Word Wall Challenge Teacher Notes
Step up to the Word Wall in groups of three. Look at the words, punctuation and clauses on the cards. You don’t have to use all the words at once.
Each group should have:
tried staggering
staggered
and , , .
under the weight of her homework
desperately to run for the bus
Kate
,who has big feet, - don’t give this out until the end!
Full Stop Check
1. First group to make a simple sentence!
Full Stop Check. Is this a main clause? Why?
This teaches that the main clause can stand on it’s own.
2. First group to make a compound sentence! Clue: use ‘and’.
Do we have two equal clauses?
Full Stop Check. Implied ‘she’ to see the sense of the main clause.
Identifies that two main clauses can be joined.
3. First group to make a complex sentence starting with a verb+ing clause. Make sure it’s a clause by checking it is a group of words with a verb.
Starting off a sentence with verb+ing ensures that the sentence will turn into a complex sentence.
Full Stop check.
Subordinate clauses don’t make sense on their own. Many students rarely consider using the subordinate clause at the beginning yet this can change the impact and the meaning. How?
4. First group to make a complex sentence starting with ‘Kate’. Only use one comma. Clue: you have to use ‘tried’ as second word. Full Stop Check.
Varying the position of the subordinate clause can add variety and interest to writing.
5. Keeping the noun at the beginning, using only one extra comma, re-arrange the order of the sentence.
We’ve split the main clause. Full Stop check the subordinate clause. Cover the subordinate clause and we’re left with the Main clause – Full Stop check it.
Varying the position of the subordinate clause can add variety and interest to writing.
6. Here’s your wild card – your relative clause. The comma shows it’s a clause and not a question – put your relative clause into your sentence. What class of word does it follow/modify?
A relative clause gives extra info about a noun and so must always be positioned after the noun.
This is an example of a split main clause and subordinate clause – or an example of embedding.
Investigation into types of subordinate clauses will help students to become more confident in deploying them correctly.