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Complete Sentences vs. Run-Ons – What is a complete sentence? – A sentence has a subject, verb, and makes sense on its own. – Expressing a complete thought – It’s like telling a whole, tiny story! – Spotting complete sentences – Look for subjects and verbs that match and make sense together. – Identifying run-on sentences – Run-ons are like two sentences squished together without a break! | This slide introduces the concept of complete sentences versus run-on sentences. A complete sentence is defined as a group of words that contains a subject and a verb and expresses a complete thought. It’s important for students to understand that a sentence is like a tiny story that has a beginning (subject), a middle (verb), and a clear ending (complete thought). Teach students to identify the subject and verb in a sentence and to check if they make sense together. Explain that run-on sentences are like two sentences joined without proper punctuation or conjunctions, which can make them confusing. Use examples to illustrate both concepts and encourage students to practice distinguishing between the two.

What Makes a Complete Sentence? – A sentence needs a subject – The subject is the main focus, like ‘The cat’ or ‘My teacher’ – A sentence needs a predicate – The predicate is the action part, like ‘runs fast’ or ‘is teaching’ – The subject is the ‘who’ or ‘what’ – The predicate tells about the subject | When teaching third graders about complete sentences, emphasize the importance of having both a subject and a predicate. The subject is the person, place, thing, or idea that the sentence is about, and the predicate explains what the subject is doing or describes the subject in some way. Use simple and relatable examples to illustrate these concepts, such as ‘The dog (subject) barks loudly (predicate).’ Encourage students to identify subjects and predicates in sentences and to check their own writing for complete sentences. This foundational knowledge will help them avoid run-on sentences and write clearly and effectively.

Let’s Find the Subject and Predicate! – Understanding subjects in sentences – Recognizing predicates in sentences – Example: The cat (subject) is sleeping (predicate) – ‘The cat’ is who the sentence is about, ‘is sleeping’ tells what the cat is doing – Activity: Find subjects and predicates – Look at sentences and spot the subject and predicate | This slide introduces the concept of subjects and predicates as essential parts of a complete sentence. The subject is who or what the sentence is about, while the predicate explains what the subject is doing. Use the example provided to illustrate these components. For the activity, provide students with a list of simple sentences and ask them to underline the subject once and the predicate twice. Encourage them to explain their reasoning. Possible sentences for the activity: ‘The dog barked loudly.’, ‘My teacher reads a book.’, ‘The flowers in the garden are blooming.’, ‘A rainbow appeared in the sky.’ This will help them understand sentence structure and differentiate between complete sentences and run-ons.

Understanding Run-on Sentences – What’s a run-on sentence? – Run-ons have too many ideas – Two or more thoughts squished together without the right punctuation. – They’re like talking without breathing! – Imagine saying a lot without stopping. That’s a run-on! – How to spot and fix them – Look for sentences that seem too long and find where to put periods or conjunctions. | This slide introduces the concept of run-on sentences to third-grade students. Begin by explaining that a run-on sentence is like a train with too many cars attached, making it too long and confusing. Emphasize that each complete thought needs its own space, like taking a breath between sentences. Use examples to show how run-on sentences can be broken down into smaller, complete sentences or joined correctly with commas and conjunctions. Encourage students to always look for where one thought ends and another begins to avoid run-ons in their writing. Practice with examples and have students try to identify run-ons and correct them.

Spotting Run-on Sentences – What is a run-on sentence? – Example of a run-on – ‘I love to write it is fun’ combines two thoughts without a break. – Why is it a run-on? – It’s two complete ideas without proper punctuation or connecting words. – How to fix a run-on – Use a period or a comma and conjunction to separate the thoughts. | This slide aims to help students identify run-on sentences and understand why they are incorrect. Begin by explaining that a run-on sentence is when two or more complete thoughts (sentences) are squished together without the right punctuation or connecting words (like ‘and’, ‘but’, or ‘or’). Use the example provided to show how two separate ideas are incorrectly joined, making it hard to read and understand. Then, demonstrate how to correct the run-on by breaking it into two sentences or by using a comma and a conjunction. Encourage students to practice with their own examples and to always check their writing for run-ons.

Fixing Run-on Sentences – Run-ons need punctuation or conjunctions – Use a period to separate ideas – ‘I love to write. It is fun.’ Two complete ideas! – Conjunctions join sentences smoothly – ‘I love to write because it is fun.’ Connects ideas with ‘because’ – Let’s practice fixing run-ons – We’ll turn run-ons into correct sentences together | This slide aims to teach students how to identify and correct run-on sentences. Run-on sentences occur when two or more independent clauses are joined without proper punctuation or conjunction. Teach students that they can fix run-ons by adding a period to create two separate sentences or by using a conjunction to join them in a way that flows and makes sense. Provide examples of both methods and encourage students to come up with their own examples. During class, practice with sentences that need correction and guide students through the process of fixing them. This will help reinforce the concept and improve their writing skills.

Let’s Practice: Complete Sentences vs. Run-Ons – Activity: Identifying sentence types – Look at sentences on the board – Decide if each is complete or a run-on – We’ll correct run-ons as a class – Example: ‘The sun is bright it hurts my eyes’ is a run-on. Let’s fix it! | This slide is for an interactive class activity where students will practice distinguishing between complete sentences and run-on sentences. Display sentences on the board one by one. Ask students to identify whether each sentence is complete or a run-on. For run-on sentences, guide the class through a correction process, showing them how to use punctuation, like periods or commas, and conjunctions to separate ideas into complete sentences. Encourage participation and explain that a complete sentence has a subject, a verb, and expresses a complete thought, while a run-on contains multiple ideas that need to be properly connected or separated. Prepare a list of sentences in advance for this activity, ensuring a mix of complete and run-on examples.

Class Activity: Sentence Scavenger Hunt – Find sentences in a favorite book – Spot the run-on sentences – Run-ons are sentences that need a break! – Work with a buddy to fix run-ons – Use a period or conjunction to correct them – Share your sentences with the class | This interactive activity encourages students to apply their knowledge of complete sentences and run-ons. Have the students pick out their favorite books and work in pairs to identify proper sentences and run-ons. Provide guidance on how to correct run-ons by using periods, commas, or conjunctions to separate ideas. After the activity, facilitate a discussion where each pair can present their examples and corrections. This will help reinforce the concept and allow students to learn from each other. Possible variations of the activity could include creating a classroom display of their findings or turning it into a competition to see which pair can find and correct the most run-ons.

Becoming Sentence Experts! – Congratulations on your hard work! – Complete sentences have a complete thought. – A subject and a verb that express a full idea. – Proper punctuation is key. – Like periods, question marks, and exclamation marks. – Practice makes perfect! – Keep reading and writing to get even better. | This slide wraps up the lesson on identifying complete sentences versus run-ons. Reinforce the concept that a complete sentence must have both a subject and a verb and express a complete thought. Emphasize the importance of punctuation in making sentences clear and understandable. Encourage the students to continue practicing by reading and writing daily, which will help them naturally recognize and form complete sentences. Celebrate their progress and remind them that with consistent practice, they will become proficient in distinguishing between complete sentences and run-ons.