Explicitly Teach the "When," the "Where," the… | Reading Universe

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Skill Explainer

Grammatical Building Blocks Skill Explainer

Nancy Chapel Eberhardt

This is the grammar rule for teaching adverbs: Function is "Tell me more about the action" and the Function question is "Where? How? When? Why?"

A graphic providing visual examples of the adverb questions: when, where, how, and why. These flash cards help teaching grammar rules.

Let's look at this sentence:

In the morning, the gardener carefully plants the seeds in the garden to grow beans.

You can identify the adverbs — and adverb phrases — by asking these questions:

When did the gardener plant the seeds? — in the morning
Where did the gardener plant the seeds? — in the garden
How did the gardener plant the seeds? — carefully
Why did the gardener plant the seeds? — to grow beans

You'll notice that, except for the word carefully, these answers aren't just single words. When we talk about the when, the where, the how, and the why, we're talking about all the words needed to convey the information. Why did the gardener plant seeds? To grow beans! That's three words that make up an adverb phrase.

Identifying words, phrases, and clauses that tell you more about the action helps us better understand what we read. The table below shows the functions, or roles, that adverbs have in expanding an action.

Adverb Functions		Single Words	Phrases
When?	Tells a specific time or period of time		in the morning
Where?	Tells a specific or general location		in the garden
How?	Tells the way in which something is done	carefully
Why?	Tells the reason for something		to grow beans
In the morning, the gardener carefully plants the seeds in the garden to grow beans.

Watch It in Action

Video thumbnail for Unpacking a Sentence for Meaning — Produced by Reading Universe, a partnership of WETA, Barksdale Reading Institute, and First Book

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Ashlea Edwards: Hey guys, good morning. My name is Ms. Edwards and I'm excited to work with y'all today.

Narrator: Reading comprehension can feel abstract at first, but it's a process, not a mystery. At Burgess-Peterson Academy in Atlanta, Georgia, reading specialist Ashlea Edwards is teaching third graders how to unlock the meaning of a text by asking questions.

Ashlea Edwards: You all have already worked on "who" or "what," identifying the noun or the pronoun. And today we're going to work on answering other questions like did what? What is the action that's happening? And you can even use other function words like when, where, how, to keep unpacking that sentence to look for meaning.

Narrator: She begins by reviewing a question students have already learned to ask when reading. Who or what is this sentence about?

Ashlea Edwards: We're going to read this sentence. I want you to repeat after me. "The cactus grows."

Students: "The cactus grows."

Ashlea Edwards: "In the desert."

Students: "In the desert."

Ashlea Edwards: All right, let's read it all together.

Together: "The cactus grows in the desert."

Ashlea Edwards: Very good. So the first question we are going to ask is who or what is this sentence about? "The cactus grows in the desert."

Students: The cactus.

Ashlea Edwards: The cactus! Very good.

Narrator: Next, Ms. Edwards layers in additional questions students can ask themselves while reading, guiding them through the work of finding meaning, or as she calls it, unpacking the sentence.

Ashlea Edwards: We're going to practice unpacking some sentences from the chapter you're going to read. And the reason we're going to unpack these sentences is to understand the meaning of the sentences because really good readers, when they read, they're able to think and understand what they're reading about. So unpacking these sentences beforehand might help us be able to understand what we're going to read.

Narrator: Who or what? Did what? When? Where? Why? And how? These are simple, familiar questions, but they are powerful. Asking students to read a sentence and then answer those questions turns them into sentence detectives. All of the answers live in the text itself. The questions are the clues that guide students to understanding what they're reading.

Ashlea Edwards: So here's our first sentence. I want you to repeat after me again. "Butterflies shed scales."

Students: "Butterflies shed scales."

Ashlea Edwards: "On their wings."

Students: "On their wings."

Ashlea Edwards: "Regularly."

Students: "Regularly."

Ashlea Edwards: And regularly means like it happens often, like maybe every day that happens or every other day. Okay. Repeat after me. And let's read it all together. Ready? Go.

Together: "Butterflies shed scales on their wings regularly."

Ashlea Edwards: So our first question is going to be who or what is this sentence about?

Students: Butterflies.

Ashlea Edwards: Butterflies. Very good. And what are the butterflies doing? The butterflies did what?

Students: Shed scales.

Ashlea Edwards: Shed scales. Very good. Where did they shed those scales?

Students: On their wings.

Ashlea Edwards: On their wings. And then I'm even going to ask another question this time. When did they do this?

Students: Regularly.

Ashlea Edwards: Regularly. And everyone say, "Regularly means often."

Students: "Regularly means often."

Ashlea Edwards: Good.

Narrator: They may not realize it yet, but these students just unpacked a sentence for meaning. This strategy is effective because it takes the spotlight off of reading individual words and puts it on comprehension.

Ashlea Edwards: Okay. So now we're going to read one more sentence. And remember, as we are reading this sentence, we are thinking about those function questions so that we can understand the meaning of the sentence. So let's read this. Repeat after me. "A butterfly's wings."

Students: "A butterfly's wings."

Ashlea Edwards: "Are injured."

Students: "Are injured."

Ashlea Edwards: "If they get torn."

Students: "If they get torn."

Ashlea Edwards: All right. Let's read it all together. Ready?

Together: "A butterfly's wings are injured if they get torn."

Ashlea Edwards: Very good. Okay. So the first question that we will ask is who or what is this sentence about?

Students: A butterfly.

Ashlea Edwards: Okay. Let's see. Do you think that the sentence is about a butterfly or can we be more specific? Who or what is this sentence about? A butterfly's ...

Students: Wings.

Ashlea Edwards: Very good. A butterfly's wings. What is the butterfly's wings doing? What's happening to the butterfly's wings?

Students: They're injured.

Ashlea Edwards: They're getting injured and that means they're being hurt. They are injured or hurt. Why? What makes that happen?

Students: If they get torn.

Ashlea Edwards: If they get torn. Very good.

Narrator: While it may seem simple, practicing unpacking the sentence in isolation now gives these students a strategy they can reach for when they're tackling longer, more complex texts on their own later.

Ashlea Edwards: So you guys are so good at unpacking these sentences. Now that you understand the meaning in these sentences, when you read about the butterfly's wings in your storybook later, hopefully that will help you understand the sentence as you're reading it.

Narrator: Reading Universe is made possible by generous support from Jim and Donna Barksdale; the Hastings/Quillin Fund, an advised fund of the Silicon Valley Community Foundation; the AFT; the Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation; and anonymous donors. Special thanks to Burgess-Peterson Academy, Reading Is Essential for All People, and Atlanta Public Schools. If you enjoyed this video, please subscribe to our YouTube channel @RUTeaching. Reading Universe is a service of WETA Washington D.C., the Barksdale Reading Institute, and First Book.

Prepare to Teach Adverbs

Grammar in Action: Function Question Cards

These question cards help students find meaning in sentences by examining the function of words and phrases within them.

Sentence Detective: Using Function Questions

This activity helps students with reading comprehension and writing skills by unpacking sentences and expanding them.

Download Activity

Now it's time to teach adverbs!

1. Explicit Instruction: Teacher Modeling with Adverbs

Think of this as the I Do section of your lesson. Here's how you could start a lesson on adverbs.

Write this sentence on the board:

The eagle flew.

Say,

Sometimes when we're telling a story or we're writing, we want to tell more about an action. Let's imagine we're telling a story about eagles. We could start with a sentence like this:
The eagle flew.
That's not enough information! We can tell more about what happened by adding words and phrases that answer the questions "When?", "Where?", "How?", and "Why?" about the action. Take a look at this sentence.

Write this sentence on the board:

After she caught a fish, the eagle swiftly flew to her nest to feed her babies.

Read to your students,

After she caught a fish, the eagle swiftly flew to her nest to feed her babies.

Say,

When did the eagle fly? After she caught a fish.
Where did the eagle fly? To her nest.
How did the eagle fly? Swiftly.
Why did the eagle fly? To feed her babies!
Let's look at how we can add information about an action by answering the questions "When?", "Where?", "How?", and "Why?"

Show students the "When?" card.

The question When? with a graphic of a clock for helping teach the adverb grammar rule.

Words that answer the question "When?" tell us a specific time or period of time that an action happened. Listen to this sentence for the word or phrase that tells you when the action happens.

Write this sentence on the board:

Yesterday the dog barked.

Say,

Let's read this sentence together:

You all read,

Yesterday the dog barked.

You say,

If I ask the question, "When did the dog bark?", we would say, "Yesterday."

Show students the "Where?" card.

The question Where? and a graphic of a house for helping teach the grammar rule for adverbs.

Words that answer the question "Where?" tell us a location where something happens. Listen to this sentence for the word or phrase that tells you where an action happens.

Write this sentence on the board:

The dog barked in the yard.

Let's read this sentence together

You all read,

The dog barked in the yard.

You say,

If I ask the question, "Where did the dog bark?", we would say, "In the yard."

Show students the "How?" card.

The question How? with the graphic of a woman saying, "quickly." Use this flash card to help teach the grammar rule for adverbs.

Words that answer the question "How?" tell us the way something is done. Listen to this sentence for the word or phrase that tells us how the action happens.

Write this sentence on the board:

The dog barked with great excitement.

Let's read this sentence together:

You all read,

The dog barked with great excitement.

You say,

If I ask the question, "How did the dog bark?", we would say, "With great excitement."

Show students the "Why?" card.

The question Why? and a question mark icon. This flash card is an aide for teaching the grammar rules for adverbs.

Words that answer the question "Why?" tell us the reason something happened. In this next sentence, we'll look for the word or phrase that tells us why the action happened.

Write this sentence on the board:

The dog barked because someone was at the front door.

Let's read this sentence together:

You all read,

The dog barked because someone was at the front door.

You say,

If I ask the question, "Why did the dog bark?", we would say, "Because someone was at the front door."

Now underline the adverbs and adverbial phrases in the sentences on the board.

Yesterday the dog barked.

The dog barked in the yard.

The dog barked with great excitement.

The dog barked because someone was at the front door.

Then say,

The words and phrases that answer these questions "When?", "Where?", "How?", and "Why?" are called adverbs.

2. Guided Practice with Adverbs

Think about this next part as the We Do section of your lesson.

Write this sentence on the board:

In the summer the plants grew.

Say,

Let's read this sentence together:

You all read,

In the summer the plants grew.

Say,

Now, let's answer this question: when did the plants grow?

Students say,

In the summer.

Say,

Yes! The phrase In the summer tells us when the plants grew.

Write this sentence on the board:

Carrots grow by the fence.

Let's read this sentence together:

You all read,

Carrots grow by the fence.

You say,

Where do carrots grow?

Students say,

By the fence.

Say,

Yes! The phrase by the fence tells us where the carrots grow.

Write this sentence on the board:

Pumpkins grow slowly.

Let's read this sentence together:

You all read,

Pumpkins grow slowly.

Say,

How do pumpkins grow?

Students say,

Slowly.

Say,

Yes. The word slowly tells us how the pumpkins grow.

Write this sentence on the board:

The cactus fell due to the strong wind.

Let's read this sentence together:

You all read,

The cactus fell due to the strong wind.

Say,

Why did the cactus fall?

Students say,

Due to the strong wind.

Say,

Yes. The phrase due to the strong wind tells us why the cactus fell.

Now underline the adverbs and adverbial phrases in the sentences on the board.

In the summer the plants grew.

Carrots grow by the fence.

Pumpkins grow slowly.

The cactus fell due to the strong wind.

Then say,

These words and phrases that answer these questions "When?", "Where?", "How?", and "Why?" are your adverbs. Adverbs tell us more about an action, what's happening.

As with the other grammatical building blocks, your students may grasp the concept of adverbs after a single lesson, or it may take more time and more guided practice.

3. Teacher-Led Independent Practice with Adverbs

You might start by saying,

Today we will use our function question cards to unpack the meaning of a sentence. Good readers are always making meaning as they read. Using the function questions can help us as we do that!

Display the function question cards that you will use to unpack the sentence, along with the sentence you will be working on.

Say,

We will use our function question cards to unpack the meaning of the sentence. Who or what is this sentence about?

Read aloud the sentence:

Ask,

Who or what is this sentence about?

Students will reply,

The cactus.

Say,

Right! Now let's ask: The cactus did what…"

Students say,

grows

Then you will follow the same steps for the adverb function questions "When?", "Where?", "How?", and "Why?" depending upon which one is answered in the sentence.

Download the full resources below.

Example Slide for Scooping for Meaning

Scooping for Meaning Slide Deck

Download these slides to scoop for meaning using your own sentences.

Download Slides

Example Slide for Sentence Unpacking

Sentence Detective Slide Deck

Download these slides for using your own sentences in sentence expansion and sentence unpacking.

Download Slides

Teacher Tip

Identifying Words that Answer the Questions "When?", "Where?", "Why?", and "How?" Throughout the School Day
After you introduce the concept of adverbs to your students with the lessons above, you can solidify that learning by pointing out adverbs during instruction for all subjects. Let's say you're teaching a read-aloud about the water cycle and a student reads, "In the winter, water in the atmosphere returns to the earth as snow." You can ask your students each of the questions "When?", "Where?", "Why?", and "How?" about the action in the sentence … water returning to earth. This helps them unpack the meaning of the sentence. And you can also remind them that the words that answer these questions are called adverbs!

Reading Universe is made possible by generous support from Jim & Donna Barksdale; the Hastings/Quillin Fund, an advised fund of the Silicon Valley Community Foundation (opens in new window); the AFT (opens in new window); the Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation (opens in new window); and several anonymous donors.

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