1. Sentence Structure

2. Good Sentences Make Sense
A sentence is a group of words with a subject and a predicate.
The Subject of the sentence usually tells what the sentence is about
The predicate of a sentence tells about the subject or tells what the subject is doing

3. Clauses and Phrases
A phrase is a part of a sentence which does not contain its own subject and predicate.
Around the house
Under the bed
A clause is part of a sentence which contains its own subject and predicate.
A sentence = A clause. . .But. . .
A clause does not always = a sentence

4. Clauses continued An independent (main) clause makes sense on its own.
A dependent (subordinate) clause does not make sense on its own.

5. Examples After school, Larry studied this ACT book.
After school = a phrase
Larry studied this ACT book = a main (independent) clause
After school was over, Larry studied this ACT book.
After school was over = dependent (subordinate) clause
Larry studied this ACT book = main (independent) clause

6. To avoid choppy sentences or run-on sentences
You can connect two short main clauses with a comma and a conjunction
And -so
But -yet
Or -nor
You can also use a ;

7. Example We headed off to the game during the rain.
The rain stopped before we got there.
We headed off to the game during the rain, but the rain stopped before we got there.

8. Congratulations!!! You just made a compound sentence.
A sentence that is made up of two or more independent clauses
Try making one yourself.
Thick vines covered the windows.
We couldn’t see outside.

9. How do I make an independent clause a dependent clause?
If you start an independent clause with a subordinating conjunction, it becomes a dependent clause.
Examples of Subordinating Conjunctions
Unless -Because
Even though -While
Although -Though

10. Examples Because the party was noisy. While we waited.
Although the power went off.
The first word of these subordinating clauses is the only thing keeping these fragments from being sentences.
Take away the first word, and you have an independent clause.

11. Why would I want to make a dependent clause?
A dependent clause does not make sense on its own.
It must be hooked up with an independent clause to make a full sentence
Without the independent clause you would have a fragmented sentence.

12. Hook these subordinating clauses up with independent clauses
Neighbors complained
We ate Doritos
We still had fun
Because the party was noisy.
While we waited.
Although the power went off.

13. What if I start my sentence with a subordinating clause?
You must use a comma to separate a subordinate clause from an independent clause when you start a sentence with a subordinating clause.
Example
Because the party was noisy, neighbors complained.

14. Congratulations!! You just made a complex sentence!!
A sentence made up of one independent clause and one or more subordinate clauses.
Try to make a complex sentence out of these two independent clauses.
Karen never speaks up
She usually knows the answers

15. Participles A verb form that is used as an adjective
It looks like a verb, but it actually will describe someone or something
There are two kinds of participles
Past
Present

16. Past Participles
Regular verbs are made into the past participles by adding D Ed
Ex: Walk = Walked
Irregular verbs are the exception
Ex: Freeze = frozen
Ex: Catch = caught

17. Present Participle
Formed by adding
Ing
Ex: Walk = walking

18. Participles are always used as adjectives
Swerving, she avoided the pedestrian.
Swerving is the present participle describing she.
Hal made fried potatoes.
Fried is the past participle describing the potatoes.

19. Phrases
When a phrase starts with a participle, it is called a participial phrase.
In order to prevent confusion, the phrase should be placed as close as possible to the noun it describes.
Ex: Avoiding the reporters, the mayor hurried away.
Ex: The swimmer, kicking hard, got out of the boat’s wake.

20. Punctuation A participle phrase is set off with commas when. . .
it comes at the beginning of the sentence,
Interrupts the sentence with nonessential information
or comes at the end of the sentence separated from the word it modifies.

21. Starting with a participial phrase
Arriving at the store, I found that it was closed.

22. As an interrupter The church, destroyed by a fire, was never rebuilt.
Since we don’t need the participial phrase for the sentence to make sense, it is surrounded by commas.
The student earning the best grade will be rewarded.
Since The participial phrase is needed for the right student to get the reward, we would not use commas.

23. At the end of the sentence separated from the word it describes
Tom nervously watched the woman, alarmed by her silence.
Tom is obviously the one alarmed
The local residents often saw Ken wandering the streets.
If the participial phrase at the end of the sentence is right next to what it is describing, we don’t need a comma.

24. Appositives
When you name something and then immediately rename it to give further information, you are using an appositive.
Ex: My dog, a pointer, stood silently outside the cave.
Ex: She did not care for his hobby, spelunking.

25. An appositive can come in phrase form
Ex: Wilma Rudolph, my favorite athlete, was a great runner.

26. Hints
An appositive helps describe a noun, so an appositive can go anywhere a noun can.
An appositive needs to be punctuated like an interrupter
If the appositive information is essential, no commas are needed
Ex: My friend Marilyn enjoyed the tour of the cavern.