Technical Accuracy: SPaG and Sentence Variety

The marks for how you write

There is a set of marks on every writing task that reward not WHAT you say but HOW you write it: spelling, punctuation, grammar and the range of your sentences. They are worth having, and most students leave some on the table. ⭐ The mistake is thinking these marks are only about avoiding errors. They are not. They reward CONTROL and DELIBERATE VARIETY. A student who plays completely safe, writing only short, simple sentences, makes very few mistakes, and CAPS their mark. There is nothing there to reward beyond correctness, so the accuracy marks stop climbing. ⭐⭐ The marks go to a writer who reaches for a range of sentence types and lengths ON PURPOSE, and who can punctuate what they reached for. So variety is a tool you use deliberately, not decoration. A short sentence lands hard. A longer one carries detail. ⚠️ Carry two questions through everything below: am I varying my sentences on purpose, and can I punctuate the ones I reach for?

Playing safe, and writing with control

Two students both write accurately. One caps their mark and one does not, and the difference is not the number of mistakes.

Order the accuracy check

Put the steps of checking a paragraph for the accuracy marks into a sensible order.

• Read the paragraph back slowly, ideally under your breath
• Check that every sentence starts and ends with the right punctuation
• Look for any two complete sentences joined by only a comma, and fix them
• Check that you have used a range of sentence types, not just one
• Check that you have varied the length, with at least one short sentence for effect

The most common error

A student writes: The rain fell hard, the streets emptied. Their teacher marks it wrong. What is the error, and how is it best fixed?

• It is a comma splice: two complete sentences joined by only a comma. Fix it with a full stop, or a joining word such as so, or a semicolon
• It is a spelling mistake and needs correcting
• There is nothing wrong; a comma can join any two ideas
• The sentence is too short and needs more detail

Words for building sentences

Five terms, each defined so you can use it in a sentence rather than only recognise it.

Tap the two complex sentences

Tap the TWO sentences that are complex, that is, a main clause with a subordinate clause attached.

• Although the sky was dark, the children kept playing.
• The bus was late.
• She packed her bag because the train left early.
• He ran fast and he caught the ball.
• The dog barked.

Which show control

Select the TWO choices that show a writer using sentences with deliberate control.

• Following a long, detailed sentence with a very short one to land a point
• Using simple, compound and complex sentences across a paragraph rather than one type throughout
• Writing every sentence short and simple so that no mistakes creep in
• Joining many clauses with commas into one long run to seem sophisticated

How to earn the accuracy marks

A short routine turns these marks from luck into a plan. ⭐ Get it correct first. Every sentence needs a capital letter, an end mark, and no two complete sentences joined by only a comma. ⭐ Then reach for range, on purpose. Aim to use each of the three sentence types somewhere, rather than leaning on one. ⭐ Vary the length for effect. Let a short sentence do the hard-hitting work, and a longer one carry the detail. ⭐ Punctuate what you reach for. If you use a subordinate clause, mark it off; if you join two complete sentences, use a full stop, a conjunction or a semicolon, never a lone comma. ⚠️ The two traps sit at opposite ends: playing so safe there is no range to reward, and reaching so far that control is lost. The marks live in range held under control.

Match each to what it is for

The drummer who only taps

Leave writing aside and listen to two drummers. ⭐ The first plays it completely safe: the same steady tap, over and over, never a mistake, and utterly boring after ten seconds. Being flawless did not make it good. ⭐⭐ The second mixes it up on purpose: a run of quick beats, then a single heavy hit that lands in the silence, then a rolling fill. Every change is deliberate, and every one is played cleanly. Now imagine a third drummer who tries to mix it up but cannot keep time, so the fills collapse into a mess. The ambition was right; the control was missing. Only the second drummer is any good, and it is because they did two things at once: they varied what they played, and they kept every bit of it under control. Carry that back. Flawless but flat wins nothing, and ambitious but sloppy wins nothing. The reward is for range held firmly in hand.

Complete the sentence-craft facts

A sentence made of just one clause is a _____ sentence. Two complete ideas joined by a word such as and or but make a _____ sentence, and a main idea with a smaller idea attached to it is a _____ sentence. Each of these is built from one or more units called a _____. Joining two complete sentences with only a comma is an error called a comma _____. The accuracy marks reward a deliberate _____ of these forms, used correctly.

Assemble the accuracy rule

Assemble the rule that wins the accuracy marks.

The accuracy quick-fire

Five quick decisions. Three lives.

Advise three writers

Three students show you a paragraph each. Work out what advice would raise the accuracy mark for each.

• The first paragraph is all short, simple sentences, with no mistakes at all. What do you advise?
• The second paragraph is ambitious and varied but full of comma splices. What do you advise?
• The third paragraph mixes sentence types and lengths and punctuates them all correctly. What do you advise?

Explain how to win these marks

A friend says the accuracy marks are just about not making mistakes, so they always play safe with short simple sentences. Explain why that caps their mark, and what would raise it.

• Explain what the accuracy marks reward beyond simple correctness
• Explain why writing only short, simple sentences keeps a student accurate but caps the mark
• Explain the three sentence types and how varying them and their length adds control and effect
• Explain the comma splice and how to fix it, using the terms clause and comma splice
• Finish with the two questions to ask of any paragraph: is it varied on purpose, and is every structure punctuated correctly