7th grade · English Language Arts · Unit 5 of 20
Modifiers & Parallelism
Clear, balanced sentences
What your child practices
Revising sentences so describing phrases sit next to what they describe (no misplaced or dangling modifiers) and list items match in form (parallel structure).
New York State Learning Standards learning standard: 7L1 · placing modifiers and keeping sentences parallel
How we explain it
Children can open this short lesson before they practice.
- Put a describing phrase right next to the word it describes.
- A dangling modifier has nothing in the sentence to describe: “Baking cookies, the kitchen smelled good.” (The kitchen wasn’t baking.)
- Parallel structure: items in a list use the same form, like drawing, painting and building.
Example: Make the list parallel: “Amir loves drawing, to paint and building models.” Two items end in -ing; “to paint” doesn’t match. Change it to “painting.” Answer: Amir loves drawing, painting and building models.
Modifiers & Parallelism in New York
In the New York State Learning Standards, this is unit 5 of 20 in 7th grade English Language Arts, after Clauses & Sentences and before Word Mix-Ups.
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.
Sample questions
A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.
Question 1
Who or what does “Exhausted after the long hike” describe?
Exhausted after the long hike, the campers fell asleep quickly.
- asleep
- quickly
- the campers
- the long hike
the campers
Hint: An opening describing phrase should describe the noun that comes right after the comma.
Question 2
Which revision makes the sentence parallel?
The coach told us to stretch, to drink water and that we should rest.
- The coach told us to stretch, to drink water and to rest.
- The coach told us to stretch, drinking water and to rest.
- The coach told us stretching, to drink water and that we should rest.
The coach told us to stretch, to drink water and to rest.
Hint: Make every item in the list match: to stretch, to drink, to…
Question 3
Who or what does “Covered in frosting” describe?
Covered in frosting, the birthday cake sat on the counter.
- sat
- the counter
- the birthday cake
the birthday cake
Hint: Look right after the comma. What is covered in frosting?
Question 4
Which sentence uses parallel structure?
- Ana loves dancing, to sing and playing the drums.
- Ana loves dancing, singing and to play the drums.
- Ana loves to dance, singing and playing the drums.
- Ana loves dancing, singing and playing the drums.
Ana loves dancing, singing and playing the drums.
Hint: Items in a list should share the same form. Find the sentence where all three activities are -ing words.
Question 5
Which revision fixes the misplaced modifier?
Leo bought a bike from a neighbor with a squeaky bell.
- Leo bought a bike with a squeaky bell from a neighbor.
- Leo, with a squeaky bell, bought a bike from a neighbor.
- With a squeaky bell, Leo bought a bike from a neighbor.
Leo bought a bike with a squeaky bell from a neighbor.
Hint: Does the neighbor have the squeaky bell, or the bike? Move the modifier next to the word it describes.
Question 6
Which sentence has a dangling modifier?
- The kitchen smelled wonderful while Lena baked cookies.
- While Lena baked cookies, the kitchen smelled wonderful.
- Baking cookies, Lena filled the kitchen with a wonderful smell.
- Baking cookies, the kitchen smelled wonderful.
Baking cookies, the kitchen smelled wonderful.
Hint: A dangling modifier has nobody in the sentence to describe. Who is baking? Not the kitchen!