Language learning is difficult for children, and forming a correct sentence in English is even more difficult. But with great practice, patience and help, your child can learn how to form sentences and communicate better!
To let your child get better at communication, we have compiled a list of 6 fun activities through which they can learn sentences quickly.
1. Use Pictures
Pictures will help your child make up different stories. You can use pictures of animals, nature, or even your family and encourage them to share whatever comes to their mind after glancing at them.
Initially, your child will need your help. You can ask them questions like “what is happening in the picture?” and get their creativity flowing. Give your child creative freedom and let them create any sentence.
2. Mix and Match Sentence Game
Games are fun and a great way to help your child remember learning concepts with ease. One such game is the Sentence Mix and Match. In this game, you will need several index cards and markers.
What to do:
- The first step includes writing subjects such as ice cream, shape, colors on top of half of the index cards.
- The other half of the index cards should include predicates or sentence endings that make sense when matched with the subject index cards.
- After that, place the cards together to make a complete sensible sentence and shuffle them all.
- Once you shuffle the cards, pick them up and discover all the silly sentences they could end up making.
With this activity, your child learns that sentences are interchangeable when words are moved around correctly.
3. Sentence Switch
The subject and predicate in sentences have specific functions, and your child needs to understand their roles to use them correctly. This game of sentence switching is a perfect way to do so.
Start with simple three-word sentences like: a cat jumped. Then switch either the subject or the predicate, which will look like this: a dog jumped, a cat played, a dog played. Once your child is thoroughly comfortable switching a three-word sentence, you can level up to a four or five-word sentence.
4. Sentence Cut Out
Your child will find it difficult to correctly put their ideas into a sentence, resulting in a random jumble of words. This activity is great to help them compose a meaningful sentence.
What to do:
- For this activity, your child will need to think of a sentence and then count the words in it on their fingers.
- Then they need to say the sentence aloud to ensure that they remember it.
- After that, an adult has to write down the sentence and cut out each word, and the child has to assemble the words correctly and stick them onto the page.
With this activity, your child learns how to form sentences and then learn to remember the sentence in their mind so that they can write it out.
Also Read: How To Include Music in a Child’s Everyday Life & Its Importance
5. Vocabulary Banks
Vocabulary bank is a collection of all the new words or phrases that your child learns. These help children remember tricky words that they find difficult to spell out. With vocabulary banks, your child can focus on constructing interesting and meaningful sentences, and when they get stuck at a particular word, they can easily refer to the vocabulary bank.
6. Types of Sentences
Types of sentences in English is a fun activity where your child will learn how several punctuations like periods, exclamation marks, and question marks affect a sentence.
To get started with this activity, you need to pick a sentence your child is familiar with – I like eating. Then encourage your child to repeat the same sentence in the form of a statement, a question, and then an exclamation.
With this activity, your child gets familiar with the minor tweaks in a sentence that could change their meaning.
Conclusion
A language has tons of rules, but that does not mean it cannot be fun. These activities are a great way to teach sentences to your child without making it a tedious process for them. But remember, to not be harsh as it will demotivate them to learn more and always give them the creative freedom to imagine!
