Is this a restrictive adjective clause or a nonrestrictive one? Where do I put a comma in a quotation? Does this appositive need commas around it? Sometimes, all this terminology is confusing and complex. Fortunately, this computerized instructional program boils it all down to some simple rhymed phrases like, “Commas like to take out the trash!” Indeed, this program simplifies everything into six easy commas lessons that students can work through at their own pace. Students learn a simple poem that helps them remember the comma rules, and they learn a strategy for each rule. Included on the CD are an instructor’s manual, the instructional program, and all the materials (e.g., pretest, posttest, handouts, worksheets, answer keys) needed for the program that can be printed out, if necessary. Nevertheless, students can print the materials themselves as needed at various points in the program if their computers are connected to a printer. For the most part, students can work through the program independently since the program provides feedback on student performance during all computerized activities. An instructor is needed to score papers and provide feedback toward the end of each lesson when students must write sentences that demonstrate their use of the comma rules. Additionally, the instructor administers quizzes at certain points to check student understanding and provides “pass codes” that allow a student to progress from one part of the program to another once a rule has been mastered by the student. The program has been very successful in teaching students to find comma errors in others’ writing and to use the comma rules in their own writing. All ages can benefit, starting with fifth or sixth graders through college. With purchase of each CD is a license to download it onto eight computers. The Commas Strategy Research

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