhaps help with any specifics around understanding.
    Most good quality children's books will provide rich resources for teaching about adverbials. In particular any books by Jackie Morris should prove useful - as well as being delightful.
    Of course, I am biased because I wrote it, but the Sentence Toolkit published by the Devon Literacy Team is useful as a practical way to teach children about adverbs and adverbial phrases.
    Do get in touch if you think I can help!

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  5. Hi Sandra
    What about sentences such as 'Over the hill appeared a man carrying a suitcase' in which the main verb occurs immediately after the adverbial? I don't think it would make sense to put a comma after 'hill', whereas it would if the sentence were 'Over the hill, a man appeared carrying a suitcase.' I think it's to do with the adverbial being integral to the main clause in the first example but not in the second - but I'm not sure! Any advice?

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    1. The normal word order of this sentence would be subject (a man carrying a suitcase - which is constructed by noun + relative clause), verb (appeared) and adverb (over the hill). The inversion to AVS is used to create a literary effect and is a choice made by the author to this end. The structure is optional and so is the use of the comma. As stated above, short fronted adverbial phrases don't necessarily need punctuating for the reader to process the information easily. So, like the word order choice, the punctuation is also optional. I hope that helps and apologies for the delay in posting this!

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  6. Beautiful Blog. Thanks to Admin for Sharing this knowledge sharing Session. I Bookmarked your blog . You're an awesome guide. Thank you for the hard-work you put into this, especially your detail and discipline on concept of Sentence Structure .

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  7. Refreshing! Thank you! The biggest problem I have with the SATS requirements is the expected level of grammatical terminology, which many teachers and resource writers don't master themselves. As a result, the materials are over-simplified or ... completely wrong. The kids, in turn, are confused and the parents anxious. More than half of my son's class have weekend tutors to teach them literacy. My son is 10 years old, still plays with teddies and pushes cars around, yet is asked for a level of grammatical analysis that I did in my first year of university.

    A good example was "fill in the preposition" from Twinkl - a link from their Bitesize lesson during Covid-19 home schooling (27 April). "Daniel goes to breakfast club before school starts" . Here "before" was the missing preposition! It's a subordinating conjunction! Constantly terminology errors crop up. How sad.

    Both my kids started hating literacy and English in year 4 whereas they used to absolutely love it until that point. How sad, but not surprising when there is so much confusion and they get the answers wrong. Both are under the impression that they just don't understand and it's too difficult. Their self-confidence has gone. They now refuse to even write.

    ... but they are super clever kids.

    OK, back to the fronted adverbial. Would you have a comma when the fronted adverbial causes inversion? "On the pavement, stood a man." Could there be a rule here?

    Thank you!



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    Replies
    1. Thanks for your comment and I'm really sorry your children feel that way about English now. I've come across a lot of bad resources produced by people who don't really understand the grammar. It is so important to develop children's curiosity about our language and rely less on 'rules' and more about sense and what the writer is trying to convey.

      With regard to your question about inversion, this type of AVS structure is a literary device used to create a particular effect for the reader. When the author chooses to use a structure like this, they must also decide whether to use a comma or not. It is all about how they convey their meaning to the reader and they must ask whether the use of a comma will help the reader understand or hinder the meaning/dramatic effect. Short fronted adverbial phrases don't necessarily need punctuating for the reader to process the information easily, so, like the word order choice, the punctuation is optional. Personally, I think I would use a comma in this example, as you have.

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