A Non-Linguistic Representation of a Sentence Subject Wheel Predicate Wheel

A Subject + A Predicate = A Sentence What’s a sentence? A Subject + A Predicate = A Sentence The subject tells us who or what. The predicate tells us what about it. Length does not determine what is and is not a sentence. Regardless of how long or short a group of words is, it needs two parts to be a sentence: a subject and a predicate. BEGIN WITH EXAMPLES, NOT DEFINITION. CONCRETE, NOT ABSTRACT. SENTENCES OF DIFFERENT LENGTH -- BASIC WRITERS THINK LENGTH DETERMINES SENTENCEHOOD.

Autumn leaves twirled gently to the ground. Three examples: He smiles. Autumn leaves twirled gently to the ground. The park district will open an outdoor ice skating rink in November. OUT OF LENGTH-MINDSET. A MEANING-CENTERED DEFINITION. MEANING OF THE WORDS, NOT ABSTRACT IDENTIFICATION OF PARTS OF SPEECH.

Who or what? What about it? He smiles. Autumn leaves twirl gently to the ground. The park district will open an outdoor ice skating rink in November. AGAIN, CONCRETE EXAMPLES. THE WHO/WHAT AND WHAT ABOUT IT MAKES SENSE TO STUDENTS. INTRODUCE TERMS BASIC SENTENCE AND INDEPENDENT CLAUSE. These two parts (subject and predicate) connect to form a basic sentence, also known as an independent clause.

Another way to describe a sentence is to compare it to a bike… The subject is one wheel; the predicate is the other wheel. IMAGE. ALSO STABLE STUCTURE – IMPORTANT FOR UNDERSTANDING SENTENCE BOUNDARIES. WILL SEE THIS AS WE MOVE ALONG These two wheels connect to form a stable structure.

Or many… We can have just one word in each wheel… Children play. Students studied. Or many… The elementary school children play on the playscape at recess. The medical students studied the steps of the surgery before performing it.

Let’s Review

What happens if you are missing a subject or a predicate? Just like a bicycle, if you are missing a wheel, you won’t be able to go. In this case you have a fragment. A fragment is an incomplete sentence because it is lacking either a subject or a predicate. A fragmented relationship

What do each of these sentences need? Examples of Fragments He. Ate the cannoli. The purple elephant. Walking through the park. The happy couple. Skipping down the lane. What do each of these sentences need?

What happens if you have too many subjects and too many predicates? or predicates, the sentence is hard to read. Kind of like this bicycle which has too many wheels and gadgets- anyone would have a difficult time riding this bike!

Examples of Run-ons He walked down the street to see his sister brought muffins for her parents. Yesterday I bought a new raincoat I wore it today for the first time. This weekend I am going to the Berlin Fair and my friend is going to be there since yesterday we have been on the phone all the time because we are so excited about it we can’t wait and we are going to have such fun.

Is this a sentence? The poor, lonely missing goat. Her face lit up like a Christmas tree. Let out a cry for help. Most asteroids are small and far away therefore they are dim and hard to see. Louisa pretended to be interested in her brother's hobby she secretly wished she had stayed at home. Could have been the star of the team. The majestic Queen of England joyfully greeted her subjects. Up in the air. We've seen enough for one night pack up the equipment. Slowly climbing down the stairs