Why is it important to know how to teach sentence
structure and importance?
The National Curriculum for English at Key Stages 3 and 4 has
the following requirements:
Listening
To listen, understand and respond critically to others, pupils should
be taught to:
- identify the major elements of what is being said both explicitly
and implicitly;
- distinguish tone, undertone, implications and other signs of a speaker's
intentions.
Reading
To develop understanding and appreciation of texts, pupils should be
taught to extract meaning beyond the literal, explaining how the choice
of language and style affects implied and explicit meanings.
Writing: Writing to imagine, explore and entertain
Pupils should be taught to:
- exploit choice of language and structure to achieve particular effects
and appeal to the reader;
- use a range of techniques and different ways of organising and structuring
material to convey ideas, themes and characters.
Language Structure
Pupils should be taught the principles of sentence grammar and whole-text
cohesion and use this knowledge in their writing. They should be taught
… the structure of phrases and clauses and how they can be combined
to make complex sentences [for example, coordination and subordination].
The Key Stage 3 National Strategy: Framework for teaching English:
Years 7, 8 and 9 contains the following objectives:
Year 7: Sentence level
Sentence construction and punctuation
Pupils should be taught to:
- extend their use and control of complex sentences by:
- recognising and using subordinate clauses;
- exploring the functions of subordinate clauses, e.g. relative
clauses such as ‘which I bought’ or adverbial clauses such
as ‘having finished his lunch’;
- deploying subordinate clauses in a variety of positions within
the sentence;
- use the active or the passive voice to suit purpose.
Paragraphing and Cohesion
Pupils should be taught to:
- recognise the cues to start a new paragraph and use the first sentence
effectively to orientate the reader, e.g. when there is a shift
of topic, viewpoint or time;
- vary the structure of sentences within paragraphs to lend pace,
variety and emphasis.
Year 8: Sentence level
Sentence construction and punctuation
Pupils should be taught to:
- combine clauses into complex sentences, using the comma effectively
as a boundary signpost and checking for fluency and clarity, e.g. using
non-finite clauses;
- explore the impact of a variety of sentence structures, e.g. recognising
when it is effective to use short direct sentences;
Writing
Plan, draft and present
Pupils should be taught to:
- re-read work to anticipate the effect on the reader and revise style
and structure, as well as accuracy, with this in mind.
Year 9: Sentence level
Sentence construction and punctuation
Pupils should be taught to:
- review and develop the meaning, clarity, organisation and impact of
complex sentences in their own writing;
- write with differing degrees of formality, relating vocabulary and
grammar to context, e.g. using the active or passive voice;
- integrate speech, reference and quotation effectively into what they
write.
KS3 pupils' strengths and weaknesses in sentence
structure and importance
What are KS3 pupils good at and what do they need to develop in this
area?
Good at….
- Most pupils can make clear statements about what they have experienced
and imagined.
- Pupils are already confident users of many grammatical patterns which
show how important an idea is. In KS2, most pupils will have learnt
to write in sentences that incorporate subordinate clauses.
Need to develop….
- Pupils need to help the reader to distinguish the main thrust of the
argument or story from subsidiary details. This distinction has to be
applied at all levels, from the main story line down to the level of
sentence structure. If everything is presented as though it has equal
importance, the reader may get lost in detail and miss the main point.
- Pupils may need to develop a range of sentence structures, with greater
use of subordination rather than co-ordination
and of abstract nouns rather than verbs.
An example of KS3 writing
Distinguishing the main thrust from subsidiary details
This is a KS3 pupil's description of a holiday home.
| indicates a missing
sentence boundary.
We have a holiday for a family of four and there
is a lot for the families to do | there is a big water complex
near by | there is a huge theme park just up the road which has
some enormous roller coaster for the family with a zoo near by.
There is a beach near by which has white sand
and blue sea which goes out for miles | the beach has a few restaurants
on it and it is a ten minute walk from your villa which has its very
own swimming which is indoor, but you can roll the roof over and it
is then an out doors pool. You will have a 4 bedroom villa. This luxurious
holiday will cost around £1000 a week for the whole family |
this doesn’t include a car | they will be £150 per week.
Problems with this work:
- the range of sentence structures used is very limited
- particular word patterns tend to be overused.
- the writing is dominated by a string of clauses built round there
is or have/has. These two patterns are used to introduce
each new idea, so each idea has equal importance which is not always
warranted.
The teacher worked with the pupil to improve the writing, and this was
the result. Click on the highlighted phrases for comments on why they
are better than the original.
On our holiday
for a family of four, families have a lot to do
in the big water complex near by and in the huge theme
park just up the road with its enormous roller coaster
for the family and a zoo near by.
The beach near by has white
sand and blue sea, which goes out for miles, and a few
restaurants . Just a ten minute walk away, your 4 bedroom
villa ’s very own swimming is indoors, but you can roll the roof
and make it an outdoor pool. This luxurious holiday will cost around
£1000 a week for the whole family, not including a car,
which will be £150 per week.
On our
holiday for a family of four:
The original main clause We have a holiday for a family of four
has been demoted to a noun phrase and linked to
the new main clause by on. This increases the importance of
families have a lot to do.
families have a lot to do :
This deserves a main clause to itself. Removing the repeated there
is concentrates attention on the families as the subject of
the main clause, rather than on the mere existence of the facilities (there
is a lot for the families to do).
in the big water complex near
by The original main clause there is a big water complex near by
has been demoted to a noun phrase and linked to
the new main clause by in.
with its enormous roller coaster:
The original relative clause which has some enormous roller coaster
has been demoted to a prepositional phrase; with
can often replace which has.
The
beach near by (for: There is a beach near by), a few restaurants
(for: the beach has a few restaurants on it) and your 4 bedroom
villa (for: You will have a 4 bedroom villa). These are all
examples of demoting facts from the high prominence of a main clause to
the relatively low prominence of a noun phrase, using determiners (the,
your) rather than verbs.
not including a car: The
original finite clause this doesn’t include a
car is demoted and becomes less important, because the non-finite
verb (not) including is substituted for the finite verb doesn’t
(include).
which will be £150 per week.
This subordinate (relative) clause is more suitable than the
original main clause they will be £150 per week because the advertiser
would presumably not want to give prominence to this extra charge.
|