Descriptive Writing: Monster Illustration Descriptions

Our Here to Help Learning subscription expired before we could complete the last writing unit project. I didn't want to renew the subscription for just one book project so I decided to do something else for the rest of the year.

The first project will focus on is Descriptive Writing and the use of strong quality adjectives. We will discuss the importance of Word Choice and Adding Details.

First, I read aloud a monster description that lacked many details while she drew an illustration. I showed her my original illustration and our drawings did NOT match. We discussed the importance of adding details and being more specific when our writing descriptions. We also discussed the importance of "showing" rather than just "telling" when we write. 

The next step was for Alyssa to illustrate her own unique monster. She came up with a very interesting character.

Alyssa's Monster Creation

Then, she looked at her illustration and webbed adjective phrases to describe her monster on a concept web organizer. The name of her monster was written in the center bubble. 

Monster Adjective Phrase Webbing

I asked her to plan out complete sentences using a 5 Senses Chart or Plan Sheet. She compared her illustration and web to her five senses chart making sure the descriptions matched.

Five Senses Plan Sheet

She will gradually work through the writing process. Next on our agenda are the revision and editing steps. She'll revise her paper for word choice and edit errors until she ends up with a ready-to- publish final draft.

This is a really fun activity. I used to complete this projects with my students when I taught at a public school. They always get a kick out of seeing all the creative monsters. Another add-on if you are teaching more than one child at home is to ask a child to read aloud their descriptions while the other children draw it. This helps your child decide if their writing was descriptive enough and whether they used enough details. Pairing up children would also work. Just don't let them see each other's monsters. Have fun! :)

I found writing printables from several different online freebies when I Googled Monster Descriptive Writing.

I will link this post up at A Net in Time and Hopkins Homeschool's Blogging Through the Alphabet Linky. Come check out the Letter D posts this week!