Writing a Good Sentence

What is a sentence?

A sentence is a group of words that tells one whole idea. When you read a good sentence, your brain gets a complete picture. It does not leave you waiting for more.

Look at these words: the fluffy little. That is not a sentence. It does not tell us what happened. Now read this: The fluffy little kitten fell asleep. That is a sentence! It tells a whole idea.

The two parts of a sentence

Every sentence has two important parts.

• A naming part — who or what the sentence is about.
• A doing part — what they do or what happens.

Naming part	Doing part
The dog	runs in the park.
My sister	reads a book.
The sun	shines brightly.

If you take away either part, the sentence breaks. The dog on its own does not tell us anything. Runs in the park makes us ask, "Who runs?" You need both parts working together.

The two rules every sentence follows

1. Begin with a capital letter.
2. End with a full stop (or a ? or !).

So my dad cooks dinner is missing its rules. Fix it: My dad cooks dinner. Now it looks neat and finished.

Make your sentences interesting

A good sentence is correct, but a great sentence is also fun to read. Try adding a describing word or telling where or when.

• Plain: The boy ran.
• Better: The fast boy ran.
• Best: The fast boy ran across the muddy field.

Be careful not to make a sentence too long. If you join lots of ideas with and... and... and, it gets tiring. Split a giant sentence into two shorter ones. Short, clear sentences are easy to understand.

Try it yourself

Write three sentences about your day. Check each one:

• Does it have a naming part? ✅
• Does it have a doing part? ✅
• Capital letter at the start? ✅
• Full stop at the end? ✅

If all four boxes are ticked, you have written a good sentence!

Once you can write strong sentences, you are ready to put them together. Learn how in building a paragraph. You can also explore the different kinds of sentences in sentence types: statements, questions, commands.