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Every line in your novel matters, but the first and last lines are usually some of the most important lines you will write. It’s hard to do something on the level of “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times” or “Don’t ever tell anybody anything. If you do, you start missing everybody”,...

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Going to camp was my most memorable experience when I was in 6th grade. Years later, I am watching my own students prepare for their chance to deepen their science understanding in a hands-on environment. Sixth graders who work hard and work together earn the opportunity to attend this camping trip, and our goal is to make this opportunity available for ALL our hardworking students. For many if our students, this will be their first time going on an overnight camping trip, hiking, maybe even seeing the local animals! But we are in need of your assistance. Please consider making a donation to our class trip. No amount is too small. Thank you so much for your support! About us: We are sixth grade students and a teacher from a small charter school in southern California entering its third year. It's so small, we only have one teacher per grade level! Because of our small size, we have built a wonderful community of teachers, families, and students. Our school values hard work, collaboration, and an emphasis on fostering a learning environment that focuses on the whole child and fosters growth.

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What's up with "between" and "among"?

This is a tricky topic.

Let’s start with the easiest part:

Between you and me, I am both taller and smarter.

John, please keep this secret just between us; no one else needs to know that I still wet the bed.

So far, so good? Let’s now take a look at “among”:

There is one more difference between “between" and "among”:

(In case you’re wondering, among = amongst.)

It would be nice if we could end this post right here. Unfortunately, we would be remiss to not mention this one last point:

On standardized tests, especially the SAT, “between" is used for only TWO people or things; for THREE OR MORE people or things, you are expected to use “among.” No exceptions. This contradicts what we mentioned at the top of this post, but that’s how it is. Standardized tests are incredibly prescriptivist.

But that’s OK: as long as you know what they want, it makes your job easy. Right?

Read More

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What's up with "inquiry" and "enquiry"?

We get asked about “enquire" and "inquire" (and "enquiry" and "inquiry”) frequently—both here and on Twitter.

Similarly, “enquire” and “enquirer” are more common in British English, while “inquire” and “inquirer” are more common in American English.

(Moriarity GIF source: League of British Actors; Sherlock GIF source: I’m nobody)

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Miniature Monday!

Today we have a 24 volume set of Shakespeare’s works by the Knickerbocker Leather and Novelty Co., published in New York around 1900. Each is leather bound with gilding.

Shakespeare’s Works. New York: Knickerbocker Leather and Novelty Co.  1900’s.  Charlotte Smith Miniature Collections. 

See all Miniature Monday posts

-Laura H. 

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Writing Tip #5 (image) As advanced as they are, a smartphone's auto-correct/auto-fill suggestions can only offer so much (or so little). Take extra care when it comes to ITS and IT'S.

By the way, the phrase "a lot" is two words, not one.

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Rage Comic Writing #5

Hyphen: The hyphen (-) is used to connect two or more words and numbers into a single concept. In the above image, the hyphen is used to link two words to describe hair (although it is a bit of a stretch because this is slang). Without the hyphen, it looks as though the speaker is impressed with hair from a different part of the body

(The dash [–] is longer and is used to indicate an interruption in a sentence)

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Yo, Grammar: What's Up With "Who" and "Whom"?

Although some people (including teachers) claim that “whom” is no longer relevant (i.e., no one uses it, and no one knows how to use it properly), standardized exams (including the SAT) do include questions that test whether you know the difference between the two!

If this is still confusing to you, rephrase your sentence to avoid the entire who vs. whom problem.

If you have further questions on this topic, tweet us @The_YUNiversity. Cheers.

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Writing Tip #4 (image)

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Writing Tip #3 (image)

Many thanks to my friend for the lovely eCard ;]

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Writing Tip #2 Commonly confused words: dear/deer

dear: adj.: regarded with deep affection e.g. He is a dear friend of mine.  We were very close growing up. noun: a lovable person e.g. She is a dear!  She gets along with everyone. exclamation: used in expressions of surprise or dismay e.g. Oh dear!  I forgot to pick up the cake this morning.

deer: noun: a hoofed animal that is a member of the Cervidae family "deer" is singular and plural e.g. Bambi is a fawn, which is a baby deer.

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Rage Comic Writing #4

The comma has many uses. One is to let the reader know who is being directly addressed. Without the comma, Person X is asking his friend if he told Alice.  With the comma, Person X is asking Alice if she was the one who spread information.

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Rage Comic Writing #3

Commonly confused words: than/then

"Than" is a conjunction used in comparisons "Then" has several meanings: indicates a point in time, next in a series, in that case

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Rage Comic Writing #2

Use commas before or surrounding the name or title of a person directly addressed.