One thing you should know about English is that it loves having something before the verb. (We know we're talking about the English language like it's a sentient being, but it's not too far off.)
English almost always has the word order subject-verb-object (or SVO). Check out these super common English sentences:
- I ate some butter.
- Gob attempted a magic trick.
- Gimli cares about Legolas.
- America is a beautiful place.
In Spanish, word order is a lot more liberal. Verbs love being at the front of the sentence in Spanish. Subjects usually get moved to after the verb, and you can even choose to not pronounce subject pronouns at all.
Not in English.
We're guessing this has something to do with the fact that English speakers rely on the subject to know what the sentence is about because the verb sure isn't going to tell them. Seriously, English verb inflection is basically nonexistent.
(As a reminder, inflection is how a word changes form to express grammar, like how run becomes ran in the past tense. English verbs usually only tell us one thing each: whether the subject is third person singular or not...in the present tense [runs]. Spanish verbs tell us if the subject is (1) first, second, or third person, (2) plural or singular, (3) in all the tenses. We know all that from the verb corre, for example. That's why the subject isn't super prioritized in Spanish...we don't really need it. Sorry, subject.)
At any rate, the take-away message is this: put the subject before the verb.
The only situation in English where you start a sentence with a verb is in imperative sentences, or commands. As always, here are some examples:
- Call your mother.
- Send me an email.
- Finish your dinner.
- Clean your room.
Questions are a whole other story. In the sections Question Formation and How to Use "Do," "It," and "There," you'll see all the weird stuff English does to make sure there's something in subject position (before the verb, or verb phrase).
Of course, it's only weird for ELLs. Most native English speakers don't even notice.