Scrambled Sentences were first imagined when my kindergarten teammates and I were tasked with creating a SIMPLE writing template for some beginning writing samples we needed for our yearly PD.

If you know kindergarten kids, you know how HILARIOUS they think certain things are, especially when they involve animals. Add in food and I thought we would have a winner! The kids REALLY loved coming up with which animal ate what and begged to do more. Success!

Then, we were tasked with coming up with a project for our Family Math & Reading Night. Our project needed to be:

• hands-on
• appropriate for kindergarten…AND also be
• entertaining and engaging…FOR
• younger siblings…AND
• older siblings

Hmmmmm….nooooo problem, right?? Yeah, riiiggghhhhttt.

SCAMBLED SENTENCES

We decided on sprucing up our animal/food writing template and coming up with a way that beginning writers could enjoy scrambling sentences. I added color-coded cards for the younger kiddos and figured the older kiddos could help out, too.

BOY, WERE WE SURPRISED!!

The older kids were just as entertained as the younger ones…one 1st-grader ended up with nine pages and asked to make a booklet!

So I figured I would create a product, sharing what we used at the Family Math & Reading Night, making some tweaks and additions to use in your classroom for:

• a writing center
• a writing project
• fast finishers
• an ELA game
• OR a project for a family night!

Benefits for PreK-2 Students and Families

Not only is building sentences that are silly FUN – but it is jam-packed with building beginning writing skills, too! Here are some valuable takeaways:

Enhanced Language Skills

Engaging with scrambled sentences helps students improve their vocabulary, grammar, and understanding of sentence structure.

Critical Thinking Development

Deciphering scrambled sentences encourages children to think critically as they analyze word order and context.

Creativity and Imagination

Crafting silly sentences allows for creativity, inviting students to combine words unexpectedly, leading to humorous and imaginative outcomes.

Family Engagement

Involving families in this activity fosters bonding, as parents and children work together to create fun sentences, reinforcing learning through play.

Improved Reading Skills

Working with sentence structure enhances decoding skills, making it easier for children to read and understand texts they encounter

Confidence Building

Crafting silly sentences helps children gain confidence in their language abilities as they share and laugh about their creations.

Social Skills Development

Sharing silly sentences in group settings promotes communication skills, turn-taking, and peer collaboration.

Build-A-Sentence…Build-A-Writer

Encouraging PreK-2 students to create silly scrambled sentences is not just a fun activity; it’s a powerful educational tool. With this joyful exercise, teachers and families can support the development of essential language skills, foster creativity, and enhance the learning process collaboratively and enjoyably.

Still not sure? Ok…picture this:

I'm sitting at a table during Family Math & Reading Night.

A kindergartener is finishing her scrambled sentence and laughing to herself, excited to read it aloud to her family and whoever will listen.

“Ready?? My koala eats bacon in the library.“

Everyone laughs – mainly because her joy is pretty contagious – and she's PROUD of herself.

Her little brother, who just turned four, yells, ME NOW!

“My bird (pronounced buhd) eats (eeth) chips (chipth) in the police station (poleeth thaythun)“

They have now drawn a small crowd of second-graders who all start grabbing cards and building their own wacky sentences. This continues for the better part of an hour. Each one trying to outdo the other, adding in adjectives and flair wherever they can.

Now…imagine this joy in your classroom. About WRITING.

To that beautiful image, I say…Happy scrambling!

Want a few more writing tips? Try these:

How Kindergarten Writing Prompts Can Show Amazing Growth From August To May

It’s Almost Springtime for Kindergarten! 9 Lucky Pages to Watch Their Writing Bloom!

How Desk Pets Can (& WILL) Movtivate & Excite Your Students To WRITE!