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Here are some strategies to keep in mind when writing about different types of art!

Visual Thinking Strategies

To view the presentation from the ACT's Formatting/Citation Workshop click HERE

• How to Cite in MLA, APA, and Chicago Style: OWL 
• What is a parenthetical citation? 

A parenthetical citation, or an in text or embedded citation, is when you quote a source within or in between your own words. There are certain rules we have to follow when quoting or paraphrasing in text.

EXAMPLE:

• • Start your sentence with your own words, and when it seems appropriate, you can slowly start to embed the source’s words into your own sentence! When the quote is over, close your quotation marks and then quote the author’s last name only in parentheses, followed by the page number (if there is one). Punctuation always comes after the parentheses. If there are multiple authors, order their last names alphabetically, and separate them with a comma.
  • If you can’t find the author’s name, it’s alright to quote the website (just make sure it’s a credible source).

EXAMPLE:

• Tips from Purdue OWL

• Which article do I use, a/an or the?
  • ANSWER

• What is a comma splice?
  • A comma splice is when two separate thoughts are connected with a comma. Sometimes, these thoughts are unrelated; sometimes they are about the same thing. A comma splice cuts a sentence in two.

Examples:

1. The elevators in 33 E. always take forever, at least there is always fun music on the first floor.
2. The elevators in 33 E. always take forever, but at least there is always fun music on the first floor.
3. The elevators in 33 E. always take forever. At least there is always fun music on the first floor.

In the first example, the two thoughts run together. There needs to be something that explains how these two thoughts are connected. The second example uses but to connect the two ideas. The third example simply turns the two thoughts into two separate sentences. Either way works!

• What is a sentence fragement and how do I know if they're in my paper?
  • A sentence fragment is an incomplete sentence. When you cut off a statement with punctuation before the statement’s natural end, you usually have a sentence fragment. A sentence fragment most commonly happens when the sentence is disconnected from its main clause.

EXAMPLES:

• There are many different restaurants on campus. Such as Panda Express, Subway, and Thai Spoon. 
  • The correct way to punctuate this sentence is, “There are many different restaurants on campus, such as Panda Express, Subway, and Thai Spoon.”
• Movie tickets are becoming increasingly more expensive. Which is why many people choose to wait for movies to arrive on streaming services.
  • This can be fixed by writing, “Many people choose to wait for movies to arrive on streaming services because movie tickets are becoming increasingly more expensive.”

• How do I use a semicolon?
  • A semicolon is punctuation that can be used to connect two independent thoughts that deal with the same idea but are too dissimilar to be one statement. It is also a great way to fix a comma splice.

EXAMPLES

• I don’t have class later, I am going home.
• I don’t have class later; I am going home.
  • In the first example, the statement is cut in half with a comma splice. We could separate these statements with a period, but they are about the same thought. Instead, we connect them with a semicolon.

• I was going to walk home, but it was raining. So I called an Uber.
• I was going to walk home, but I called an Uber; it was raining.
  • The first example also includes a sentence fragment. All of these actions (walking home, the rain, calling the Uber) are connected. Instead of breaking them up into different sentences, we can combine them with the semicolon. The first action (walking home) is followed by the second (calling the Uber) because of the third action (the rain). In this case, the semicolon takes the place of because.

Learn how to introduce differing characters in your script:

• How To Introduce A Character

 This link teaches you the difference between voice over and off-screen dialogue in television and film writing:

• V.O vs O.S

 What's the deal with those tricky parentheticals? Learn below:

• When And How To Use Parentheticals 

Looking for some practice problems for math? This website has problems for Pre-Algebra, Algebra 1, Geometry, Algebra 2, Pre-Calc, and Calculus! 

Plus, if you bring these worksheets in to the ACT, our math tutors can go over them with you!

https://www.kutasoftware.com/freemain.html

Create an account with Khan Academy, and get access to full-on math lessons, with pretty much any course you could want. 

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