There are four kinds of sentence. Statements tell, questions ask, commands tell someone what to do and exclamations show strong feeling. Each has its own job and often its own punctuation.
What your child will learn
- Name the four types of sentence
- Recognise statements, questions, commands and exclamations
- Use full stops, question marks and exclamation marks correctly
- Spot the bossy verb at the start of a command
Four jobs
A statement gives information: “Owls hunt at night.” A question asks: “Do owls hunt at night?” A command gives an instruction, often starting with a bossy verb: “Look at the owl.” An exclamation shows surprise or strong feeling and, in Year 2, starts with “What” or “How”: “What a clever owl!”
Example questions
Here are a few questions like the ones in the first quest. Can you solve them?
1. Which sentence is a command?
- What a big door!
- The door is closed.
- Close the door.
- Is the door closed?
Show answer
Answer: Close the door.. It tells someone what to do.
2. What kind of sentence is “Is it raining?”
- A statement
- An exclamation
- A command
- A question
Show answer
Answer: A question. It asks something and ends with a question mark.
3. Which punctuation mark ends a question?
- ,
- ?
- !
- .
Show answer
Answer: ?. Questions end with a question mark.
Tips for grown-ups
- Follow a recipe together and spot the commands: stir, pour, bake.
- Turn statements into questions: “You are hungry” → “Are you hungry?”