Diagramming

When I was in elementary school, many students learned to diagram sentences in English class. Not everyone enjoyed this. But I think the reason was not because of the method itself, but because of the way we were taught. Teachers would give us a sentence to diagram and make us stand up in the front of the class and write it on the blackboard. If we made a mistake, everyone would laugh at us … or so we feared.

In fact, I believe that the practice of diagramming sentences is not only fun, but also very useful. Diagramming taught me how English grammar works “in real life.” As a result, I became a much better writer. And when I taught my children at home, I made sure that they learned how to diagram sentences as well.

Diagramming helps students learn the different parts of speech. What is a noun, and a noun phrase? What is a preposition, and what is its object? What are verbs and what are adverbs? Diagramming trains you to identify these rapidly. It also teaches you how the same word can fulfill different functions … an important concept in English, where we have so many words that can be used for several parts of speech.

When you diagram, you have to identify the subject, the predicate, and how the different parts of the sentence fit together. It becomes much easier to construct grammatically correct sentences when you see how the whole sentence works together.

English learners particularly benefit from diagramming when their own language follows very different grammatical structures.

Diagramming isn’t for everyone. It isn’t for beginning learners. You need to have a solid understanding of basic English before you start. It isn’t for people who just want to speak and understand spoken English. Diagramming really focuses on written English … and spoken English often follows quite different grammatical patterns than written English.

I think diagramming works best for students who need to improve their writing skills, either for academic or business purposes. It also seems to appeal to people who have a logical, analytical turn of mind. For example, when I taught diagramming in class, the student who made the quickest progress and enjoyed it the most was a high school mathematics teacher.

You can find many resources for studying diagramming on the internet. However, I think that it really helps to work with a teacher, especially as you learn to diagram more complex sentences. Not every teacher knows how to diagram, and not every teacher believes it’s an effective method. But it’s definitely worth discussing this with your teacher, or seeking out a teacher who teaches it. See for yourself whether diagramming helps you master the challenges of English grammar.