WRITING TO DESCRIBE

Descriptive Writing

Starter

Different sentence types. There are three main sentence types- simple, compound and complex. Which are the following sentences?

The dog ran down the road.

Slowly, the man looked around.

The windows were closed and the curtains drawn.

The cat stretched and bared its claws.

The girl was very small.

The car, which was bright red, sped off down the street.

Key Features of Descriptive Writing Intended reader: will vary according to the nature of the

task- will tend to be for others

Purpose: to communicate a feeling or experience, to create a visual image portraying a place, person, action or object, to create an effect

Structure: mostly non-chronological (depending on the task); usually logical.

Language features- when writing to describe you should:

Use adjectives and adverbs

Use powerful verbs and nouns

Often make comparisons using figurative language, such as similes, metaphors and personification

Write from a personal perspective, including feelings.

Use the past, present or sometimes even the future tense

Be imaginative or factual

When assessing descriptive

writing, examiners will be looking to see if

it:

Is not a narrative

Has a variety of sentence types

Shows evidence of thoughtfully-crafted language – well chosen vocabulary and imagery, including figurative language

Presents an imaginative viewpoint

Focuses clearly on the topic given

Makes a conscious effort to meet the needs of the reader

Engages the reader’s interest

Describes a range of sense, e.g. what can

be seen, smelled, heard or felt

Is well structured in terms of logically-developed ideas

Has coherent paragraphs

How to write an effective description

Make use of powerful verbs, adverbs and adjectives

These descriptive words are central building blocks in helping to make your writing vivid and evocative

Powerful Verbs

Powerful verbs will help to improve your descriptive writing. The following sentence is fine, but the verbs could be more imaginative:

The lights hanging from the ceiling shine,

lighting up the room A more interesting effect is achieved simply by

changing the verbs: The lights suspended from the ceiling flicker,

illuminating the room.

Powerful verbs

Improve this sentence by making the verbs more powerful:

Water drips from the tap, splashing against the bowl.

Adverbs

Adding adverbs gives the reader more information, giving them a clearer picture:

The lights suspended precariously from the ceiling flicker faintly, illuminating the room.

Adverbs

Now add adverbs to your sentence to create a clearer, more detailed picture.

Adjectives

Finally, adjectives create a greater impact:

The lights suspended precariously from the dusty ceiling, flicker faintly, illuminating the gloomy room.

Adjectives

Finally add some adjectives to your sentence to create a greater impact.

Answering the question

Underline the key parts of the question:

Describe the scene in a school classroom at the end of the day.

Answering the question

Brainstorm your ideas, remembering to include all the senses

Describing a classroom