Year 1 English: A sentence makes sense
Part of the Year 1 English making sentences chapter. Chapter overview · whole chapter on one page · Download worksheet (PDF) · Answers (PDF)
A sentence makes sense
A sentence is a group of words that makes sense on its own. It tells a whole idea. A sentence often tells us who or what it is about, and what happened.
Read The dog ran. It tells us who the sentence is about, and what the dog did. It makes sense. Now read On the mat. It tells us where, but not who or what happened. It is not a whole idea yet.
Key ideas
- A sentence makes sense on its own.
- A sentence tells a whole idea.
- A sentence often tells us who or what and what happened.
- A group of words that does not make sense is not a sentence.
Method. A sentence makes sense on its own and tells a whole idea.
- Read it aloud. Does it make sense on its own?The dog ran fast.
- Find who or what, and what happened. It tells us who (the dog) and what happened (ran fast).
- Decide. A whole idea makes a sentence. Without one, it is not a sentence.Yes
Check. Read it again to yourself. It makes sense on its own. ✓
Watch out. A group of words can look long and still not be a sentence.
Method. A sentence makes sense on its own and tells a whole idea.
- Read it aloud. Does it make sense on its own?On the mat.
- Find who or what, and what happened. It tells us where, but not who or what happened.
- Decide. It does not tell a whole idea, so it is not a sentence.No
Check. Read it again to yourself. It does not make sense on its own. ✓
Watch out. A group of words can look long and still not be a sentence.
Method. Read both groups of words. Pick the one that makes sense on its own.
- Read both groups aloud. Listen to which one sounds finished.Leo kicked the ball. or a big red ball
- Check for who or what, and what happened. A sentence tells a whole idea.Leo kicked the ball. tells a whole idea.
- Write the answer. The other group does not tell a whole idea.Leo kicked the ball.
Check. The other group is only a list of words, not a whole idea. ✓
Watch out. Long is not the same as a sentence. Check that the words make sense together.
Watch out
Watch out: a group of words can look long and still not be a sentence. In the big park tells us where, but not who did what. Read it aloud. Does it tell a whole idea?
Exam tip
Grown-up tip. Say a group of words and ask: “Does that make sense on its own?” Then ask: “Who is it about? What happened?” Try it with sentences from a book you have at home.
Exercise 6B Is it a sentence?
Method. A sentence makes sense on its own and tells a whole idea.
- Read it aloud. Does it make sense on its own?The bus is late.
- Find who or what, and what happened. It tells us about the bus, and what is true about it.
- Decide. A whole idea makes a sentence. Without one, it is not a sentence.Yes
Check. Read it again to yourself. It makes sense on its own. ✓
Watch out. A group of words can look long and still not be a sentence.
Method. A sentence makes sense on its own and tells a whole idea.
- Read it aloud. Does it make sense on its own?Sam ran home.
- Find who or what, and what happened. It tells us who (Sam) and what happened (ran home).
- Decide. A whole idea makes a sentence. Without one, it is not a sentence.Yes
Check. Read it again to yourself. It makes sense on its own. ✓
Watch out. A group of words can look long and still not be a sentence.
Method. A sentence makes sense on its own and tells a whole idea.
- Read it aloud. Does it make sense on its own?Under the big tree.
- Find who or what, and what happened. It tells us where, but not who did something.
- Decide. It does not tell a whole idea, so it is not a sentence.No
Check. Read it again to yourself. It does not make sense on its own. ✓
Watch out. A group of words can look long and still not be a sentence.
Method. A sentence makes sense on its own and tells a whole idea.
- Read it aloud. Does it make sense on its own?Ruby likes cats.
- Find who or what, and what happened. It tells us who (Ruby) and what Ruby likes (cats).
- Decide. A whole idea makes a sentence. Without one, it is not a sentence.Yes
Check. Read it again to yourself. It makes sense on its own. ✓
Watch out. A group of words can look long and still not be a sentence.
Method. A sentence makes sense on its own and tells a whole idea.
- Read it aloud. Does it make sense on its own?Dogs can swim.
- Find who or what, and what happened. It tells us who (dogs) and what they can do (swim).
- Decide. A whole idea makes a sentence. Without one, it is not a sentence.Yes
Check. Read it again to yourself. It makes sense on its own. ✓
Watch out. A group of words can look long and still not be a sentence.
Method. A sentence makes sense on its own and tells a whole idea.
- Read it aloud. Does it make sense on its own?The big red hat.
- Find who or what, and what happened. It tells us about a hat, but not what happened.
- Decide. It does not tell a whole idea, so it is not a sentence.No
Check. Read it again to yourself. It does not make sense on its own. ✓
Watch out. A group of words can look long and still not be a sentence.
Method. A sentence makes sense on its own and tells a whole idea.
- Read it aloud. Does it make sense on its own?Noah ate his lunch.
- Find who or what, and what happened. It tells us who (Noah) and what happened (ate his lunch).
- Decide. A whole idea makes a sentence. Without one, it is not a sentence.Yes
Check. Read it again to yourself. It makes sense on its own. ✓
Watch out. A group of words can look long and still not be a sentence.
Method. A sentence makes sense on its own and tells a whole idea.
- Read it aloud. Does it make sense on its own?Near the gate.
- Find who or what, and what happened. It tells us where, but not who did something.
- Decide. It does not tell a whole idea, so it is not a sentence.No
Check. Read it again to yourself. It does not make sense on its own. ✓
Watch out. A group of words can look long and still not be a sentence.
Method. Read both groups of words. Pick the one that makes sense on its own.
- Read both groups aloud. Listen to which one sounds finished.Jack kicked the ball. or a red ball and a bat
- Check for who or what, and what happened. A sentence tells a whole idea.Jack kicked the ball. tells a whole idea.
- Write the answer. The other group does not tell a whole idea.Jack kicked the ball.
Check. The other group is only a list of words, not a whole idea. ✓
Watch out. Long is not the same as a sentence. Check that the words make sense together.
Method. Read both groups of words. Pick the one that makes sense on its own.
- Read both groups aloud. Listen to which one sounds finished.The cat sat. or On the wall.
- Check for who or what, and what happened. A sentence tells a whole idea.The cat sat. tells a whole idea.
- Write the answer. The other group does not tell a whole idea.The cat sat.
Check. The other group is only a list of words, not a whole idea. ✓
Watch out. Long is not the same as a sentence. Check that the words make sense together.
Method. Check who the sentence is about and what happened.
- Read what Tom said. Tom says it is a sentence.Went to the shop.
- Look for who went to the shop. The words do not say who went.Who? Not told.
- Decide. A sentence needs to tell who or what it is about.It is not a sentence yet.
Check. Add a name at the start to fix it: Sam went to the shop. ✓
Watch out. Check that the sentence says who did something.
Method. Think about what the words tell us.
- Read the group of words. It tells us who the dog is.The dog
- Think about what happened. The words do not say what the dog did.What did the dog do? Not told.
- Add the missing idea. Now it tells a whole idea.The dog ran.
Check. Read the new sentence: The dog ran. It makes sense. ✓
Watch out. Who is not enough. Say what happened too.
Method. Think of an action word: a word that tells what the dog did.
- Start with the words. The sentence needs a word about what the dog did.The dog ___.
- Choose an action word. An action word tells what someone does, such as ran or barked.ran, barked, jumped
- Write the sentence. Put the word in the gap.The dog ran.
Check. Read it aloud. It makes sense and tells a whole idea. ✓
Watch out. Any action word makes sense here, such as barked or jumped.