Commas!

The common view is to put a comma where you would pause in speaking. But, there's a difference between a pause to separate thoughts (which is a good place for a comma) and a pause just to catch your breath (which is probably NOT a place that needs a comma).

1. Use a comma to separate items in a list:

EXAMPLE: Some of the characters in Tangled were a girl, a boy, a queen and a horse.(In this case, there is no comma before the final "and" – (Although there are some styles of punctuation that DO use a comma there, KIDS FIRST! does not.)

2. Use commas around a phrase that adds some information to the sentence but can be pulled out and still leave a complete sentence.  Use on BOTH sides of the phrase.

EXAMPLE: I ate the eggs, which were scrambled to perfection, before I drank my milk.   EXPLANATION: "which were scrambled to perfection"tells a little more about the eggs, but the phrase can be taken out of the sentence without changing the meaning of the sentence. The basic sentence is still: "I ate the eggs before I drank my milk." 

EXAMPLE: She went around, not under, the block.   

EXPLANATION:"not under" helps explain the girl's action, but taking it out of the sentence would not change the meaning of the sentence. The basic sentence is still: "She went around the block."

EXAMPLE: It’s the same idea when you name a city and add the name of the state it's in Houston, Texas, is hot this time of year.  ("Texas" tells more about where Houston is, but sentence makes sense without it. The basic sentence is "Houston is hot this time of year.") This is different from: Houston, Texas is hot this time of year.  (By not putting a comma after"Texas," the meaning of the sentence is different. In this case, you are speaking to someone named Houston, and telling her that Texas is hot this time of year. The basic sentence is "Texas is hot this time of year."

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