What I Really Need Is…: Cleft Sentences

About This Resource

A complete Grade 10 ESL grammar pack on cleft sentences for focus. Students use it-clefts (It was Maria who found the key), wh-clefts (What I need is more time) and all-clefts (All I want is a quiet room), transform ordinary sentences, choose which information to focus, correct contrastive errors and use cleft sentences in speaking and essay writing. Includes slides, a lesson plan, worksheet, quiz, homework, flashcards, a rubric and answer keys.

Overview

Cleft sentences split one idea into two parts to put focus on the most important information. An it-cleft (It + be + focus + who/that…) highlights a person, thing, time or place, often to correct or contrast: It was Maria, not Tom, who found the key. A wh-cleft (What + clause + be + focus) moves the focus to the end: What I need is more time. An all-cleft (All + clause + be + focus) emphasizes that something is the only thing: All I want is some sleep. Students transform sentences, decide what to focus on, use cleft sentences to correct misunderstandings and add emphasis to persuasive and reflective writing.

Resource Details

Subject: ESL
Topic: Cleft Sentences
Category: Grammar
File Type: PDF
File Size: 306.4 KB
Published: 13 Nov 2026
Downloads: 0

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Grade 10 ESL (ages 15–16), B2 55 minutes Grammar emphasis sentence transformation speaking essay writing

Learning Objectives

Form it-clefts, wh-clefts and all-clefts correctly.
Choose a cleft structure to focus on or contrast the key information.
Use cleft sentences for emphasis in speaking and writing.

How to Use This Resource

Show the slides: Tom says, "You broke the window!" Ask: "How can you answer to show it wasn't you?" Model: It was the ball, not me, that broke it.
Do worksheet activities 1 and 2 together.
Students complete activities 3 to 6, then use the quiz and send the homework page home.

Classroom Activity Ideas

Correct me: one student says a wrong fact about a classmate; the classmate corrects it with an it-cleft.
What I love about…: students describe a place or hobby with wh-clefts.
Essay upgrade: students add two cleft sentences to an opinion paragraph to emphasize their main points.

Differentiation

Support: give transformation frames for each cleft type and focus on it-clefts and wh-clefts first. Challenge: students use reversed wh-clefts (More time is what I need) and the reason/place forms (The reason why…, The place where…).

Assessment

Use the worksheet and quiz to check form and focus. Use the rubric to assess speaking and the homework paragraph.

Teacher Tips

Cleft sentences are powerful but should not be overused; one or two in a paragraph is enough. In it-clefts, who is used for people and that for things, times and places. With wh-clefts, check agreement: What I need is…, What they want is….

What's Included

11-page printable PDF lesson pack: teacher lesson plan with timings, materials and differentiation
Key vocabulary list (7 words with meanings and examples)
Student worksheet (6 activities)
Quiz / assessment (3 parts)
Homework practice page
Printable flashcards: 7 A5 picture cards (separate PDF)
Assessment rubric (4 levels)
Lesson slides (editable PowerPoint)
Editable Word version of all student pages
Complete answer key (also as a separate PDF)

Additional Files

Lesson Slides (PPTX)
Editable Student Pages and Lesson Plan (DOCX)
A5 Flashcards (PDF)
Answer Key (PDF)

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