Quality Sentences

 

Getting to grips with constructing and varying sentences with speed and accuracy will help you improve your writing.

 

If you need help to move from this

 

Sophie looked up. She saw a glow in the glass jar. She stood up on the ladder and grabbed the jar. She climbed down and read the label.

 

 

to something like this

 

Sophie looked around the shelves. A bright green glow in a jar on the top shelf caught her eye. She climbed up on the stool and reached for the jar. Then she jumped down with the jar firmly wrapped in her arms.

 

( Much more detailed description brings the text alive. Haven't used she to start every sentence.)

 

or even this

Looking around the shelves, Sophie couldn't believe her eyes. A bright green glow here. Bolts of blue there! Even Orange and blue stars! The jars were alive with colour and each one had an explanatory label glued to the front.

 

One on the top shelf caught here eye. Quick as a flash, she jumped up on the stool and grabbed the jar.

 

"This looks great!" she cried.
It glowed a fantastic shade of purple blue. Carefully, she lifted the jar from the shelf
so she could read about the secrets of the dream.

Then she settled down to read exactly what horrors the dream would conjure up.

 

(Short sentences, long sentences, using different ways of starting sentences.

Speech, lots of strong description. Exclamation marks.)

 

Some of the suggestions on the next few pages will help you.