Descriptive Writing Lesson 3 Writing - Home2Teach [PDF]

Writing an interesting descriptive paragraph is not always easy. You may .... Prepositional phrases work like adjectives

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Descriptive Writing – Lesson 3

Descriptive Writing Lesson 3 Student objectives: I. Writing What are the 5 steps in the Writing Process? How can I hook my reader at the beginning of a paragraph? Leads II. Grammar How can I use adjectives to make my writing more interesting? What are phrases? How can I use phrases to improve my sentence variety? III. Figurative Language What is personification?

Writing What are the 5 steps in the Writing Process? Writing an interesting descriptive paragraph is not always easy. You may feel challenged while putting your ideas together. The Writing Process will help you organize your ideas and get you started writing without agonizing over those first few words. The five steps in the writing process are: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Prewriting. Creating your First Draft. Revising your writing. Editing grammatical and spelling errors. Publishing a fantastic descriptive paragraph.

Prewriting Prewriting is the time when you decide on the topic you are going to write about. Then you will gather information about your topic, and finally, you will decide which details to share. After you choose your topic, your next task is to brainstorm ideas and gather information about your topic. You may observe your topic or use reference materials to aid you in gathering information. You may want to make a list of your ideas, use note cards, or write your ideas directly onto a graphic organizer. Your next step is to organize your ideas. The two graphic organizers in Lessons 1 and 2 are designed to help you. During this class, you may find one organizer more helpful than another. You may even discover a different method that works for you. Page 1 of 12

Descriptive Writing – Lesson 3 I encourage you to try all of the graphic organizers presented in this class in order to find the ways that work best for you. Whichever you choose, the most important part of this step is to gather, organize, and develop your ideas before you begin writing. After your organizer is completed, think about which details you want to include in your paragraph. You want to include enough information when writing a descriptive paragraph; however, you also want to be sure you stay on topic.

First Draft The purpose of your first draft is to start writing. Don’t worry about spelling, punctuation, grammar, or even word choice. You can circle words you are not sure how to spell, as well as words you would like to look up in the thesaurus later. Try to keep writing without stopping. You start by introducing your topic in a topic sentence. The topic sentence informs your reader about your paragraph’s main idea. It is often the first sentence in a paragraph. Next, include the details from your graphic organizer to write your detail or supporting sentences. Try to vary your sentence structures in the first draft. Also, try to organize your details in a logical order from topic sentence to concluding sentence. Remember, though, the purpose of the first draft is to get your ideas down on paper. Finally, write your closing sentence. A closing sentence refers back to your topic or lead sentence and ties all of your ideas together.

Revising During the revising step of the writing process, you read through your first draft to see how you can improve your writing. Ask yourself these questions to help identify areas that need revision:         

Do I have a topic sentence?  Will my topic or lead sentence entice my reader to keep reading?  Have I included enough details to describe my topic vividly?  Do all of my details support the main idea of my topic? Have I gone off topic? Where could I add more focus to my writing?  Have I included a variety of sentence structures? How could I begin my sentences in different ways?  Are all my sentences written clearly, and do they make sense?  How can I be more specific with my nouns? Could I add more descriptive adjectives?  Have I created a picture or movie in the mind of my reader?  Have I included a closing sentence that ties up all of my ideas and refers back to my leading sentence? Page 2 of 12

Descriptive Writing – Lesson 3 After asking yourself each of these questions, rewrite your sentences, reorder your ideas, refer to your thesaurus, and modify your figurative language. Make sure you are satisfied that you have described your topic according to the guidelines and to the best of your ability.

Editing Finally, the time has come to edit your paper for spelling, punctuation, and other grammatical errors. A helpful method is to start at the end of your paragraph and read each sentence individually. Here are a few things to check for: Correct Spelling: If you are unsure of a word’s spelling, look it up in the dictionary. If you are still not sure, ask for help. Correct Capitalization and Punctuation: Does every sentence begin with a capital letter and end with a punctuation mark? Look for run-on sentences and sentence fragments. Be sure that you use commas and other punctuation properly. Subject/Verb Agreement: Be sure that both are plural or that both are singular. Consistent Verb Tense: Make sure all of your sentences are written in the same tense (past, present, or future). Word Choice: Have you used your new vocabulary words? Can you use your thesaurus to be more specific with your words? Could you include more vivid verbs, colorful adjectives, specific nouns, and lively adverbs? Have you effectively used figures of speech?

Publishing Congratulations! You have revised and edited your first draft and worked hard to create your best work. In this class, publishing means that you have finished your final copy and you are ready to share your writing with the world. Sending it to your teacher is a great place to start!

How can I hook my reader at the beginning of a paragraph? Leads In the Fundamentals 1 and 2 classes, you learned to begin each paragraph with a topic sentence to introduce the main idea or subject of your paragraph. It is important that your main idea is stated clearly. However, stating a topic is not always the most interesting way to entice your reader to keep reading.

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Descriptive Writing – Lesson 3 Think of the first sentence of your paragraph like a picture of a dessert you are about to order. A sundae with lots of hot fudge dripping down the sides looks tastier than a plain scoop of vanilla ice cream. Both will taste good, but one picture is more irresistible than the other. The purpose of a good lead is to get your readers interested in your topic and excited about reading your paragraph. Read the following paragraph introductions and think about the questions that follow: Lead #1: Walruses are interesting animals. At birth, they weigh 100 pounds and are born directly onto an ice sheet. Lead #2: Did you know that a newborn walrus is born directly onto the ice and weighs 100 pounds? Walruses are full of such interesting facts to be learned. Please be ready to discuss the following questions in class. Do both introductions state a main idea? What is it? ____________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ What is the difference between the two introductions?__________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ Which introduction works harder to get your attention? Why do you think so? ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ How does the sentence you chose grab your attention?__________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ Creating a good lead can be difficult; therefore, many writers begin with a topic sentence and add in their lead during the revising step of the Writing Process. Remember, the most important step in the first draft is getting your words down on paper. So if an idea for a lead does not come to you right away, begin with a topic sentence and focus on the lead when you go back and revise. There are many different types of effective leads. We will discuss five types: 1. Ask a question. Have you ever heard a loud splash in a marsh or river when no one was around? What you most likely heard was a beaver warning you to stay away from its home. The beaver is full of such interesting behaviors.

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Descriptive Writing – Lesson 3 2. Begin with a metaphor or simile. The beaver is the lumberjack of the forest. With its enlarged and specially coated front teeth, the beaver can “chew” down a tree in a short period of time with very little effort. The beaver is full of such interesting behaviors. 3. Start with an action. While I am enjoying a peaceful picnic in the wilderness, a tree crashes to the forest floor near a stream. Suddenly, a loud splash interrupts my sandwich. I turn to spot a furry brown animal with a paddle-like tail swimming down the river. I am sure this beast is a beaver. The beaver is full of interesting behaviors. 4. State an interesting fact. American Indians call the beaver the “sacred center” of the land, because so many animals depend upon the habitats it creates. The beaver is full of such interesting facts. 5. Quotation. Dr. Donald Griffin, the father of animal cognitive science, has said, “When we think of the kinds of animal behavior that suggest conscious thinking, the beaver comes naturally to mind.” In addition to its ability to think and learn, the beaver is full of interesting behaviors. This week, you will write a descriptive paragraph about an animal. After you have written your first draft, try one of these methods to add spice to the beginning of your paragraph, enticing your audience to read your paragraph. The following example is the introduction, lead, and first chapter of Jerry Spinelli’s novel, Loser. This is a strong example of how you can use descriptive writing as an amazing lead. You grow up with a kid but you never really notice him. He’s just there—on the street, the playground, the neighborhood. He’s part of the scenery, like the parked cars and the green plastic cans on trash day. You pass through school—first grade, second grade—there he is, going along with you. You’re not friends, you’re not enemies. You just cross paths now and then. Maybe at the park playground one day you look up and there he is on the other end of the seesaw. Or it’s winter and you sled to the bottom of Halftank Hill, and you’re trudging back up and there he goes zipping down, his arms out like a swan diver, screaming his head off. Maybe it annoys you that he seems to be having even more fun than you, but it’s a one second thought and it’s over. You don’t even know his name. And then one day you do. You hear someone say a name, and somehow you just know that’s who the name belongs to, it’s that kid. Zinkoff.

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Descriptive Writing – Lesson 3

Grammar How can I use adjectives to make my writing more interesting? An adjective describes a noun or pronoun. Adjectives give us more information about a noun to create a clearer image in the mind of the reader. In the following two examples, we will transform a sentence by building it out with adjectives. Example 1: The orca dashed away from the ship and its propellers. Example 2: The crafty orca dashed away from the five-story cruise ship and its two sharp and hefty propellers. When you revise your rough draft, adjectives can increase the detail and imagery of your paragraph.

What are phrases? So far in this class, we have discussed nouns and adjectives as parts of speech. These single words are parts of speech with specific purposes in a sentence. Groups of words can also function as a single part of speech in a sentence. These groups of words can function as adjectives, nouns, verbs, and adverbs. Since we are studying adjectives in this lesson, let’s define phrases and examine how they can function as an adjective in a sentence.

Phrases A phrase is a group of words that expresses a single idea more completely; however, a phrase is not a complete sentence because it does not have a subject and a predicate.

Prepositions and prepositional phrases As you might recall from Fundamentals 1 and 2, a preposition is a word that shows how a noun or pronoun relates to another part of a sentence. Prepositions usually show relationships in regards to location and time. Example: The dog by the fence barked loudly. The preposition by shows the location of the dog who was barking. A prepositional phrase is a group of words that begins with a preposition and usually ends with a noun or pronoun. Prepositional phrases work like adjectives or adverbs to describe part of a sentence. In the previous example, by the fence describes the dog, a noun; therefore, the prepositional phrase was acting like an adjective.

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Descriptive Writing – Lesson 3 Here is a list of common prepositions. about above across against along amid around at

before behind below beside between by down during

except for from in inside into near of

off on outside over past since through to

toward under until up upon with within without

How can I use phrases to improve my sentence variety? Prepositional phrases can work like adjectives to add and expand the detail in your descriptive paragraph. You can also use prepositional phrases to combine sentences in a paragraph, creating clearer flow and more sentence variety. We can combine the two simple sentence below by creating a prepositional phrase describing the location of the dog. Example: The dog was by the fence. The dog barked loudly. (two simple sentences) The dog barked loudly by the fence. (combined sentence)

Now You Try It 1. Add adjectives to describe each noun in the following sentence. Notice how you are expanding the detail in the sentence. The beaver chewed through the tree in the forest. ____________________________________________________________________________ Change the following two simple sentences into one sentence by combining information using a prepositional phrase. The orcas swim rapidly. The orcas are alongside the cruise ship. ____________________________________________________________________________

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Descriptive Writing – Lesson 3

Figurative Language What is Personification? Personification is a figure of speech where an author gives an animal or an object human characteristics. In this way, a writer can add detail and imagery to a piece of writing in a colorful way. Example: The whales danced and sang in the water next to the swimming scientists. What does this mean in plain language? The whales were swimming and making noises in the water. Example: The bear cubs were scolded by their mother. What does this mean in plain language? The mother bear made noises at her cubs. If you took the first example sentence literally, you might picture a whale with ballet shoes singing the blues. However, this is a creative way of showing that the whales swam gracefully and made beautiful sounds in the water. Using personification can help your writing flow smoothly by using precise, vivid words to express an idea.

Now You Try It Work with the following sentences. The dolphins jumped in and out of the water in all directions. How could you express this same idea using personification? ____________________________________________________________________________ The sun smiled down on us for several days. What does this mean in plain language? ____________________________________________________________________________

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Descriptive Writing – Lesson 3

Descriptive Writing – Lesson 3 Assignments: When typing your assignments, please make sure to use MLA format. When naming your documents, please be sure to include the class name (DW), your name, and the assignment number. Example: DW-Your name-3A Also, when you e-mail your assignments to me as an attachment, be sure the subject line of your email includes the name of your assignment. If you attach several assignments, your subject line should look like the sample below: Example: DW-Your name-3A, 3B, 3C (and so on) 3A. Vocabulary: For this week’s vocabulary, please choose two new adjectives from a book you are reading. Make sure to choose adjectives that you do not know. You will look up the definition and synonyms for each of your words. You will also use the word in your own sentence. Do not copy the sentence from the book. Using Word or Open Office, you should create two word entries using the following format: Word: Definition: Synonyms: Part of Speech: Remember, these should be adjectives! Sentence: Remember to use MLA format! 3B. Figures of Speech Journal: In a book you are reading or in another text, find two examples of personification. On one side of an index card or a piece of paper, copy down the example of personification and beneath it draw a picture to represent it. Please feel free to be silly. On the other side of the card or paper, identify the figure of speech as personification. Write down what it means in plain language. I highly encourage you to hand write and hand draw these examples. When you have finished your cards, type out each of them (minus the picture) into Word or Open Office. These must be written in complete sentences.

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Descriptive Writing – Lesson 3 Example: The tree’s branches tickled the

This sentence shows

sky.

personification.

Draw the literal or dictionary meaning here—a picture of a tree

It means that the tree’s branches

tickling the sky.

swayed in the air.

3C. Descriptive Writing Assignment: In this assignment, you will describe an animal. Remember the purpose of this assignment is to describe, not to write a report about an animal. Please spend time revising your paragraph for descriptive adjectives, a variety of sentences, and an enticing lead. Take a look at the graphic organizer below to help you organize your ideas. You will need to include an example of personification in addition to using MLA format. I would also love to see examples of metaphors, similes, and idioms where appropriate in your writing. Step 1: Topic: __________________________________________________________________ (You can write about a pet or another interesting animal.) Step 2: Record your details in the graphic organizer on the next page. The example to the right could be used to write a descriptive paragraph about an animal. Notice how the example uses sensory details such as sound and appearance along with personality traits such as behavior, actions, likes, and dislikes.

Sweet, inquisitive face – eyes, ears, Like to play

nose.

Lustrous fur has

practical jokes.

two layers.

Caretakers –

Native

adolescent

American Beavers are

“sacred center”

beavers teach

fascinating

new litters

animals. Build dams

Long flat tail

that help clean

for swimming

water & create

and warning

wetlands

outsiders Lumberjacks of

Four front teeth

the wetlands

are large and yellow

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Descriptive Writing – Lesson 3

Step 3: Write a topic sentence: _____________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________

Step 4: Write a closing sentence: ___________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ (Your closing sentence should tie up your paragraph and connect to your topic sentence.) Step 5: Complete the paragraph using the details you listed in your graphic organizer. (Please remember to include at least one example of personification.)

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Descriptive Writing – Lesson 3 Step 6: Please spend time revising your paragraph for descriptive adjectives, a variety of sentences, and an enticing lead. Also ensure you have included sensory details to create a picture or a movie of your animal in the minds of your readers. Use your thesaurus to find colorful, interesting, and specific words. (Double check to be sure you used at least one example of personification.) Step 7: Beginning with the last sentence, proofread each sentence in your paragraph to correct errors in spelling, sentence structure, punctuation, and MLA format. Step 8: Think of a creative title for your descriptive paragraph. If you want, you may add a picture to your assignment.

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