What is Make Sense!?

www.makesensegames.com

Make Sense! is a set of language games designed to teach English syntax (the way sentences are structured), including logic around Who does What, When, Where, How, Why, etc. It’s a “sentence building” toolkit built around cards and game play.

Here are some key features:

  • It’s a kit of five games (skill + chance) using 732 cards which can combine to yield tens of thousands of sentences, both simple and more complex ones.
  • The components include phrases (WHO, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE, HOW, WHY, DETAILS/RESULT etc.) rather than focusing only on parts of speech.
  • Games are designed to be flexible (in difficulty, time, competitiveness/cooperativeness), to support pronunciation, intonation, oral pause, punctuation, vocabulary, idioms.
  • There is also a solitaire syntax companion product (for self-study or small group / buddy study) using decks of cards to create sentences with rules similar to classic Solitaire.

Pedagogical Foundations

For homeschoolers, knowing why this works is just as important as what it does.

  • Cumulative syntax as generative learning: The idea is that sentence-structure learning shouldn’t be rote memorization of grammar rules, but more like building with building blocks: Phrases that can be combined in many ways to create new sentences. This supports creativity in language use, not just accuracy.
  • Mental rehearsal: Players are constantly trying out possible sentence structures as they play, trying to fit cards, phrase blocks etc., which requires thinking ahead about what kinds of sentences are possible in order to play well. This kind of predictive thinking strengthens syntax skills.
  • Adaptability: Because the games can be modified (difficulty, speed, what rules you emphasize), they can be used across different learner levels (from lower-intermediate to advanced) and by different ages.

How it Works for Homeschoolers

Here’s how a homeschooling family might use Make Sense! effectively, including strengths and possible limitations.

Strengths

  1. Interactive and fun
    For many learners, especially those who get bored with worksheets or grammar drills, this makes syntax lively. Game-elements (chance, competition or cooperation) help maintain interest.
  2. Flexible pacing and levels
    Families can adjust how much time is spent, the difficulty, whether you use all the games or just one, etc. You can slow things down for kids who need more time or speed it up for those ready to push further.
  3. Promotes speaking, comprehension, and writing
    Even though the medium is cards and game play, there are opportunities for speaking (reading cards, forming sentences out loud), listening, and eventually writing (reproducing or creating own sentences). Parents can extend game time into writing prompts: “Take one of your sentence combinations and write a short paragraph using it.”
  4. Self-study and peer study options
    The solitaire syntax decks or buddy study options make it possible for learners to work independently or with a peer. That’s helpful in homeschooling where sometimes you may want your child to do something on his/her own while you are occupied elsewhere.
  5. Durability and material quality
    The game is physical, with durable cards, which is nice because homeschoolers often like manipulatives and tactile learning tools. Less reliance entirely on screen-time.

Things To Be Mindful Of / Limitations

  1. Age / Level Appropriateness
    While the product is adjustable, it is intended more for lower-intermediate to advanced English learners. Younger children (say early elementary) or those just starting with complex sentence structure might find it overwhelming unless the parent modifies heavily. Homeschoolers with younger or early readers may need to introduce sentence structure more gently first.
  2. Initial investment (time/materials)
    There may be some upfront effort: Learning the game rules, possibly printing or preparing materials, deciding how to adapt for your child, perhaps creating follow-up tasks (writing, expansion) to solidify learning.
  3. Supplementation needed
    It’s strong for syntax, but you’ll probably want to pair it with vocabulary building, reading, writing, grammar/exercise work. It’s not a full grammar curriculum in itself, but rather a powerful supplement or component.
  4. Monitoring/assessment
    As with many game-based tools, parents/home educators need to observe how well a child is transferring what they learn in the game into speaking and writing outside of it. That means building in assessments or informal checks: Writing assignments, conversations, etc.

Practical Suggestions for Using in Homeschool

Here are some strategies and sample schedules to integrate Make Sense! into a homeschooling program.

Strategy How it can look in practice
Weekly Game Session Dedicate one or two days a week to playing one of the games. Let the child see sentence building from the cards, then follow up with writing activity.
Daily Short Drills Use the solitaire deck for shorter practice, e.g. 10-15 min daily to reinforce syntax.
Family Game Night Involve siblings or parents so the game becomes a fun family activity. Helps with speaking practice and lowers pressure.
Adapted Versions For younger or less advanced students, limit cards to simpler structures (WHO-WHAT) to begin with; gradually add WHEN, HOW, WHY, etc.
Cross-Subject Integration Use the game cards in writing projects, storytelling, science or history topics: after reading, pick cards to make sentences about what was read; then write summarizing paragraphs.
Recording Progress Keep a journal: Record sentences made, ones the student is particularly proud of, ones that were challenging. Observe transfer: Is the student naturally using more complex sentences in his/her writing?

Value for Teachers / School Use

Though the focus here is on homeschooling, there are some features that also make Make Sense! attractive to classroom teachers:

  • Teachers can scale classes (up to 12 players) and adjust difficulty so that mixed-ability groups can all participate.
  • They often praise the adaptability, how the cards can be used in multiple ways. Learning can be differentiated.
  • Teachers report increased student engagement: instead of grammar drills, students enjoy creating sentences, exploring “what if” possibilities, figuring out structure by doing rather than just listening.
  • For ESL / EFL settings especially, this helps students who need to work on syntax and sentence fluency in addition to vocabulary and pronunciation.

Who It’s Best Suited For

Putting it all together, here are the kinds of homeschooling or schooling situations in which Make Sense! is likely to be especially effective:

  • Families with children in upper elementary through high school who are ready for more complex sentence structure.
  • Students learning English as a second language (ESL / ELL) or for whom grammar is still a weak point.
  • Homeschoolers who like hands-on, game-based, exploratory learning rather than lecture / drill style grammar.
  • Parents who are willing to adapt and supplement: using the game plus other reading / writing work to reinforce what’s learned.

Overall, Make Sense! Sentence Builder is a robust, game-based tool that offers a strong way to improve sentence structure, fluency, and syntax understanding in an engaging way. For homeschooling families, its flexibility, hands-on nature, and the balance of skill + chance make it especially appealing. It’s not a one-stop grammar curriculum, but as part of a language arts program it can do a lot of heavy lifting in terms of making writing and speaking feel more dynamic and less like drill. Ω

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