Grammar: B1 Sentence Structure Challenge: Combining simple sentences using conjunctions & relative clauses.

Writing: Sentence Structure

B1 Lesson: Connecting Your Ideas

What you will learn: By the end of this lesson, you will be able to use coordinating conjunctions (FANBOYS) and relative clauses (who, which, that) to combine simple sentences into more complex, fluent ones.

Model: From Simple to Fluent ✍️

Writing in only short, simple sentences can sound robotic. Let's see how connecting our ideas can make a paragraph sound much more natural and impressive.

🤖 Robotic Sentences

I have a friend. Her name is Lina. She lives in Battambang. She is a teacher. She works at a school. The school is near the river.

👍 Fluent & Connected Sentences

I have a friend named Lina, and she lives in Battambang. She is a teacher who works at a school that is near the river.

Your Writer's Toolkit 🛠️

Tool #1: Coordinating Conjunctions (FANBOYS)

Use these words to connect two complete sentences. Remember the acronym FANBOYS: For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So.

• "I wanted to visit the museum, but it was closed." (Shows contrast)
• "He was very hungry, so he ate two bowls of noodles." (Shows a result)

Punctuation Tip: When you connect two full sentences with a FANBOYS conjunction, use a comma before it.

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Tool #2: Relative Clauses (who, which, that)

Use these to add extra information about a noun. This is a great way to combine sentences.

• who (for people): "My friend, who is a teacher, lives in Battambang."
• which (for things): "I visited Wat Ek Phnom, which is an ancient temple."
• that (for people or things): "This is the book that I bought yesterday."

Practice Combining Sentences 🎯

Exercise: Combine the Sentences

Combine the two simple sentences into one better sentence using the word in brackets.

1. He was hungry. He ate a big bowl of noodles. (so)
   → He was hungry, so he ate a big bowl of noodles.
2. She has a brother. He is a doctor. (who)
   → She has a brother who is a doctor.
3. I want to go to the Bamboo Train. It is raining. (but)
   → I want to go to the Bamboo Train, but it is raining.

Review Checklist

When you write, check for these things to improve your sentence structure.

• Have I connected some of my short sentences?
• Did I use a comma before conjunctions like 'and', 'but', and 'so'?
• Did I use 'who' for people and 'which'/'that' for things?

Your Writing Mission ⭐

Writing Task: Improve the Paragraph

Rewrite this paragraph in your notebook. Use conjunctions and relative clauses to connect the simple sentences and make it more fluent.

"Yesterday I visited my friend. My friend lives in Battambang. His name is Sam. We went to a cafe. The cafe is very popular. It is near the river. We drank coffee. We talked for two hours. It was a good day."

Show Example Answer

"Yesterday I visited my friend Sam, who lives in Battambang. We went to a popular cafe which is near the river. We drank coffee and talked for two hours, so it was a good day."

Key Vocabulary

• Fluent (Adjective) | ស្ទាត់ជំនាញ
  Able to speak or write a language easily and smoothly.
• Conjunction (Noun) | ឈ្នាប់
  A word used to connect clauses or sentences (e.g., and, but, so).
• Relative Clause (Noun) | ឃ្លាភ្ជាប់
  A clause which gives more information about a noun, often starting with who, which, or that.