Complex Sentences - PowerPoint

English Teaching Resources provide a comprehensive lesson on complex sentences for Key Stage 2 students, focusing on vocabulary, grammar, and punctuation. A complex sentence is defined as one that includes more than one clause, where a clause is a group of words containing a verb or verb phrase. The lesson highlights that every sentence must have a main clause, which is the central idea and can stand alone as a simple sentence. For example, "My wife is a doctor" is both a main clause and a simple sentence. The lesson then introduces the concept of a subordinate clause, which adds extra information to the main clause but cannot stand alone, as seen in the sentence "My wife, who is younger than me, is a doctor."

Students are taught to identify the main and subordinate clauses within complex sentences through a series of exercises and examples. They are presented with sentences like "The plant, that had not been watered for a week, had started to wilt," and asked to pinpoint the main and subordinate clauses. Further activities involve reading complex sentences and underlining the main idea, which can function independently. Worksheets are also provided, prompting students to add subordinate clauses to given sentences to create complex sentences. These exercises help students understand how to enhance their writing by adding depth and detail to their sentences.