Maryland's Largest School District
MONTGOMERY COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS
MONTGOMERY COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS
The Right Word: How to refer to MCPS pupils
When speaking to (addressing) MCPS teachers and staff, use students.
When speaking to (addressing) parents/guardians and the community, use children.
A Common Misuse of the Colon
To merit a colon, the words that introduce a list must be a grammatically complete sentence.
So,
Incorrect
The courses included: English, algebra, and history.
(The words before the colon do not form a grammatically complete sentence, so, no colon is required.)
Correct
The courses included the following popular choices:
• English
• Algebra
• History
(The words before the colon do form a grammatically complete sentence, so this merits a colon.)
As always, when in doubt, check it out! Contact the Editorial Help Desk for help (Donna_M_MarksPleasant@mcpsmd.org).
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