Language Lessons for Kids: Types of Sentences in English

As a grown-up who has been talking and writing in English for years, you probably grow a little impatient when trying to correct your kid’s English and wonder why they are taking so long to learn. But before you do that again, try to recollect the number of days your school teacher spent to build a strong grammar foundation for you so that you become fluent in the English language. And yet, you would agree that most of us, as adults, still make mistakes in written English.

Learning the types of sentences is one such basic skill in English grammar for kids that needs to be taught well to your kid so that they can express their thoughts and ideas clearly while writing. Each type of sentence, namely, declarative, interrogative, exclamatory, and imperative, is used for a different purpose. Understanding the difference between them can make your kid’s English stronger.

Here are the different types of sentences with examples:

• Declarative Sentences
  A declarative sentence is simply used to make a statement, fact, or express an opinion. Declarative sentences end with periods. They can be used to relay information in the form of simple or compound sentences.
   

  Examples of declarative sentences:

  1. I own a dog.
  2. The train leaves at 8 AM.
  3. She is feeling tired but still has a lot of work to do.
      
• Interrogative Sentences
  An interrogative sentence is used to ask questions and ends with a question mark. You can inquire or get information using an interrogative sentence. Again, these can be direct or compound sentences.

  Interrogative sentences usually begin with who, what, when, why, how, where, can, or do. There are different types of interrogative sentences, for example, yes/no questions, question-word questions, or choice questions.

  Examples of interrogative sentences:

  1. Do you want to have pancakes for breakfast? (yes/no question)
  2. Where is your school? (Question-word question)
  3. Do you want a black pen or a blue pen? (Choice question)
  4. Can you call me when you are done? (yes/no question)
      
• Exclamatory Sentences
  Exclamatory sentences are used to make statements with strong emotions such as excitement, happiness, surprise, anger, etc. They end with exclamation marks.
  
  Exclamatory sentences are often used in written dialogue and casual conversations. They are seldomly used in expository or academic writing as these are more serious in nature.
  
  Examples of exclamatory sentences:
  1. You have such a cute puppy!
  2. Wow, what a huge cake!
  3. I love tacos!
      
• Imperative Sentences
  Imperative sentences are used to either give commands or make requests. In other words, they are used to telling someone to do something in the form of basic instructions, invitations, or friendly advice. They can end with periods or exclamation marks.

  The subject is often missing in imperative sentences as they are directly been said to the subject, so it is implied. Therefore, imperative sentences are mostly used in dialogue writing or casual conversations.

  Examples of imperative sentences:

  1. Please wash your hands before dinner.
  2. Take out the trash now!
  3. Take left and go straight.
  4. Joey, please join me for coffee.

Learning how to use these 4 types of sentences can help your child become a better writer by enabling them to convey various types of emotions and information correctly in their writing.

You can encourage this learning by reading books or watching movies together with your kid and assisting them in identifying the different types of sentences in English while doing so.

Also, to explain to them how changing the type of sentence and punctuation can convey the same message in a different tone, you can take one message and ask your kid to change the sentence form.

For example,

1. Imperative sentence – Please feed the cat.
2. Interrogative sentence – Did you feed the cat?
3. Exclamatory sentence – Wow, you fed the cat!
4. Declarative sentence – The cat has been fed.

If your kid has adequate knowledge of the types of sentences, they will be able to state their point clearly and avoid mixed messages in their writing. This will help them become better at essay writing, letter writing, and creative writing.