Sentence Stems

This technique gives students the opportunity to respond in the form of a complete sentence to effectively communicate. Sentence stems provide scaffolding to help students get started in speaking or writing without the added pressure of thinking about how to correctly formulate a response.

     

Download Templates

For more examples of sentence stems, use a sheet like this one to help students create their sentences. Sentence stems can be cut up and passed out and/or displayed throughout the room. For Primary Grades, add a picture to show meaning for each sentence stem. Some sentence stems might be left out for PK-1 students; use stems at the teacher’s discretion.

Sentence Stems Elementary

Sentence Stems Elementary - Google Doc

Sentence Stems Secondary

Sentence Stems Secondary - Google Doc

To work on students’ questioning skills, provide them with a list of question stems. Question stems promote the use of open-ended questions which incite thought, reflection, and connections. For Primary Grades, add a picture to show meaning for each question stem. Some question stems might be left out for PK-1 students; use stems at the teacher’s discretion.

Question Stems Elementary

Question Stems Elementary - Google Doc

Question Stems Secondary

Question Stems Secondary - Google Doc

Sentence Stems Spanish

Sentence Stems Spanish - Google Doc

Question Stems Spanish

Question Stems Spanish - Google Doc


Teachers Shown

Michael Rowland
3rd grade Bilingual teacher.
Austin ISD, Texas
Hannah Davis
High School Math teacher.
Pflugerville ISD, Texas