What is a Sentence for Kids? A Complete ‘at Home’ Teaching Guide for Sentence Construction

It is essential to focus on the roots of teaching kids to prepare them for the future, and sentences are the first thing we learn after getting familiar with words. So, here, we will help you learn everything about sentence construction and how you can teach the same to the kids.

What is a Sentence for kids?

When do you think you use complete sentences? Nearly every time? Yes, we use complete sentences when we write, read or speak. A sentence is a collection of words that come together to make complete sense.

Make a few groups of words and explain to your kids that all groups of words are not necessarily sentences. You can give examples like the ones mentioned below:

#. the furry dog

#. ate a banana

#. on republic day

#. in the garden

#. but he did

#. in water swim to love

Help your kids by explaining to them the reason behind it. These groups of words do not make complete sense because they don’t explain the basic idea of what anyone is saying. They do not follow the mandatory rules of sentence formation.

Teach your children the rules they need to follow while forming a sentence:

#1. A sentence should always begin with a capital letter.

#2. A sentence should end with a full stop (.), question mark (?), or an exclamation mark (!).

#3. When speaking, a sentence should not be incomplete and should make sense.

#4. A sentence should express a complete thought.

#5. It should include two components: a subject (person, place, or thing) and an action that marks a doing word.

#. What is a subject? It tells who this sentence is about, a person, place, or thing. The subject is the performer of the action indicated in the sentence.

Example: Sam loves dancing. Yes, the subject word in this sentence is Sam.

#. What is a “doing word” or a verb? It tells us what the subject’s actions in this sentence.

Example: Sam loves to dance. So, yes, the verb in this sentence is loves.

While writing the sentences, use spaces between words so that each word can be read easily.

Example

Here are some examples of sentences explained for kids to make them learn more thoroughly.

#1. Roses are Red.

#2. Do you like to play football?

#3. I am a Girl.

#4. The sun rises in the east.

#5. Tushar is studying.

Ask the kids whether they can write a complete sentence on their own? Accordingly, make them practice writing and reading five sentences every day and speak out loud to improve pronunciation. Ensure that you check all the four parts of a sentence while checking their answers; say, first letter capital, subject, verb, and punctuation.

Types of Sentences

There are four types of sentences you need to teach your kids. You can make them remember the count by giving them instances like it is the same as if we have four seasons or four sides of a square.

#1. Statements

#. These sentences always tell us about something

#. They are the most common type of sentences

#. End with a full stop (.)

Example:

#. I will play football after school.

#. We have a car.

#2. Questions

#. These sentences always ask about something

#. They end with a question mark (?)

Example:

#. Where is Sam going?

#. What is your name?

#3. Commands

#. These sentences always tell someone to do something

#. They also end with a full stop (.)

Example:

#. Do your homework.

#. Go and sit there.

#4. Exclamations

#. These sentences always express strong feelings

#. These sentences can be used to show surprise, happiness, excitement, or anger

#. It always ends in an exclamation mark (!)

Example:

#. You won the prize! Good job!

#. You can come to my party!

Tell Your Kids about Sentence Structures

A sentence can be structured in many ways, moving from simple to complex. It is important to use these structures because they make writing more engaging and understandable. There are three types of sentence structures:

#1. Simple Sentences

#2. Compound Sentences

#3. Complex Sentences

What is a Simple Sentence for Kids?

Simple sentences have only one independent clause, which means it has only one subject, one verb. The thought of the sentence is complete and makes sense to the reader.

Teach your kids using the following examples of simple sentences

#. A Simple sentence: Sam closed the door. (one subject – Sam, one verb – closed)

#. A simple sentence with a compound subject: Sam and Tom are playing in the park. (Two subjects – Sam and Tom, One verb – playing)

#. A simple sentence with a compound verb: Sam laughed and nodded. (one subject – Sam, two verbs: Laughed and nodded)

What are Compound Sentences for Kids?

They are a combination of two or more clauses that are joined together by using conjunctions. These conjunctions can be: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so. Two or more simple sentences come together to form compound sentences.

Explain your kids using easy examples of compound sentences like:

#. Sam closed the door, and she went outside. ( Has two independent clauses with individual subject and verb present in each sentence)

#. It was raining, so Tom took an umbrella. ( Formed by two independent clauses)

#. I am good at writing, but I don’t like it. ( Has two independent clauses)

What is a Complex Sentence for Kids?

Complex sentences are made up of an independent clause and a dependent clause. The independent clauses present a complete thought, unlike the dependent clause. One must use a comma to separate the different clauses.

Teach your kids more about complex sentences using examples:

#. When he won the award, everyone cheered. (In this, “everyone cheered” is the independent clause with a subject, verb, and complete thought. The other part is the dependent clause. Although it has a subject and a verb, it’s not a complete thought.)

#. The cricket match was cancelled because it was raining. (The second part is the dependent clause, and the first is the independent clause.)

Conclusion

We hope now identifying different sentence structures and teaching the same to the kids is easy for you. Sentences are the base or say bricks of your communication construction, and you need to focus on it correctly. This guide from The Real School Of Montessori provides a complete overview on all your kid needs to know about sentences with examples. We offer clear and easy-to-understand courses for kids in simple language and engaging teaching methods. Therefore, make your kids learn new things by enrolling them at The Real School Of Montessori for their bright future.