English · Main & Subordinate Clauses
Clause Builder
Build a sentence that can stand up. Drag two bricks onto the plate.
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Why this works
A main clause has a subject and a verb and makes complete sense on its own, so it can stand up by itself. A subordinate clause starts with a word like "because", "when" or "although" - it leans on a main clause and topples over without one. Two subordinate clauses have nothing to lean on, and two main clauses cannot simply be pushed together: they need a conjunction or a full stop between them.
Helping a child through Clause Builder
Hints, least revealing first
- Try putting a plugged brick on the plate all by itself and see what happens to it.
- Bricks with a plug on the left are subordinate clauses: "because", "when", "although". They have to lean on something.
- Every sentence needs exactly one brick that makes sense on its own - a main clause.
When they finish it: “Clunk! That sentence stands.”
2 11+ skills this exercise practises
Each of these has its own page, with a worked example on it.
- Distinguish a phrase and clauseDecide whether a group of words contains a clause and identify its role.
- Order sentence elementsArrange supplied words into one grammatical sentence.
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