Introduction to Sentence Structure
The following article is compiled from extracts from PETAA book Conversations about Text 1: Teaching Grammar Using Literary Texts, written by Joanne Rossbridge and Kathy Rushton, published in 2010.
How does knowledge of sentence structure help students understand the purpose of texts?
When asking students to define a sentence a common response is that it has a capital letter and a full stop. As Collerson (1997) points out, this is a graphological definition which doesn’t necessarily help students make decisions when writing. The definition does not help them see the complexities amongst ideas within sentences when reading either. Sometimes sentences are discussed as complete ideas but even this is difficult to articulate, as students read and produce more complex texts. In thinking about a grammatical definition of a sentence, the notion of a clause becomes important as clauses are combined in a range of ways, depending on the purpose of the text. The use of one clause or combination of clauses determines the types of sentences constructed. A sentence may be described as simple, compound or complex. (See Derewianka, 1998:93–101).
It is not uncommon for teaching about sentence structure to focus on accuracy in particular, however, exploring choices in relation to the purposes of texts at both the sentence and clause level can include a focus on how we can make and develop meanings throughout texts. In taking this approach we can consider types of sentences and how they develop meaning for a reader rather than assuming that effective texts always have a variety of sentence types. For example, some texts only consist of simple sentences yet are highly effective. For instance in narrative texts there may be times when simple sentences are used to convey fast-paced action. On the other hand, we may have complex sentences containing adjectival clauses to assist in describing character and setting at various stages in the text. We may also find complexity when a writer uses dialogue to convey both character and events. When working with teachers a frequent comment from them is that students tend to write the way they speak, constructing ‘run-on’ sentences. This is understandable as students bring their oral language to the written mode. As with all grammatical resources we can look at how sentence structure differs between oral and written texts. This needs to be pointed out explicitly through the use of metalanguage.
What do you need to know about sentence structure?
In order to develop metalanguage for thinking and talking about sentence structure choices, it is informative to look at student writing to consider how explicit discussion might enhance writing choices. The following sample text, 'Mr and Mrs
Small', which was written by a student, has been broken up showing each clause on a new line. The verbal groups have been underlined.
Mr and Mrs Small, Geoff and Sue set off on their fishing trip.
Mr Small said
this would be the best holiday ever.
Sue spotted their holiday cabin near the lake.
The lake was crystal clear.
Mr and Mrs Small unpacked
and put their clothes away in the cabin.
When initially reading this text we can see accurate construction of sentences with punctuation evident however the text does have a spoken-like quality. The text is the beginning or orientation of a narrative. Overall the structure is good as the characters and setting are introduced, however, we can see that there is limited development of setting and character. In fact on close observation, the names and number of characters seems ambiguous.
If we look at the sentence structure we start to see that the text consists mainly of simple sentences. The text has one compound sentence due to the combination of independent clauses. An independent clause is one that can stand alone. It is worth noting that the clauses are joined by and. A spoken-like feel has resulted with limited scope for the development of details about the characters and setting. There is one example of a complex sentence in which reported speech has been used with the use of the saying verb said in the reporting clause, establishing a dependent clause as it cannot stand alone –‘Mr Small said this would be the best holiday ever’. The text is heavily events-based with the use of action verbs such as, spotted, put, unpacked etc. and there are two examples of relating verbs would be and was which aid the development of description. However, there is little development of extended noun groups. Due to the lack of ideas and complexity, engagement by the audience is limited. By pointing such features out to students we can start a conversation about ways of developing the text further. Already we can see that defining a sentence as having a capital letter and a full stop isn’t going to assist students in developing either knowledge and understanding or skills for creating and extending narrative text and engaging an audience.
In order to understand and talk about sentence structure we need to be able to identify the verbal groups in the text and understand the clause boundaries. A clause is about something and is made up of groups with the main element being a verbal group. This tells the ‘goings on’ in a sentence. Most clauses contain one or more other groups such as noun groups, adverbials, conjunctions / connectives making connections between clauses and sentences. The clause or clauses combine into sentences. Independent clauses can stand alone, in that they can make sense on their own and have a capital letter and full stop. In contrast dependent clauses need an independent clause in order to make a sentence. The dependent clauses function to elaborate on the main clause.
How does knowledge about sentence structure develop writing and higher order reading skills?
Talking about meanings and relationships not only at a clause and sentence level but also critically analysing and challenging choices, provides a way in to accessing complex meanings and development of in-depth classroom discussion. Gradual release of support and provision of opportunities for students to work collaboratively in the classroom is communicative and draws upon student background knowledge and experiences. As students take on metalanguage they actually scaffold each other.
The best way to build up student knowledge of sentence structure, how it works and how choices can enhance meanings is through reading a wide range of quality literature whilst also reflecting on their own writing choices. We need rich texts to show how authors craft language to engage readers and thus achieve their purposes. By discussing the ways clauses have been combined into sentences or indeed separated in modelled texts students can start to discuss and view the choices they make in their own written texts, leading to empowerment over the language.
Where to next?
Check out PETAA's key grammar textbooks: