[Music] the Detroit Riverfront is a beautiful site to visit i'm Mrs defal and I was amazed to learn that each year more than 3 million visitors enjoy the Detroit Riverfront while we explored the Detroit Riverfront we are also going to learn about complex sentences what makes a complex sentence a complex sentence has two parts one part is a complete sentence a complete sentence has a subject who or what and a main verb doing or action to state a complete thought the other part is a fragment a fragment is usually missing a subject or verb and the thought is incomplete first let's recognize a fragment or an incomplete sentence relaxing playing biking paddling swimming and so much more is this a fragment yes it's a fragment it doesn't make sense all by itself next let's recognize a complete sentence the waterfront offers so much for families and friends is this a complete sentence you're right it's a complete sentence it makes sense all by itself remember when we put a fragment with a complete sentence we create a complex sentence let's try another one is this a fragment or a complete sentence over 3 million visitors enjoy this Riverside retreat that's right it's a complete sentence all by itself what about this one is this a fragment or a complete sentence which is a Detroit treasure yes it's a fragment it doesn't make sense something's missing in complex sentences we give the two parts a complete sentence and a fragment very special names we call the complete sentence the independent clause when you're independent that means you do something all by yourself a complete sentence holds meaning all by itself think of this as good to go since green lights tell vehicles to go we've highlighted the independent clause in green we call the fragment the dependent clause when you're dependent that means you need help this fragment needs help to show a complete thought think of this as stop help since red lights tell vehicles to stop we've highlighted the dependent clause in red let's color code our first sentence the waterfront offers so much for families and friends while relaxing playing biking pedaling swimming and so much more remember in complex sentences there are two parts there's an independent clause highlighted in green it's good to go there's a dependent clause highlighted in red stop that fragment needs help it needs to be transformed into a complex sentence just like the change to the Detroit riverfront has been a remarkable transformation today we will focus on transforming our sentences from fragments to complex sentences transformation that's a big word let's break it apart trans is a Latin prefix that means across or beyond remember prefixes come at the beginning of a word form is a verb that means to develop when we add the suffix Asian at the end of the word where suffixes hang out we make a noun so transformation is something that develops beyond what we might expect the Detroit Riverfront experienced a transformation because of helpers who are everyday people like you and me in our two complex sentences while and which are helpers the special name for these helpers is a subordinating conjunction subordinating conjunctions help dependent clauses or fragments connect to independent clauses or complete sentences let's discover some more subordinating conjunctions in the complex sentences we'll explore together the Detroit Riverfront experienced an exceptional transformation like never before what's the dependent clause the part of the sentence that needs help to complete the thought never before that's a dependent clause it needs help to make a complete thought what's the independent clause the part of the sentence that shows a complete thought the Detroit Riverfront experienced an exceptional transformation that's an independent clause it makes sense all by itself let's rebuild the complex sentence remember in complex sentences there are two parts there's an independent clause highlighted in green it's good to go and a dependent clause is highlighted in red stop that fragment needs help in this complex sentence like is the helper it's the subordinating conjunction let's try another sentence together the East Riverfront includes parks paths and pavilions all connected by the riverwalk what's the dependent clause the part of the sentence that needs help to complete the thought that's right connected by the riverwalk without an independent clause that phrase is a fragment it needs help to form a complete thought what's the independent clause the part of the sentence that shows a complete thought on its own that's right the East Riverfront includes parks paths and pavilions that's a complete sentence it makes sense let's rebuild the complex sentence one part is the independent clause a second part is the dependent clause in this complex sentence all is the helper it's the subordinating conjunction let's use our four sentences to draft a paragraph about the Detroit Riverfront the Detroit Riverfront experienced an exceptional transformation like never before the East Riverfront includes parks paths and pavilions all connected by the riverwalk the waterfront offers so much for families and friends while relaxing playing biking paddling swimming and so much more over 3 million visitors enjoy this Riverside retreat which is a Detroit treasure consider the magic of transformation much like the Detroit Riverfront has gone through a major transformation with some help so can your sentence construction when you're writing rebuild those fragments into complex sentences thank you for joining us if you want more fun ways to practice literacy skills don't forget to subscribe to the Michigan Learning channel and be sure to check the description below for links to activity guides resources and more [Music] [Applause]