Definition of Sentence

A group of words, usually containing a verb, which expresses a thought in the form of a statement, question, instruction or exclamation and starts with a capital letter when written.

Sentence building definition

Sentence is built from a group of words which starts with a capital letter and ends with a full stop (.), question mark (?) or exclamation mark (!). A sentence contains a predicate and a subject.

Sentence or not a Sentence?

One of the first things young learner should do is to recognize sentences.

They learn that sentences express a

complete idea.

 Teaching children to write sentences can be

difficult because of the abstract concept of the two parts of a sentence--the subject and predicate.

Children mistakenly use sentence

fragments( a sentence in the sense that it

cannot stand by itself) in their writing because

that is how people commonly speak.

 Every complete sentence contains two parts: a subject and a predicate. The subject is what (or whom) the sentence is about, while the predicate tells something about the subject.

A sentence needs to contain the following:

a capital letter at the beginning and a full stop at the end a subject (person / people or thing(s) that is / are doing something) a verb (action or doing word).

ACTIVITY 1
Have each student make two cards (one will say SENTENCE and the other will say NOT A SENTENCE). The teacher then reads phrases aloud. If it's a

sentence, then children must raise the correct

card. If it is not a sentence, then they raise the

other card.

For Example:

Sharks are fierce hunters

Sentence Fragments

 Afraid of sharks.
Sentence Fragments

 Other kinds will not harm.

Sentence Fragments

 The great white shark will attack people.

Sentence Fragments

You are correct!

That is an complete thought. It is called a sentence.

OOPS!
That is an incomplete thought. It is called a fragment.

ACTIVITY 2 Using Question Words

1. Introduce question words to help students

remember to make complete sentences. Students

can form the subject of the sentence by answering

"who" or "what."
2. They can form the predicate part of the sentence

by answering "why," "where" or "how."

3. Graphic organizers with boxes to write the subject of the sentence, plus the action words, along with the "how" or "why" are a good visual guide for children learning to write.

ACTIVITY 3 Silly Sentences

Create packets with subject, verb, and
predicates.

EXAMPLE: The big butterfly flew in a jar of jelly.

Have students choose one strip from each

packet.
Put the strips together to form a silly sentence.

 Have them draw an illustration and write the sentence underneath. Have them circle the subject and underline

the predicate.

REFERENCES
http://www.ehow.com/info_8299374_teachingchildren-write-sentences.html https://www.google.com.my/url?sa=t&rct=j&q= &esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&sqi=2&ved=0CCsQF jAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.busyteacherscafe. com%2Fliteracy%2Fsentences.html&ei=Sk7IUazS FIeFrgfVsIGYCw&usg=AFQjCNGkKB2m2DxgxmaU 68Bu1dLfrvSuGw&sig2=cEqfDPYogO6Z0Swi7opM uA&bvm=bv.48293060,d.bmk&cad=rjt