9.2 Sentence Structure

Shannon and Mary talk with guests Louise Hewitt and Meghan Hicks from The Sentence Studio about sentence structure. They discuss why many students who can decode still struggle with comprehension and writing because of sentence-level syntax challenges. Their approach uses “bubble maps” and a routine of sequenced questions to help students identify the subject–predicate “kernel” and understand how sentences are expanded with where/when/why/how details. This discussion shows how grammar, vocabulary, morphology, and comprehension intersect in students' reading and writing. Listeners will walk away with a fresh perspective and ideas for developing students' syntactic knowledge and awareness. * Note: these times differ slightly in the AD FREE episode. 01:19 Meet Louise and Meghan 04:14 What Syntax Really Means 09:00 Bubble Map Breakthrough 11:41 Why Grammar Programs Fail 15:49 Syntax and Comprehension 17:44 Complex Sentence Examples 21:11 Misconceptions About Reading 23:06 SLPs and Language Clues 28:36 Tools and Teaching Routine 33:31 Function Over Form 35:16 Morphology Meets Syntax 51:35 Grammar for Multilingual Learners 53:51 Sentence Work Beats Worksheets 01:12:03 Teach Function Not Labels 01:15:27 Student Insights and Misconceptions 01:22:06 Assessment Built Into Mapping 01:23:17 Raise Rigor With Scaffolds 01:24:07 Wrap Up and Next Time RECOMMENDED RESOURCES RELEVANT TO THE EPISODE: Science of the Sentence website Sentence Composing for Elementary School by Don and Jenny Killgallon *Amazon affiliate link Massachusetts DOE Syntax resources Bubble Map Challenges The Sentence Studio Science of the Sentence on YouTube Science of the Sentence on Facebook Support the show Get Literacy Support through our Patreon Bonus Episodes access through your podcast app Bonus episodes access through Patreon Buy us a coffee Get a FREE Green Chef box using our link