At the beginning it is best to start with easy sentences in English. These sentences have one clause, meaning one subject and one verb. When I'm teaching about the Grammar of sentences I like to show the children the Subject and Verb parts of speech on a diagram that looks like a train.
It's super easy. If you keep the sentences short, the children will understand quickly. You can also use our diagramming pages so the children get the picture, the map of where the grammatical terms sit.
I like to start on the board or a sheet of paper with a tiny diagram. Show that the subject and the predicate verb sit on the main line with a descending line to separate them.
Write Subject on the left of the diagram and Verb on the right (at this time use verb as short for predicate).
Then have fun with it. Draw a train around the words with a Subject-engine and a Verb-tender car complete with coal in the tender.
Later you can show an Object-caboose. Keep it simple at the beginning while they learn the terms.
Subject = Doer
Verb = Action (State of being and tenses can be added for older children, too.)
The subject does the action. To restate, "Doer acts." "Subjects verb."
Then demonstrate several two word sentences. Two word examples are easier to create if you think of the plural third person. Using the season or the children's favorites catches their attention:
They'll remember the terms Subject and Verb if you repeat them often enough, and they'll remember them better if they will draw the diagrams and write the words on their own papers.
Of course, they'll really enjoy it if you suggest several subjects that they can use with their own verbs. Let them add in the articles and adjectives. And, oh, yes. The ever present, "I" sentences:
These give students a good idea of basic sentences. Advise the children to capitalize the first letter in a sentence and to choose an end punctuation: period, exclamation point, or question mark.
The main point to emphasize is that the words must make sense together.
You can teach the past, present, and future by putting tiny sentences in order of time: past, present, and future. I like to teach the tenses with a timeline.
These easy sentence worksheets have three to five sheets in each download:
Kids love seeing the image of a train! And the similarity works for most of beginning Grammar.
Now add the object:
Objects answer the question, "What?"
In the beginning it helps vastly if you model short examples of easy sentences in English, especially if you have ESL students. Then provide suggestions of several nouns and several verbs. Teach the capitalization and punctuation rules at the same time as you are teaching sentences. They like being able to see where a sentence begins and where it ends.
Declarative Sentences - A declarative sentence, according to USE, is a sentence that makes (declares) a statement and ends with a period.
Interrogative Sentences - An interrogative sentence, according to USE, is a sentence that asks a direct question and ends in a question mark.
Imperative Sentences - An imperative sentence, according to USE, is a sentence that gives a command (an entreaty, a warning, a prohibition, etc.) and ends with a period or an exclamation mark. Go. Fetch. Help me! Thou shalt not kill.
Exclamatory Sentences - An exclamatory sentence, according to USE (an exclamation), is a sentence that expresses a strong emotion and ends with an exclamation mark. Fire! I wish you a Happy Birthday! Grandma and Grandpa are coming for Easter!
See our punctuation worksheets here.
We have lots more manuscript and cursive writing worksheets that you can buy in our printable English Grammar Worksheets bundle to add to these samples.
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