Sentence Types

A Sample of Ideas from Jeff Andersons Mechanically Inclined (Stenhouse, 2005) A recommended buy!

What is a sentence?
A sentence should be aliveSentences need energy to jump off the page and into the readers head. As a writer you must embed energy in the sentencecoil the spring, set the trap. Peter Elbow, Writing With Power

What is a sentence?
The Sentence: A Way of Thinking, Jeff Anderson, Mechanically Inclined A sentence must contain at least one subject and one verb, and it must express a complete thought. A fragment is missing a subject or verb and/or it doesnt contain a complete thought.

Try this Simplest Sentence Pattern for Fun and Effect! The Two-Word Sentence Smackdown Subject + Powerful Verb

They race. (Jerry Spinelli, Loser) Maria flinched. (Nancy Farmer, House of the Scorpion) Blood flew. (Stephen King, Cujo) He sprung. (Stephen King, Cujo)

Your turn for a Two-Word Sentence Smack Down

Subject: Dog Breed (You pick the subject and add the verb!) Subject: Story Character Subject: Body Part (i.e., tongues)

Review of a Two-Word Sentence

What does a Two-Word Sentence include? (1) Who or what did what? AND (2) What was done? OR A SUBJECT (person, place, or thing noun) AND A VERB

Another Powerful Sentence Pattern: The Compound Sentence

for and nor but or yet so

Sentence

Sentence

A compound sentence uses a conjunction to bind two complete sentences.

Remember the Sentence-Connecting Coordinating Conjunctions with the Word

FANBOYS
For And Nor But Or Yet So

Compound Sentence Examples

Every day was a happy day, and every night was peaceful. (E.B. White, Charlottes Web) Celia says youre in shock, but I think youre just lazy. (Nancy Farmer, The House of the Scorpion) It was almost time for science, her best subject, so it would be easy for Judy to pay attention. (Also contains an interrupter, Megan MacDonald, Judy Moody Gets Famous)

Compound Sentences
Lets play a game to learn more about compound sentences.

Lets hear some of your Compound Sentences

Write a sentence to connect a hamsters cage with a messy bedroom. Connect an angry wasp with lazy old bloodhound. Connect a blustery fall day with a basketball game.

Review of the Compound Sentence

What does a compound sentence do? A compound sentence joins two complete sentences using a coordinating conjunction (one of the FANBOYS).

Now lets get more complicated: Three Basic Scaffolds for Complex Sentence Patterns

, Sentence . Sent , interrupter, ence . Sentence , closer .

Opener

Opener, Sentence
Start with a preposition (above, after, across, against, along, among, around, at, behind, below, beside, between, beyond, by, down, from, in, inside, into, near, off, on, out, outside, over, past, through, to, toward, under, underneath, up, within, after, as, before, during, since, until, about, despite, except, for, like, of, per, than, with, without)

Opener, Sentence with Prepositions as Starters

To tease your hair, grab a small section and hold it up by the end. (Kinky Friedman, Kinky Friedmans Guide to Texas Etiquette) About the time I got to San Antone, I never wanted to see another dead armadillo. Despite his bulk, Lester sounded like a girl every time he opened his mouth. Underneath the seven layers of urinesoaked newspaper, rat poo, and seed jackets, Gilbertina was quite cozy and contented.

Another Type of Opener, Sentence: Start with AAAWWUBBIS

AAAWWUBBIS is a mnemonic device standing for the common subordinating conjunctions after, although, as, when, while, until, before, because, if, or since If you start a sentence with AAAWWUBBIS, youll need a commausually!

Opener, Sentence: Examples with AAAWWUBBIS

Before the plate hit the table, Louie leaned forward like a snake striking and hit the stack of pancakes with his fork. (Gary Paulsen, Harris and Me) When I pop in a Bird CD, its like I feel myself filling up with Zeke. (Tracy Mack, Birdland) If there was an Olympic contest for talking, Shelly Staffs would sweep the event. (Wendelin Van Draanen, Flipped)

Review of Opener, Sentence

How does an Opener start? An Opener starts with a preposition or An AAAWWUBBIS

Now you use the Opener, Sentence pattern to complete the following sentences

________________, Amazina sniffed the tantalizing odor of panfried crows feet. ______________, strap yourself securely onto your broom, clasp the handle in both of your claws, and utter the mystical phrase, Barlulia liftupus.

Sent-, interrupter, -ence

His eyes, brown and sparkly, lit up his face. Intricate mosaic tiles, handpicked by Baba in Isfahan, covered the four floors of the four bathrooms. (Khaled Hosseini, The Kite Runner) I was stretched out on my back, my paws dangling at my sides, thinking nothing more of the meal Id just eaten and the chocolate I hoped still lie ahead. (James Howe, The Celery Stalks at Midnight)

Sent-, interrupter, -ence

What is the purpose of the interrupter? The interrupter adds describing information about the subject of the Sent- part of the sentence.

More Examples of Sent-, interrupter, -ence

Our yellow ranch house, 26 Bobolink Drive, had a garage and a bathroom shower with sliding glass doors. (Wally Lamb, Shes Come Undone) I even coaxed Rowdy, my bluetick hound, into helping me with this monkey trouble. (Wilson Rawls, Summer of the Monkeys) Monsieur Bibot, the dentist, was a very fussy man. (Chris Van Allsburg, The Sweetest Fig)

Sentence, Closer A closer adds information to the sentence.

Sentence

,+

participle (-ing or ed verbs) and

Sensory Detail(s)

Note that not ALL closers follow this pattern, but all closers add information.

Examples of Sentence, Closer

Cujo trailed at Bretts heels, looking hot and dispirited. (Stephen King, Cujo) The dog stood up like a lion, stiffstanding hackles, teeth uncovered as he lashed up his fury for the charge. (Zora Neale Hurston, Their Eyes Were Watching God) The waif waved a filthy kerchief, sending the stomach-churning air of the sewer into my nostrils. Simon seized Astrids arm, causing a bolt of fear to lunge up her spine.

More Examples of Sentence, Closer

He dont even whimper, like hes lost his bark. (Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, Shiloh) The screen was coming away from the screen door in one corner, curling away from the metal frame like a leaf. (Suzanne Berne, A Crime in the Neighborhood)

Examining the Sentence, Closer

What does the Closer often start with? A participle (-ing or -ed verb) What does the Closer add to a sentence? The Closer adds information, often sensory details, to the Sentence.

Time to experiment with Sentence, Closer

The weary eagle spotted the cedar and made a beeline toward it, ___________________. Heracula lifted her pointy head, ___________________. Tears surfaced in his eyes, and the aged fairy king gulped, _____________.

Another Powerful Sentence Pattern: The Serial Comma Sentence

Sente n

, ,
c

and

AKA The Magic Three

A Serial Comma Sentence adds three pieces of information to a sentence.

Examples of the
Serial Comma Sentence Pattern

Sente n , c , and e . AKA The Magic Three

Pick up your tennis shoes, your potato chip bag, and your sweaty self off my white rug. (Betsy Anderson) With a malicious gleam in his eye, he kicks back the chair, pulls out his shirt tails, and adopts the high-volume grunting and braying tones of a Mississippi Delta evangelist. (Rob Thomas, Slave Day)

More Examples of the

Serial Comma Sentence Pattern

Sente n , c , and e . AKA The Magic Three

The soup was a delicious mingling of chicken, watercress, and garlic. (Rob Thomas, Slave Day) Can you imagine your father selling you for a tablecloth, a hen, and a handful of cigarettes? (Kate DiCamillo, The Tale of Despereaux)

Test your expertise with the The Serial Comma Sentence

The scraggly lion ____________, ____________, and ___________. Shot from his shaky bow, Albaniuss arrow ____________, ____________, and ___________. The ogres preferred snacks included __________, __________, and _____________

Review of a Serial Comma Sentence

Whats another name for a Serial Comma Sentence? The Magic Three What does a Serial Comma Sentence do? A Serial Comma Sentence adds three pieces of information to a sentence.

Plans for Tracking Use of the Sentence Patterns

Sentence Type

Use this chart to track your usage of the sentence patterns

Number of Examples in My Paper

Two-Word Sentence (Color code: Red) Compound Sentence (Color code: Brown) Opener, Sentence (Color code: Blue) Sentence, Closer (Color code: Orange) Sent-, Interrupter, -Ence (Color code: Green) Serial Comma Sente n, c, e (Magic 3) (Color code: Purple)