Telling a phrase from a complete sentence (a sentence needs a verb and makes sense on its own), and ordering the building blocks of text: word, phrase, sentence, paragraph, chapter.
Where your child meets this in real life: Writing in full sentences and organising longer writing into paragraphs and chapters
SEAGReady breaks phrases, sentences and paragraphs into 2 steps, taught in order so each skill builds on the last.
Decide whether a group of words is a complete sentence or only a phrase, by checking for a verb and asking whether it makes complete sense on its own.
Order the building blocks of text from smallest to largest, word, phrase, sentence, paragraph, chapter, and know what each one is made of.
Three free sample questions from our phrases, sentences and paragraphs course. Every question comes with a full explanation, and hints that guide without giving the answer away.
Which of these is a complete sentence?
Answer: A. Emma scored a goal.
A complete sentence needs a subject and a verb, and must make complete sense on its own. 'Emma scored a goal' has a subject ('Emma') and a verb ('scored'), it is a full sentence. The other four have no verb: nothing happens over the hill, on the tractor, under the bridge or over the pitch with the gulls, they are only phrases.
Stuck? Start here: A complete sentence needs someone or something AND a verb, and it must make sense on its own.
Which of these is the SMALLEST building block of text?
Answer: A. a word
The building blocks of text from smallest to largest are: word → phrase → sentence → paragraph → chapter. A phrase is a group of words, a sentence is built from words and phrases, and a paragraph is a group of sentences. So the smallest block is a word.
Stuck? Start here: Think of building blocks like bricks and walls, which one cannot be broken into smaller text pieces?
Which of these is a complete sentence?
Answer: C. Rebecca finished her homework.
'Rebecca finished her homework' has a subject ('Rebecca') and a verb ('finished') and makes complete sense, so it is a full sentence. The other options tell you where, when or who, but contain no verb, so they are only phrases.
Stuck? Start here: Short does not mean incomplete, check for a verb instead of counting words.
This is the exact interactive worked example your child sees in SEAGReady. Step through it and watch the method build up.
Compare these two groups of words. A: 'Over the old bridge near the Lagan.' B: 'The ferry crossed the lough.'
Which one is a complete sentence?
Step 1 of 3
Compare these two groups of words. A: 'Over the old bridge near the Lagan.' B: 'The ferry crossed the lough.'
Which one is a complete sentence?
B is the complete sentence, it has a subject and a verb ('crossed') and makes sense on its own. A is only a phrase.
The key insight: No verb, no sentence, a phrase leaves you waiting to hear what actually happened.
Watch out: Picking A because it starts with a capital letter and ends with a full stop. Punctuation can be dressed onto anything. What makes a sentence is a verb and complete sense, A has neither.
These are the misconceptions we see most often in phrases, sentences and paragraphs, including the ones our practice questions are specifically designed to catch.
Struggling with phrases, sentences and paragraphs? The real gap is often in one of these earlier topics.
SEAGReady finds the exact step where your child gets stuck, teaches it with worked examples like the one above, and brings it back for review so it sticks.
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