In 1985, the National Council of Teachers of English declared that "repetitive grammar drills and exercises" — like diagramming sentences — are "a deterrent to the improvement of students' speaking ...

A sentence diagram gives a picture of the grammatical parts of a sentence. I think that when students understand diagramming, they are less likely to write sprawling, disorganized sentences.

Sentence diagramming is the long division of English. It involves a bewildering array of lines and diagonal branches. It is loathed as an elementary school chore. And it is presumed to be obsolete ...

Diagramming sentences was an exercise with no real value, not a means to an end at all, and certainly not a slam-dunk precursor to mastering the King's English.

I hated diagramming sentences. I forgot all about it since it's been so many years since I was required to do it. Now the memory is back and I need a valium or a bottle of whiskey/D.J. Nall.

But sentence diagramming brings geometry into grammar. If you weren't taught to diagram a sentence, this might sound a little zany. But the practice has a long — and controversial — history in ...

If you weren't taught to diagram a sentence, this might sound a little zany. But the practice has a long -- and controversial -- history in U.S. schools.