The Wheaton Letter
Students should have proofread the letter, made corrections, and produced a clean copy. The
letter with corrections highlighted appears on the next page. These are some of the errors in
the letter that occur frequently in business writing:
• Putting a comma between the parts of a compound verb
• Failing to use a comma after an introductory phrase or clause
• Omitting a comma when setting off a nonessential element within a sentence
• Failing to use a comma before the conjunction in a compound sentence
• Using a semicolon where a colon (or comma) should be used
• Using hyphens instead of dashes
• Using a comma splice
Students should also have searched the Internet for information about common punctuation
errors in business writing and should have keyed a list of five to ten of these errors.
Use this activity as an opportunity to focus on punctuation errors students make frequently, as
well as common punctuation errors in business writing. The activity can also serve to introduce
or refresh students on business letter formatting. Point out that two spaces are used after end-
stop punctuation.
24 Elliott Street Naperville, IL 60540-2034 http://www.willmeth.edu
January 11, 2010
Mr. Eric Wheaton
67 Bridge Street
Lima, OH 45804-1038
Dear Mr. Wheaton:
Thank you for your interest in Willmeth College. We would be glad to have you visit our
campus from March 22 to March 23. You can take a tour and shadow one of our engineering
students. In addition, we can arrange for you to meet with Robert Gaines, our admissions
counselor for the Midwest, either day.
Your request to stay in the dorms can also be accommodated. We suggest that you bring the