Your homework this week is to complete the descriptive paragraph you started in school (based on the nature photo you chose). These will be due on Friday, April 5th.
If you'd like a little extra work on writing descriptively (or if you simply enjoy doing it!), you may choose to write another descriptive paragraph based on the photos below or on another scene if you'd like. *You will also receive extra credit scholar dollars!* Be sure to include: 1.) All five senses (see, hear, taste, smell, touch) 2.) Examples of figurative language (similes, metaphors, onomatopoeia, alliteration, hyperbole, etc.) Example: It was a wonderful day at the beach. White clouds floated like marshmallows through the light blue sky. My friend Sam and I relaxed on a rainbow striped beach towel under an enveloping orange umbrella. A seal popped his head up among the glistening waves as a tiny crab scurried along the sand like lightning. Two starfish lie happily basking in the sun. Near us, a seagull remained perched like a statue on a midnight black rock. Two red balloons danced in the sky looking down on young children creating memories. We didn’t want the day to end.
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We have spent a considerable amount of time learning about and identifying text structures. This week, your assignment is to write a paragraph about a subject of your choosing and use one of the text structures as a way to organize your text. Please see the example for clarification.
1.) Pick a subject (this can be anything you want to write about--sports, music, art, school, family, homework, etc.) 2.) Choose one text structure and use that format to write. 3.) Your classmates need to guess the text structure. The following are several examples of ways you can write paragraphs using various text structures. You are only required to write one. Example: Subject: Teaching (The following are many examples of text structure, you only need to choose one). I've always known I wanted to be a teacher. By the time I was just six years old, I started teaching to a group of stuffed animals. First, I'd set them up and pretend each was a student. By the time my brother was born, he had no chance of escaping my educational instruction. When he was just a baby, I'd set him up near my mini chalkboard and talk to him like he was in my class! Now, I don't have to pretend anymore, and I get to come to school everyday and spend time with real students. Can you guess the text structure? (sequencing) Every afternoon, I enter Cherry Hills Village Elementary School. The strong scent of cafeteria food engulfs my senses the moment I walk through those double-sided black doors. I make my way through the long hallway, up the short set of stairs, and into the fourth-grade classroom where I'm greeted by smiles, hugs, and waves. Can you guess the text structure? (descriptive) Sarah always thought she knew what she wanted to study in college. For a year now, she was convinced she wanted to become a social worker. She always enjoyed helping others, and this profession would meet that desire. But recently, she started thinking about teaching. She had many friends who became teachers and seemed to love their job. Hmm. Which should she do? There are many similarities and differences between both social work and teaching. Can you guess the text structure? (compare and contrast) Mike worked hard on his research project, so hard in fact, he ended up making a huge difference in hundreds of lives. Who knew that when he started his research project on helping the homeless, it would turn school-wide and create a positive difference for families across Colorado. Can you guess the text structure? (cause and effect) She saw the looks on their faces and knew right away they didn't get it. Teaching long division was no easy feat, and she knew this class needed more instruction. So, she spent the next week working on practice problems, helping students during recess, and sending home extra practice worksheets. By the end of the month, her students had mastered this skill and were ready to move on to the next mathematical challenge! Can you guess the text structure? (problem/solution) Our focus this week is descriptive language and the power of words. In class, we will be working on incorporating strong imagery and figurative language into our writing.
For your blog this week: 1.) Find two examples of strong descriptive language in the book you are reading, or a text you've read in the past. 2.) Write the examples. Be sure to include quotation marks and page numbers. 3.) Highlight specifically which words help create a strong visual. 4.) Include the author and title. Sample Answer: Example #1: In the book, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, by JK Rowling, Rowling describes a "Death Day" party: "It was an incredible sight. the dungeon was full of hundreds of pearly-white, translucent people, mostly drifting around a crowded dance floor, waltzing to the dreadful, quavering sound of thirty musical saws, played by an orchestra on a raised, black-draped platform. A chandelier overhead blazed midnight-blue with a thousand more black candles. Their breath rose in a mist before them, it was like stepping into a freezer," (p. 132). In this example, words like "pearly-white translucent people" and "chandelier overhead blazed midnight-blue with a thousand more black candles" help me as the reader visualize the scene. Example #2 My second example is also from the book, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by JK Rowling. In this scene, Rowling continues to describe the scene: "On the other side of the dungeon was a long table, also covered in black velvet...The smell was quite disgusting. Large, rotten fish were laid on handsome silver platters; cakes burned charcoal-black, were heaped on salvers, there was a great maggoty haggis, a slab of cheese covered in furry green mold, and in a pride of place, an enormous gray cake in the shape of a tombstone, with tar-like icing..." (p. 133). In this example, words like "large, rotten fish" and "handsome silver platters" allows me to visualize this part of the party. |
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