Sentence Games

Purpose: To explore and discover the “rules” of sentence formation.

Preparation Time: None.

Materials: White board and markers.

Procedure:

1. Write a simple sentence on the board, such as “It’s a book.” One by one, students suggest one or two words, or a phrase, which can be added to the sentence.
2. Each student writes in the new word or words and then reads the new sentence aloud. The class then decides if it is grammatically correct.
3. The level of the students will determine the complexity of the sentence. Beginning level might be: It’s a book.
   • It’s a big book.
   • It’s a big, red book.
   • It’s Maria’s big, red book.
   • It’s not Maria’s big, red book.

Variations:

• Start with a longer sentence and students remove a word or words to make the sentence shorter. Continue until you can’t reduce the sentence any more.
• Replace words in the original sentence to change the sentence completely. The meaning of the sentence can change, but it must remain grammatically correct. As above, each time the sentence is changed, the student reads it aloud and the class decides if it is correct.