Page 117 - SpringBoard_Writing_Workshop_Grade6_Flipbook

Writing Workshop 10 (continued)
6 SpringBoard® Writing Workshop with Grammar Activities Grade 6
Revising for Language and Writer’s Craft
Varying sentence patterns for meaning and style is important in all writing, including informal letter writing. The pattern of a sentence can influence both its meaning and its style. To keep the audience interested as well as communicate information clearly, it is important to vary the sentence patterns in a text.
Look at the following sentences from the sample text. Then, compare each
to an alternate version that simply rearranges the content a little by moving clauses around. How is the style and/or meaning changed when the sentence pattern is changed?
• “I can’t believe it has been an entire summer since I last saw you.”
• “Since I last saw you, I can’t believe it has been an entire summer.”
How is the style and/or meaning changed when the sentence pattern is changed?
The second sentence seems to put more importance on their last meeting, while the original sentence puts more emphasis on the time that has passed.
• “The carnival at school was tons of fun and I can’t believe that you actually hit the target that sent Mr. Smith into the dunk tank.”
• “I can’t believe that you actually hit the target that sent Mr. Smith into the dunk tank and the carnival at school was tons of fun.”
How is the style and/or meaning changed when the sentence pattern is changed?
The new sentence pattern is awkward because it is more reasonable to mention the carnival before the act of dunking, since it sets the scene of the dunking.
• “I knew moving would be hard, but I didn’t know moving would be that hard.” • “I didn’t know moving would be that hard, but I knew moving would be hard.”
How is the style and/or meaning changed when the sentence pattern is changed?
The sentence pattern change is less effective because the intensifier “that hard” needs to be at the end of the phrase that introduces moving as hard.
Varying sentence patterns for interest and clarity is important in longer passages of text to maintain reader interest as well as clarity of ideas. Look again at the class-constructed letter. Do many of the sentences begin with the same word(s)? Are most of the sentences of similar lengths and do they read with similar rhythm? If so, you might want to revise some sentences to incorporate varying sentence patterns.
Two effective ways to vary the sentence patterns in your writing are both simple:
• Vary sentence pattern length, ranging from quite long compound or complex sentences to very short simple sentences.
• Try to start sentences in varying ways.
9. On your copy of the class-constructed letter, circle the first three or four words of each sentence. Then, count the number of words in the sentence and record it at the end of the line. After you have marked your copy, look for patterns. Are the same few words repeated over and over in the circled text? Do most of the sentences have similar word counts? Talk to a partner about whether the class-constructed letter needs revision to add more variety to sentence patterns. Work with your teacher and/or classmates to make explicit revisions to the text.
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