New York State Elementary Test Prep: ELA 4 (Grade 2) Identify and Write a Complete Sentence

What is a sentence?

A sentence is a group of words that...

      ~tells a complete thought.
      ~tells who or what the sentence is about.
      ~tells what happened.
      ~begins with a capital letter.
      ~ends with a punctuation mark ( .    !    ?   )

These are sentences:	The boys played soccer.
	This group of words tells you that there are some boys. It tells you what the boys are doing. It tells a complete thought. It is a sentence! Timothy's team won the game!
	This group of words tells you that there is a boy named Timothy. He is on a team. It tells you who won the game. It tells a complete thought. It is a sentence! The winning score was 3-1.
	This group of words tells you the score. It tells you what happened. It tells a complete thought. It is a sentence!


What is a fragment?	A fragment is a group of words that... ~is missing the who, what, or what happened. ~does NOT express a complete thought. ~is NOT a sentence.

These are fragments:	Kicked the ball.
	This group of words tells what happened, but does not tell who it happened to. This group of words is a fragment. This group of words is NOT a sentence.
	The soccer players.
	This group of words tells the who, but does not tell what happened. This group of words is a fragment. It is NOT a sentence.

Think...

Sentence or fragment?

A sentence is a group of words that tell a complete thought. It tells who or what
the sentence is about, and what happened. It begins with a capital letter and
ends with a punctuation mark.

A fragment is a group of words that does not tell a complete thought. It is missing
the who, or what, or what happened. It may or may not begin with a capital
letter and end with a punctuation mark.

Directions: Read each sentence. THINK and ask yourself if the group of words is a sentence or a fragment. Click the down arrow to check your answer.

The girls played soccer in Europe.

Three penalty kicks!

The referees.

Matthew had a terrific head ball in the soccer game!

The game started late because it was raining.

Great Work!!!

Click on the cheerleader to get some practice!