Question 1: Identify two places in the passage where commas are used to set off clauses. Explain their purpose.

Answer: Commas are used before 'who were playing near the fountain' and 'who had arrived earlier' to set off relative clauses, clarifying which children and friend are being described.

Question 2: Find a sentence with a comma that separates two independent clauses. Rewrite it without the comma, and discuss how the meaning changes.

Answer: Original sentence: 'My friend, who had arrived earlier, waved to me.' Without commas: 'My friend who had arrived earlier waved to me.' This change makes the clause seem essential, possibly implying only that particular friend arrived earlier.

Question 3: How does the comma before 'who' in 'The children, who were playing near the fountain' affect the meaning of the sentence?

Answer: It indicates that 'who were playing near the fountain' is a non-essential relative clause, providing additional information about the children.

Question 4: Annotate the passage by drawing brackets around clauses that require commas and explaining why.

Answer: Students should bracket clauses such as 'When I arrived at the park,' and 'who were playing near the fountain,' explaining that commas are used to set off introductory phrases and non-essential relative clauses.

Question 5: Identify a sentence with multiple clauses in the passage. Describe how commas are used to separate these clauses.

Answer: In the sentence 'Despite the crowd, I managed to find a small, peaceful corner,' the comma separates two clauses: 'Despite the crowd' (adverbial clause) and 'I managed to find a small, peaceful corner' (main clause).

Question 6: Create your own sentence using a clause introduced by 'although' and include appropriate commas.

Answer: Sample answer: Although it was raining, we decided to go for a walk.

Question 7: Explain how the use of commas in the phrase 'who were playing near the fountain' can change the sentence if omitted.

Answer: Omitting the commas would imply that 'who were playing near the fountain' is an essential clause defining 'the children,' possibly changing the emphasis or meaning.

Question 8: In the given paragraph, find at least one sentence where commas could be added or removed to change clarity. Explain your choice.

Answer: The sentence 'My friend, who had arrived earlier, waved to me' could omit commas if the clause is deemed essential, but current punctuation correctly clarifies that the clause is non-essential.

Question 9: Summarize the main rule for using commas with clauses based on this passage.

Answer: Commas are used to set off non-essential relative clauses and introductory phrases, clarifying sentence meaning without altering the fundamental message.