Subscribe

3rd grade · English Language Arts · Unit 8 of 21

Sentence Smarts

Kinds of sentences

What your child practices

Telling statements, questions, exclamations and commands apart, spotting incomplete sentences and joining ideas with so, but, or and because.

New York State Learning Standards learning standard: 3L1 · complete sentences and kinds of sentences

How we explain it

Children can open this short lesson before they practice.

  1. A complete sentence tells who or what, and what they do.
  2. A statement tells, a question asks, an exclamation shows strong feeling and a command tells someone to do something.
  3. Join two ideas with and, but, or, so or because.

Example: Which is a complete sentence: “Our class at a farm.” or “Our class visited a farm.”? Both tell who: our class. Only one tells what they did: visited. Answer: Our class visited a farm.

Sentence Smarts in New York

In the New York State Learning Standards, this is unit 8 of 21 in 3rd grade English Language Arts, after Word Pairs and before ABC Order & Dictionary.

Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.

Source: New York State Education Department (NYSED)

Sample questions

A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.

  1. Question 1

    What kind of sentence is this?

    When does the movie start?

    • Exclamation (shows strong feeling)
    • Question (asks something)
    • Command (tells someone to do something)
    • Statement (tells something)

  2. Question 2

    What kind of sentence is this?

    Line up at the door, please.

    • Command (tells someone to do something)
    • Question (asks something)
    • Exclamation (shows strong feeling)
    • Statement (tells something)

  3. Question 3

    What kind of sentence is this?

    Wow, we won the game!

    • Question (asks something)
    • Command (tells someone to do something)
    • Statement (tells something)
    • Exclamation (shows strong feeling)

  4. Question 4

    Which is a complete sentence?

    • Built a sandcastle.
    • Leo built a sandcastle.
    • Leo and a sandcastle.

  5. Question 5

    Which is NOT a complete sentence?

    • The bright moon lit up the sky.
    • Fell all night.
    • The kettle whistled loudly.

  6. Question 6

    Which is NOT a complete sentence?

    • My sister plays the drums.
    • Two squirrels up the tree.
    • The puppy chewed on a bone.

More 3rd grade