“Let’s start at the very beginning, a very good place to start.” This famous line, sung by Maria to the children in Sound of Music, was part of our early music education.
The start of school is a time of beginnings. The first days are filled with introducing students to the beginning of new classes, new routines, new expectations, and new classmates. Eager to jump into curriculum, it is easy for us to forget the importance of taking the time to start at the very beginning.
In writing, the very beginning is sentence writing. Too often, the focus becomes on students writing complete paragraphs without mastering this fundamental building block. Analyzing standards shows that sentences are considered an integral part of writing instruction.
So, what do students need to know about a sentence? Prior to writing complete sentences, students must be able to recognize and speak in complete sentences. From kindergarten through 6th grade, students should be expected to respond in complete sentences at school, both orally and in writing.
Next, students need to know the components of a complete sentence. While most children can tell you a sentence contains a capital letter at the beginning, punctuation at the end, a subject and a verb, they also need to know that a sentence must make sense. (This is where handwriting and spelling come into play.) Teach, apply and practice finding these sentence components with your students. As a group, take a basic sentence and practice changing the subject. For example: The dog ran at the park. The children ran at the park. Repeat this changing the verb. The dog barked at the park. The dog jumped at the park. Provide students ample time to check their own writing to make sure their sentences are complete!
Teach students that not all sentences are created equal. Playing with sentence structure helps students improve their sentences in a natural way. Include time to experiment with language both verbally and in writing. Vocabulary can be increased when students explore varied word choices in completed sentences. For example: The turtle sat on a rock. The turtle basked on the rock. The turtle lazed on the rock.
Finally, reinforce that writing complete, interesting sentences is a requirement in class. In primary grades, Write Now – Right Now uses colors when working on editing sentences. Older students should be expected to write complete, correct sentences at all times. Provide time in class for students to correct their writing and then make it a habit in your classroom.
Sentence writing is a building block for all writing. Please reach out for ideas on how to encourage more complete sentence writing in your classroom. We love to talk writing!