Use a Dash for Number Ranges

Use a Dash for Number Ranges Use a Dash for Number Ranges Use a Dash for Number Ranges By Mark Nichol Which symbol should be used with numbers: a hyphen (-), or an en dash (–)? The question may seem trivial a dash is a dash, right? but using the correct symbol aids comprehension, just as commas and semicolons signal distinct grammatical structures, and no one will argue that those two punctuation marks can be used interchangeably. Hyphens are used to separate groups of numbers, such as in telephone numbers or numbers of financial accounts. But for almost all other cases, the correct punctuation mark is an en dash, which indicates a range or a difference. A span of years (such as â€Å"2009–2012†) or any other time range includes an en dash. (And note that â€Å"from 2009–2012† and â€Å"between 2009–2012† are incorrect; either use both from and to, or between and and, or neither.) The same treatment is given to a sequence of components, such as a range of chapter or page numbers or amounts (for example, â€Å"chapters 1–10† or â€Å"250–300 pages†). A range of monetary amounts and any other amounts is also represented this way, as in â€Å"Salary range: $75,000–$80,000.† (Note that when expressing a range with very large numbers, to avoid confusion, the first number should not be abbreviated; for example, â€Å"$75–$80,000† means â€Å"from $75 to $80,000,† not â€Å"from $75,000 to $80,000.†) Two contexts that cause confusion about which dash to use are scores and votes. These are not, technically, ranges, because nothing exists between them, as in the case of â€Å"2009–2012,† in which that time span includes 2010 and 2011 as well, and of â€Å"chapters 1–10,† which also includes every page between 1 and 10. But The Chicago Manual of Style, reasoning that the symbol between the numbers represents a difference between two values (and that the symbol is pronounced to), has elected to use en dashes for both types of representation. Therefore, use an en dash to indicate scores for sports or other competitions (for example, â€Å"Her team won 6–3† or â€Å"They came back from behind to chalk up a 97–92 victory†). Note, however, that when a score does not immediately follow a verb or precede a noun, as in the examples above, it should be set off from the rest of the sentence by one or two commas: â€Å"East prevailed over West, 97–92†; â€Å"East prevailed over West, 97–92, for the league championship.† Win-loss records should also be formatted with an en dash: â€Å"The team went on to earn an 8–4 record.† Votes are treated the same way: â€Å"The city council approved the project with a 5–2 vote.† Many newspapers and websites follow the style recommended by the Associated Press Stylebook, which is to simply use a hyphen in place of an en dash. That preference presumably dates from the lead-type era, when compositors didn’t want to be bothered about trying to distinguish a – from a on a piece of metal the size of a watermelon seed. Last time I noticed, however, producing an en dash was a simpler task. Dare to dash. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Style category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:75 Contronyms (Words with Contradictory Meanings)Loan, Lend, Loaned, Lent10 Writing Exercises to Tighten Your Writing

Objectives and Goals of a Lesson Plan

Objectives and Goals of a Lesson Plan Objectives, also known as goals, are the first step in writing a strong  lesson plan. This article includes descriptions of the objectives of lesson plans, how to write them, examples, and tips. Goal-Writing Tips Whenever possible, write clearly defined and specific objectives (goals) that are easy to measure. That way, at the conclusion of your lesson, it will be relatively easy to determine if you met or missed your objectives, and by how much. Objective In the objectives section of your lesson plan, write precise and delineated goals for what you want your students to be able to accomplish after the lesson is completed. Here is an example: Lets say that you are writing a lesson plan on nutrition. For this unit plan, your objective for the lesson is for students to name a few food groups, identify the food groups, and learn about the food pyramid. Your goal should be specific and use numbers where appropriate. This will help you determine if you met your objectives or not after the lesson is over. What to Ask Yourself In order to define your lessons objectives, consider asking yourself the following questions: What will students accomplish during this lesson?To what specific level (i.e. 75% accuracy) will the students perform a given task in order for the lesson to be considered satisfactorily accomplished?Exactly how will the students show that they understood and learned the goals of your lesson? Will this occur through a worksheet, group work, presentation, illustration, etc? Additionally, you will want to make sure that the lessons objective fits in with your district and state educational standards for your grade level. By thinking clearly and thoroughly about the goals of your lesson, you will ensure that you are making the most of your teaching time. Examples Here are a few examples of what an objective would look like in your lesson plan. After reading the book Life in the Rainforest, sharing a class discussion, and drawing plants and animals, students will be able to place six specific characteristics into a Venn diagram of the similarities and differences of plants and animals, with 100% accuracy.While learning about nutrition, students will keep a food journal, create a balanced meal using the food pyramid (or food plate, as it is now called), write a recipe for a healthy snack, as well as name all of the food groups and the foods that correlate with them.While learning about the local government, the goal of this lesson is to have students identify the components of local government and be able to generate four to six sentences using local government facts and vocabulary.While students learn about the pattern of digestion, by the end of the lesson they will know how to physically point out areas of the digestive track, as well as tell specific facts about how the food we eat can turn into the fuel that our bodies need. After the objective, you will define the anticipatory set. Edited By: Janelle Cox