Writing COMPLEX sentences instead of only writing SIMPLE sentences So you can write more sophisticated, have more sentence variety, and sound smart!

What happens to our writing when ALL of our sentences sound exactly the same? Let’s look at the following example.

Gary Provost on the Rhythms of Sentence Length             This sentence has five words. This is five words too. Five word sentences are fine. But several together become monotonous. Listen to what is happening. The writing is getting boring. The sound of it drones. It's like a stuck record. The ear demands some variety. Now listen. I vary the sentence length and I create music. Music. The writing sings. It has a pleasant rhythm, a lilt, a harmony. I use short sentences. And I use sentences of medium length. And sometimes when I am certain the reader is rested I will engage him with a sentence of considerable length, a sentence that burns with energy and builds with all the impetus of a crescendo, the roll of the drums, the crash of the symbols, and sounds that say listen to this, it is important.

So, how do you, as an eighth grader ensure that your sentences are more COMPLEX and do not all begin EXACTLY the same way?

at the beginning of your sentences!! One answer is to use AAWWUBBIS words at the beginning of your sentences!! What is an AWUBIS word?

An AAAWWUBIS word is just a catchy term for a Subordinating Conjunction Write these down. A - After A - Although A - As W - When W - While U - Until B - Because B - Before I - If S - Since

How will an AWUBIS word help?

These conjunctions will force you to write COMPLEX sentences and have sentenceVARIETY! Complex sentences are the result of AAAWWUBBIFYING!!! (New term!)

I still don’t get it. How do these conjunctions create a complex sentence? And what IS a complex sentence?

So what is a Subordinating Conjunction? (aka aaawwubbis word) It is a word which, when used at the beginning of a sentence, creates a It forces you to write an introductory clause before you begin your sentence and that creates TWO clauses in ONE sentence. How is that different from a simple sentence? Complex Sentence

Simple Sentences Simple Sentences are called simple because they contain a single subject and a simple predicate (verb). Example: It was raining. (“it” is the subject and “was raining” is the verb).

Now add an awwubbis word(because) to the beginning of that simple sentence and VOILA! You have a COMPLEX sentence! Because it was raining, I took my umbrella. This sentence contains two clauses, “Because it was raining” and “I took my umbrella”. It is COMPLEX because it now contains two different thoughts or clauses.

Here is another example of a sentence with an aaawwbbis word or subordinating conjunction. Although it was hot, he was wearing a coat. Notice that when you use the subordinating conjunction at the beginning of a sentence, a comma usually joins the two clauses. Now, you try it. Write a COMPLEX sentence with each aaawwubbis word.