Students often spend the beginning of the school year reviewing complete sentences and learning to organize their writing. As students’ confidence grows in these skills, it is time to help them learn to revise their writing – making it more interesting for the reader.
Sentence fluency and word choice are writing skills that must be specifically taught. We cannot merely tell students to “add more details” or “paint a picture with your words” and expect student writing to improve. Students need specific strategies to help them improve their writing. The following is an engaging way for students to practice writing fluent sentences. This can be done with students in person, in a hybrid model, or fully on-line.
Choose a topic that is appropriate for the age of your students. The topic should be broad enough that students can write 5-6 sentences which relate to the topic. Examples include: holidays, parties, animals, curricular areas, etc. Students will expand these sentences by including a when, where, why or how to each basic sentence. Be sure that students are only expected to add one item to a sentence at a time.
Basic Sentence #1:
A mouse ran.
Add a describing word – an adjective.
A brown mouse ran.
Add a where to the sentence.
A brown mouse ran across the grass.
Basic Sentence #2
A squirrel climbs.
Add a where to the sentence.
A squirrel climbs up the tree.
Add a why to the sentence.
A squirrel climbs up the tree to search for nuts.
Basic Sentence #3
A snake crawls.
Add a when to the sentence
Early in the morning a snake crawls.
Add a why to the sentence.
Early in the morning, a snake crawls to bask in a sunny spot.
Some students may be ready to add a how to their sentence. Words that describe how something happens are adverbs and go either before or after the verb.
Early in the morning, a snake slowly crawls to bask in a sunny spot.
Sentence #4
The bee flies.
Add a where to the sentence.
The bee flies to the flower.
Add a describing word that is not a size or color word (adjective)
The busy bee flies to the flower.
Add a why to the beginning of the sentence.
Looking for honey, the busy bee flies to the flower.
Continue with as many sentences as you would like. Primary students can then edit these sentences, rewrite them on separate pieces of paper, and illustrate their sentences. The stretched sentences then follow, creating a book for young writers. Brainstorm with students a topic sentence that would help link the sentences together. Complete the writing with a conclusion. For example:
My backyard is filled with different creatures. A brown mouse ran across the grass. A squirrel climbs up the tree looking for nuts. Early in the morning, a snake slowly crawls to bask in a sunny spot. Looking for honey, the bee flies to the flower. My back yard is a busy place.
Intermediate students can continue to add information and details to expand the one sentence into 4-5 sentences on the topic.
For example:
A brown mouse scurried across the green grass. Hiding behind a tall tree, the mouse carefully watched the neighbor’s cat sprint by and then come to a halt. The soft mouse quietly moved towards the open field hoping to avoid coming face to face with the feline who is searching the backyard for him. Slipping under the fence, the mouse picked up speed as he put space between him and his enemy until he knew he was out of danger.
As we enter the holiday season, students can write about their own holidays while practicing their sentence fluency. Imagine a holiday table which has been visited by some rather rambunctious guests and write a basic sentence.
The turkey sat on the plate.
Follow the same procedure as above, adding descriptors to the basic sentence.
Sitting on the silver platter, the leftover turkey is laying in a forgotten puddle of gravy.
Repeat the process with the following sentences.
The mashed potatoes dripped.
After dripping down the side of the bowl like an avalanche, the mashed potatoes settled on the tablecloth and hardened into rocks.
The whipped cream melted.
The cranberry sauce spilled.
The sweet potatoes overflowed.
Students can compile their revised sentences into a piece of writing. Introduce the writing by describing the festive table prior to dinner and then write a concluding sentence explaining the hosts’ reaction to dinner.
Examples:
Introduction:
Before the holiday dinner, the turkey was warm and the table was brighter than a knight in shining armor. After dinner, the table looked completely different.
Conclusion:
It took us hours to clean up the mess. We are never inviting those people to dinner again!
Students will need continual practice in writing descriptive and fluent sentences. Bring this lesson out whenever you notice your students’ writing needs a spark!
