Give your eighth-graders the focused language arts practice they need to keep their language skills sharp. 36 weeks of practice cover standards-based skills such as: Vocabulary/Word Study affixes analogies base/root words figurative language homophones idioms spelling Punctuation end of sentence apostrophes: contractions and possessives commas: series, dates, addresses, direct address/interjections, compound sentences, after an introductory phrase/clause, and with nonrestrictive appositives punctuation and capitalization: dialogue and friendly business letters quotation marks: songs, poems, and short stories unnecessary commas run-on sentences semicolons, dashes, and parentheses Capitalization beginning of a sentence books, songs, and poems proper nouns Grammar and Usage active/passive voice conjunctions correct article, adjective, adverb comparative/superlative predicate adjectives and nouns easily confused words sentences: parts, types, structure, fragments, and combining verbs: parts, tense, usage, and spelling nouns: possessive, singular/plural, and concrete/abstract pronouns: subject/object, possessive, and antecedents prepositional phrases/prepositions/objects of a preposition double negatives Other Skills dictionary guide words syllabication outlines