Matching games will allow students to pair up appositive phrases with the word they describe. Teachers can write various words on one side of the board and a list of appositive phrases on the other. The students will use logic to match words with phrases that most likely describe them. For example, the words "tree" and "grandma" might accompany the phrases, "tall and sturdy" and "kind and loving." The students will acknowledge that kind and loving describes grandma while strong and sturdy refers to the tree. They will then use a comma to attach the appositive phrases and create complex sentences on the board.
Worksheets provide in-class and take-home practice for students learning about appositives phrases. Create worksheets with a variety of sentences containing appositive phrases, and ask students to underline these phrases and circle the word they describe. They might even highlight the actual appositive, one word in the phrase that represents the original word. Once the students recognize the components of appositive phrases, they can create some of their own at the bottom of the worksheet.
After reviewing appositive phrases with the class, make sentence combinations to further demonstrate the use of appositives. Write choppy sentences about the same subject on the board and ask students to form them into one complex sentence by using an appositive phrase. You might write, "The tree held up in the tornado. It was strong and sturdy." Students will revise this to read, "The tree, strong and sturdy, held up in the tornado." This activity will enable students to write with complex sentences.
Personalize the lesson on appositive phrases by asking students to make one for themselves. They can submit the self-imposed descriptions anonymously for you to read aloud as a class guessing game. Write the names of students on the board, and ask the person who guesses the appositive phrase to create a sentence by attaching it to the correct name. This activity encourages positive social interaction and presents a creative learning opportunity for language arts. For homework, ask the students to create appositive phrases for family members and pets.