Make Your Essay Sizzle...

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djectives

ounsexact

xamples

nswer...who, what, why, when, and how?

Sh w NOT tell

stics & Facts

Anecdo es

Qu tes & dialogue

Simi es & metaphors

Ver s

e & ContrastCompa

Stat

LINK WITH TRANSITION WORDS

EE xamplesAlways use examples to support your topic sentences and opinions.

TOPIC SENTENCE:Florida is a wonderful place to visit. For example, there are miles ofbeaches. In addition, bigger Florida cities have amusement parks, including Disney World and Sea World in Orlando. You can also learn to scuba dive, parasail, and surf.

EE xamplesWrite three examples to support the following topic sentence. Be sure to connect your ideas with transition words.

TOPIC SENTENCE:Amusement parks provide fun for the entire family.

SS imiles & MetaphorsTry to use a simile or metaphor somewhere in your essay.

TOPIC SENTENCE:Florida is a wonderful place to visit. For example, there are miles of

beaches. In addition, bigger Florida cities have amusement parks, including Disney World and Sea World in Orlando. You can also learn to scuba dive, parasail, and surf. Florida is a tourist’s treasure chest of fun.

SS imiles & MetaphorsTry to spot the similes or metaphors in the following sentence. Write them down on your paper and tell whether they are similes or metaphors.

Spot the

Now, Tony, who has been a member of a street gang for

five years, is a heartless brutal machine with no regard

for human life.

From an airplane, people look like a bunch of ants

traveling across the land.

Her hands were like butterflies fluttering across the

keyboard.

My mother always takes care of us.

The best dog I ever owned was a brown and white beagle that we found in the Smoky Mountains National Park.

SS imiles & MetaphorsTry to spot the similes or metaphors in the following sentence. Write them down on your paper and tell whether they are similes or metaphors.

Spot the

Now, Tony, who has been a member of a street gang for

five years, is a heartless brutal machine with no

regard for human life.

From an airplane, people look like a bunch of ants

traveling across the land.

Her hands were like butterflies fluttering across

the keyboard.

My mother always takes care of us.

The best dog I ever owned was a brown and white beagle that we found in the Smoky Mountains National Park.

METAPHOR

SIMILE

SIMILE

SS imiles & MetaphorsWrite a simile or metaphor to complete at least three of the following sentences.

Write

I jumped like ______________________

when the doorbell rang.

She was as pleased as ________________ when she

opened the present.

My father is an expert golfer. When he hit the ball it

flew away like_____________________________.

After his surprise birthday party, Jake was as happy as __________________.

AAdjectivesAlways use adjectives to paint a picture through description. Choose the adjectives we’ve added to the following paragraph.

TOPIC SENTENCE:Florida is a wonderful place to visit. For example along the milesof sandy, beautiful beaches one can enjoy a peaceful, leisurely jog, search for colorful shells, or simply breathe in the crisp, salty air. At some oceanside areas and in large cities, you’ll experience the thrill of speedy coasters, elaborate shows, and other activites at amusement parks like Disney World, Sea World and many others. Florida also offers adventurers a chance to splash among the coral reefs in scuba gear, to feel the ocean breeze in their hair as they fly in a parasail, or zoom across a mammoth white water ocean cap on a slick surfboard.

AAdjectivesRewrite the following paragraph, adding adjectives to create a picture in the reader’s mind. Remember to include sensory details.

One reason Christmas is my favorite season is because I get to spend time with my family. We always have a big breakfast, open presents, and laugh all day. After dinner, my cousins and I play pool. We usually stay up until midnight, unless we watch a movie. Then we don’t go to sleep until sometime in the morning.

VVerbsThrow out the boring verbs and add vivid verbs to spice up your paragraphs. Note the verbs in the following paragraph.

On Christmas morning we get up and open presents. We eat breakfast after we open our presents. Then we play with our stuff and just stay at home on Christmas.

VVerbsThrow out the boring verbs and add vivid verbs to spice up your paragraphs. Note the verbs in the following paragraph.

On Christmas morning we get up and open presents. We eat breakfast after we open our presents. Then we play with our stuff and just stay at home on Christmas.

VVerbsBy changing the verbs you can spice up the paragraph. Adding adjectives, specific examples, and similes and metaphors help too.

VVerbsNow, take the following boring paragraph. Replace at least three boring verbs with vivid verbs, and add examples, adjectives, and similes or metaphors to spice it up.

VVerbsPut in a worksheet here to help with synonyms for weak verbs.

AAnecdotesAn anecdote is a short account of an interesting or amusing incident. It is often a personal experience. The anecdote supports the main point of a paragraph by briefly describing an event. It should include a beginning, middle, and end. In a way, it is a short narration that supports the thoughts in an expository essay. Where’s the anecdote?

QQ uotes & DialogueAdding quotes and dialogue is another trick to making your essay sizzle. See how the addition of a quote creates a great lead for this paragraph.

QQ uotes & DialogueYou can also add a quote or dialogue to help tell a story or explain your point.

QQ uotes & DialogueIt’s your turn. Work with a partner to write an elaborated paragraph using quotes and dialogue. Don’t forget what you’ve learned about examples, adjectives, vivid verbs, and similes and metaphors. Include those too for an awesome paragraph.

Possible Traits- trustworthy, patient,

mature, honest, responsible,

understanding, intelligent, helpful,

thoughtful, talented, athletic, creative,

generous, kind, humorous,

adventurous.

CCompare & ContrastWhen you write an essay about why you like one thing better than another, comparison/contrast is a good method to use for support. If you write why fall is your favorite season, you can contrast what you like about fall with what you don’t like about other seasons. Select the contrasts.

CCompare & ContrastNow choose from one of the topics below and write a paragraph that includes comparisons or contrasts as supporting ideas. This is just one paragraph.

AA nswer who, what, when, where, and why?

Answering the questions of Who, What, When, Where, and Why is easiest when you are writing a personal anecdote. By answering these questions you are giving all the basic details needed to help the reader engage with your story.

AA nswer who, what, when, where, and why?

AA nswer who, what, when, where, and why?

Who?

AA nswer who, what, when, where, and why?

What?

AA nswer who, what, when, where, and why?

When?

AA nswer who, what, when, where, and why?

Where?

AA nswer who, what, when, where, and why?

Why?

FFActs & Statistics

Adding facts and statistics to your writing will make your paragraphs much stronger. They offer supporting evidence, whether you are stating an opinion or offering a solution to the problem.

FACT – A statement that can be proven.

EXAMPLE-George Washington was the first

president of the United States.

STATISTIC – A fact state in numbers.

EXAMPLE-More than 58,000 American died

in the Vietnam War.

SSHOW NOT TELL

Create a picture in the reader’s mind by writing sentences that show what happened rather than telling what happened.

A. The little girl looked out the window.

B. The little girl pressed so close to the window

that her breath fogged the glass.

A. I rode my four-wheeler.B. I rode my four-wheeler through the puddle so fast that the mud splattered over my head an onto my handle bars.

SSHOW NOT TELL

Expand the following sentences to show not tell.

A. I climbed the fence.

B. The table was decorated for Christmas.

C. My cousins and I like to play football.

EE xact Nouns

Just like vivid verbs make your paragraphs interesting, exact nouns help to paint a picture for your reader. You provide more accurate information when your nouns are specific.

A. She worked as a nurse during the war.

B. She worked as a nurse during the

Revolutionary War.

A. The two people ran the track quickly.

B. The two female athletes ran the track in less than two minutes.

EE xact NounsChoose exact nouns to replace the specific nouns.

a. Ice Cream

B. VegetableC. Dog

D. Sport