Year 5 · SPaG · Commas
Year 5 commas after fronted adverbials worksheet and PowerPoint
To use a comma after a fronted adverbial or after a subordinate clause that begins a sentence.
Commas at the front
A fronted adverbial is a word or phrase at the start of a sentence that tells you when, where or how. Put a comma after it. The same goes for a subordinate clause that comes first.
| when | After lunch, the children played outside. |
|---|---|
| where | Behind the shed, we found a hedgehog. |
| how | Without a sound, the cat crept away. |
| clause first | When the bell rang, everyone lined up. |
Examples
- In the morning, we walked to the park.
- Although it was raining, we went out.
Key words
- fronted adverbial
- a word or phrase at the start of a sentence that says when, where or how
- adverbial
- words that tell you more about the verb
- subordinate clause
- a clause that cannot stand on its own
- comma
- marks the end of the fronted part
What is on the worksheet
Every sheet for this lesson has a short teaching box and 12 questions that get gradually harder: 8 fluency questions, then 4 reasoning questions that ask pupils to explain or choose. A writing challenge follows. The questions use the same styles as the key stage 2 grammar and punctuation test (circle, underline, tick, fill the gap, add punctuation, rewrite, explain). They are written for this website, not copied from past papers.
All the answers are on the last page of the same editable Word file. New questions are made every time, so you can print a different sheet for every group or for homework. The same sheet code always gives the same sheet.
Writing challenge: Write six sentences about a day trip. Begin three with a fronted adverbial of time or place and three with a subordinate clause. Use a comma each time.
Pupil target: I can put a comma after a fronted adverbial.
The PowerPoint
A 20-slide lesson deck for the same lesson: a starter that revisits earlier learning, key words, an I do and a You do question on each slide with a countdown timer, answers that appear one click at a time, and a challenge. Download the commas after fronted adverbials PowerPoint.
Where this lesson fits
This is lesson 11 of 43 in the Year 5 SPaG scheme, in the block “Commas”.
Other lessons in this block
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