There are numerous benefits of sentence scrambles, and the beauty of it is the flexibility it offers. You can use several variations, but how on Earth do you differentiate them to suit your students’ needs? Read on to find out how!
What are Sentence Scrambles, and How Do They Help?
Sentence Scrambles are exactly what the name implies – they’re an activity where students must rearrange scrambled words to form a coherent sentence.
Furthermore, they can be done both digitally and in print.
This activity is highly interactive, encouraging students to actively participate in their learning process.
Step 1: Build the Sentence Using Sentence Scramble Worksheets
First, students will cut out the words at the bottom of the worksheet to assemble them into proper sentences. This provides excellent sentence structure practice.
Once they’ve been assembled, students can glue them to the top of the page, as indicated by the glue icons.
HOW TO DIFFERENTIATE:
- Use the versions that include picture clues on the individual words. For students needing additional help, these picture clues can help them apply the phonics skill with more assistance. Clues are provided for two words that contain the targeted phonics skill.
- Provide a completed sentence for students to refer to as they put the sentence together. This can be used later as a tracing activity as students write the whole sentence.
Want a full year of differentiated sentence scramble worksheets?
Click here to explore ready-to-use options.
Step 2: Identify the Phonics Skill
Next, students will look at the sentence they’ve unscrambled and identify the phonics skill by coloring it. This is the opportunity for all students to apply their knowledge of the targeted skill.
If you want a quick way to check whether students are actually applying that skill independently, phonics exit tickets are an easy follow-up at the end of the lesson!
HOW TO DIFFERENTIATE:
- Because this is the foundation of the activity, it’s best to keep it the same across the board. All students should identify the word in context.
- However, if you’d like to challenge students, you can have them identify at least three other words with the targeted skill and write them on the back.
Step 3: Write the Sentence
After students have assembled the scrambled sentences appropriately, they’ll write and read them.
As they write using the guiding lines, this helps build handwriting skills. Ensure students pay attention to the sky, plane, grass, and worm lines!
HOW TO DIFFERENTIATE:
- Have students trace the sentence. This is especially helpful for sharpening fine motor skills.
- Otherwise, use the provided handwriting lines so students can write the sentence independently.
Step 4: Illustrate
Now it’s time for a fan favorite – illustrating! Students will illustrate in the provided box to demonstrate that they understand the sentence’s meaning.
This is a great exercise to build upon students’ reading comprehension using a visual approach.
Plus, who doesn’t love drawing and coloring?!
HOW TO DIFFERENTIATE:
- Use the completed illustration so students can still experience coloring without feeling pressured to read, comprehend, and draw.
- Use a half-complete illustration for students to finish.
All Differentiated Versions of Sentence Scrambles
Finally, you can see in the image below how the sentence scramble depicted in the examples above is differentiated.
- Version 1 (most scaffolded) shows one star in the top right corner of the page.
- Version 2 (moderately scaffolded) shows two stars in the top right corner of the page.
- Version 3 (no scaffolds) shows three stars in the top right corner of the page.
Using Digital Sentence Scrambles for Active Learning
If paper and pencil is an option for sentence scrambles, you can utilize the digital Google Slides version!
The main objective is the same (unscrambling the sentence), but there’s less opportunity for other skills to develop, such as handwriting and cutting and gluing.
Instead, students will look at the picture, unscramble the sentence, then type the sentence.
Using Google Slides can help build digital literacy as students practice typing and interacting with a drag-and-drop method.
BONUS: Students can also utilize Google Slides to practice trick words using typing, drag-and-drop, tracing skills, and more!
Sentence Scrambles Broken Down by Phonics Skill – DONE FOR YOU!
Ready to try sentence scrambles that are done for you?!
Here are a few highlights of what you can find in each resource:
- Each worksheet has a certain number of stars to represent the level of differentiation.
- Includes three versions of differentiation per sentence scramble.
- All pages have convenient labels with each week and unit.
- There are Google Slides versions for each week and unit.
Click here to find individual units and pick and choose what you need.
Simplify your planning with the entire year of Sentence Scrambles prepared for you (just print and go):
Have you tried sentence scrambles in your classroom? How did your students respond?
I’d love to hear your experience in the comments below!
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