DESCRIPTIVE WRITING

WRITING TO DESCRIBE ONE PERSON, PLACE, THING, EVENT OR HAPPENING

STRATEGY #1: SENSORY DETAILS

    USE AT LEAST 3 OF THE 5 SENSES TO DESCRIBE YOUR SUBJECT THE 5 SENSES: SEEING, HEARING, TASTING, TOUCHING, AND SMELLING EXAMPLE: The petite girl was perfectly dressed in a pink satin dress, her silky hair in pigtails, and the smell of her mother ’ s perfume fresh on her wrists.

Create a picture and recreate the experience for your reader.

STRATEGY #2: Descriptive Words

    Use strong verbs not weak verbs. SHOW it;don frightened, unnerved.

’ t tell it.Instead of ran use sprinted- instead of cried use sobbed – instead of looked used gazed. Other great verbs to describe emotions: exasperated, exhilarated, Don ’ t use BABY adjectives like: cute, cool, neat, good, or nice. Think of more mature words like: exquisite, attractive, impressive, unique.

Involve your senses in the words you choose to describe.Sight words-twinkle, murky/Sound words sputter, clink/Touch words-scratchy, slick/Smell words-musty, fragrant/Taste words-juicy,tangy Keep a list of great describer words to use in your writing.Make sure you use these words correctly in meaning and in part of speech.

STRATEGY #3: Descriptive Transition Words

 Connect your thoughts and sentences using these transition words:  Here, beyond, nearby, opposite to, above, across, before, down, in , inside, next, over, under, also, not only, but also

STRATEGY #4: USE FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE

FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE METAPHORS SIMILES ONOMATOPOEIAS

ON…OMAT…O WHAT?

   Onomatopoeia- the use of words whose sounds make you think of their meanings. EX.- the tick of the clock, the pop of the flash Simile-compares two unlike things using the words like or as. EX.-The rain was as noisy as popcorn in a hot pan. Her hair was like a feather in the wind.

Metaphor- compares two unlike things WITHOUT using the words like or as. It says that one think IS (or WAS) the other.

EX.-The plane was a silver bird soaring in the sky. Her hair is a feather in the wind.

The Writing Process

     Prewriting- Planning 1 st Draft- Writing in sentence structure and paragraph form Editing- Checking your writing for mistakes and making improvements Final Draft- Rewriting with corrections made in your best handwriting Publishing- Presenting your writing to show pride in your work.

Now, let

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s get PUMPED about writing!!!