Using Commas in Tag Questions and Direct Address

Khan Academy

In this engaging grammar lesson, grammarians David and Paige explore three specific and common uses for commas in everyday writing and dialogue. Using a conversational teaching style with digital whiteboard illustrations, the duo breaks down the mechanics of "tag questions" (turning a statement into a question), "direct address" (speaking to a specific person), and "yes or no" responses. The video uses humorous, memorable examples centering on a mutual love of cheese to demonstrate how commas function as necessary separators in these sentence structures. Key themes include the structural logic of tag questions—specifically the relationship between positive assertions and negative tags (and vice versa)—and the "separating function" of the comma. The video details how to punctuate sentences where a speaker names the person they are talking to, and how to properly set off introductory affirmations or negations at the start of a sentence. The visual use of different colors helps distinguish between the different parts of speech being separated. This video is highly valuable for upper elementary and middle school English Language Arts classrooms, particularly for units on punctuation mechanics and dialogue writing. Teachers can use this resource to help students correct run-on sentences in creative writing or to clarify the often-missed comma rules in conversational text. The clear, isolated examples make it easy for students to visualize where the pauses—and thus the punctuation—belong in their own writing.