Teachers have a lot on their plates. In each day there are loads of subjects to attend to, not to mention all of the ‘other’ things that go on in a day. There’s never enough time! This or that is being put on the back burner due to the lack of time and it’s not okay! Over the years, I’ve found some little tricks to help squeeze everything in – including grammar! Let’s talk about 5 fun and unique ways you can squeeze in a bit more grammar practice without taking time away from your already packed routine.
The awesome thing about teaching grammar is that you don’t have to always have a specific time in your day to teach it. It can easily be integrated into other subjects (yes, even math!). And the more you integrate and think outside of the box, the easier it gets to squeeze it all in! Let’s talk about these 5 fun ways you can quickly and easily get more Grammar Instruction in your routine!
Grammar Practice Idea #1: Mentor Sentences
Using mentor sentences is a perfect way to squeeze in some extra grammar practice in your already established reading routine! So what are mentor sentences? A mentor sentence is a sentence that provides a strong example of a variety of grammar rules/parts of speech. This sentence can be pulled from a read-aloud, a worksheet, a passage you’re working on, anywhere! By taking 2-3 minutes to write the mentor sentence on the board and analyze it for grammar skills, you’re providing specific grammar review in your day without spending tons of extra time.
When analyzing the sentence, you can identify parts of speech and discuss how they are being used. You can also examine grammar rules such as subject/verb agreement, punctuation marks, and even complex sentences. The possibilities are endless!
Another great time to use mentor sentences is during writing! Why? Mentor sentences provide a great mirrored example for students to follow when writing their own stories. You can easily squeeze in a mentor sentence each day during your mini-lessons and challenge the students to mirror that example in their writing for the day!
Grammar Practice Idea #2: Daily Silly Sentences
Kids love to be silly! So why not let them be AND get in some grammar instruction while you’re at it? This idea is a fun way to do both! At the beginning of the year (or when you want to start this routine), have the students brainstorm a variety of silly words for a variety of parts of speech. Write these words on index cards or pieces of sentence strips! Put each part of speech in a separate baggie and label them so you know which is which. Then, when you have created enough inventory in words – you can start!
Now, each day, find 3 minutes to have students pull one word from each baggie to create a fun and silly sentence! Ex: The sticky booger jumped quickly into the Kleenex. (sticky, booger, jumped, quickly would have been in bags) This can be done as a part of your morning meeting, end of the daily routine, writing routine, or whenever! The best part about it is that it’s quick, fun, and easy! And you can add to the bags anytime you want to!
Grammar Practice Idea #3: Use Grammar Task Cards
So teachers everywhere are doing a lot to provide individualized and small group instruction for their students. We work hard to find and create the most meaningful centers in reading, writing, and math class. So one super-easy way to get in MORE grammar instruction is to make sure at least one of those centers focuses on grammar! If we are finding a hard time otherwise squeezing in grammar instruction whole group, then grammar needs to be a focus in one of your small groups!
How can you do this easily? What about some self-differentiating task cards? Task cards are easy to prep and students love them! They are the perfect way to get in that focused grammar instruction and get back useful data to know exactly what your students need work on!
Haven’t heard of my self-differentiating task cards? No worries! I’ve got a FREE pair you can try! Just enter your email address below and you can grab my Comma Task Cards for FREE to give them a try! And if you love them, you can find even more Grammar Task Cards in my TpT store!
Grammar Practice Idea #4: Read-Aloud Grammar Picture Books!
Another fun and easy way to make sure you’re squeezing in more grammar practice is to have your classroom read-aloud be focused on grammar! I know we all love reading aloud to our students every day. So every once in a while, pick up a picture book that focuses on grammar! There are tons of amazing grammar-focused picture books to choose from! If you need some new ideas or want to add some to your classroom library, make sure to check out my Amazon Storefront where I have all of my book recommendations organized for you! Just look for the section that’s titled: Picture Books to Teach Grammar
Grammar Practice Idea #5: Analyze the Morning Message
I always loved having a quick morning message written out to my students each day. Whether typed electronically or written on the board, this is another quick and easy way to squeeze in some extra grammar practice! What do you do?
Each morning after all of your students have settled in and completed their morning routine, quickly read aloud the morning message together. Then analyze each sentence for grammar, parts of speech, etc. You can even put in mistakes in the morning message and practice editing them together too! The point is that it’s quick and easy and not taking extra time away from your normal routine!
I hope some of these ideas help you find some fun and new ways to get in that grammar instruction! It’s so important for helping develop strong readers and writers! If you want to save this post for later, just pin the image below!
