Description ParagraphsGSE English Logic and Writing Week 4

Today’s Class

Illustration vs Narration Description Paragraphs

Writing activityWriting Lesson

Writing activity 2Time to work on Writing HW

Illustration vs Narrative Examples/Illustrations: explain your

ideas Narrative: tell a story

A strong topic sentence is necessary Make the reader ask “Why?” or say “Tell

me more!”

Which topic sentences are stronger?

I lived in …. Which is near the sea. Viewing the scenery of the countryside, especially

seeing wandering cows in the field, reminds me of the times when I visited my grandparents.

There are many fun and beautiful childhood memories that I can remember when I was living in …

I remember the New Year’s day that I celebrated when I was twelve.

I was a girl who always tried to look mature in front of others.

Descriptive Paragraphs

Description Paragraphs Sketches or Describes

Person Place Thing

Uses concrete and specific details Sight Sound Smell Taste Touch

MaryMary is as beautiful as a Hollywood star. Her thick, wavy, long black hair gracefully falls down to her shoulders and encircles her diamond-shaped face. A golden suntan usually brings out her smooth, clear complexion and high cheek bones. Her slightly arched chestnut brown eyebrows highlight her emotions by moving up and down as she reacts to her world around her. Her large deep blue eyes, remind me of a lake on a stormy day. Her curved nose gives her a little girl look that makes me want to smile when she talks. And her mouth is a small mouth outlined by puffy lips that she often accentuates with glossy pink lipstick. When she smiles, which is often, her well-formed and even, white teeth brighten up her whole face. I guess you can tell that I am head over heals in love with Mary.

Grasshoppers

They came like dive bombers out of the west. They came by the millions with the rustle of their wings roaring overhead. They came in waves, like the rolls of the sea, de-scending with a terrifying speed, breaking now and again like a might surf. They came with the force of a williwaw and they formed a huge, ominous, dark brown cloud that eclipsed the sun. They dipped and touch the earth, hitting objects like hailstones. But they were not hail. They were live demons. They popped, snapped, crackled, and roared. They were dark brown, an inch or longer in length, plump in the middle and tapered at the ends. They had trans-parent wings, slender legs, and two black eyes that flashed with a fierce intelligence.

Lonely Planet

The following examples are some fun travel writing samples from Lonely Planet, the maker of a popular travel guide series http://www.lonelyplanet.com/

Central America

Tiny on a map, Central America packs in more di-versity than any similar-sized area on the planet. No matter when you visit, or how long you're there, daily adventures are there for the tak-ing. They come in all styles – fun, easy, bumpy, challenging, sur-prising, fulfilling – the sort you’ll be talking about for decades.

Caribbean white-sand beaches and offshore reefs border lazy backpacker towns while, not far away, coffee-scented mountains reach, Dr Seuss–like, through smoke-ring clouds. Spanish haciendas line the cobblestone streets of 16th-century colonial towns under the ominous gaze of lava-gurgling volca-noes. Wander through dense jungle to find Mayan pyramids that date back a millen-nium as bulldog-sized rodents scurry past and howler monkeys commute in the treetops above you.

The USAAmerica is the birthplace of LA, Las Vegas, Chicago, Miami, Boston and New York City – each a brimming metropolis whose name alone conjures a million different notions of culture, cuisine and entertainment. Look more closely, and the American quilt unfurls in all its surprising variety: the eclectic music scene of Austin, the easy-going charms of antebellum Savannah, the eco-consciousness of free-spirited Portland, the magnificent waterfront of San Francisco, and the captivating old quarters of New Orleans, still rising up from its waterlogged ashes.

This is a country of road trips and great open skies, where four million miles of highways lead past red-rock deserts, below toweringmountain peaks, and across fertile wheat fields that roll off towardthe horizon. The sun-bleached hillsides of the Great Plains, the lushrain forests of the Pacific Northwest and the scenic country lanes ofNew England are a few fine starting points for the great Americanroad trip.

Description Paragraph Activity Groups of 2

Pick an international (or domestic) city or country Make the class want to go there! Write 3-4 sentences

Uses concrete and specific details A city/country of … See/ Stroll down/wander/travel through the… Smell/take in/breathe in/ the… Taste/sample/try/ the… Hear/listen to/enjoy the… Experience/take part in/ some activity…

Writing Lesson – Confusing words These confusing words, once used

correctly, can help you write more complex and interesting sounding sentences.

Accept vs. Except

Accept – to agree, to receive I accept your offer.

Except – but, with the exception that I like every season except winter.

HINT: Except excludes something

1

Affect vs. Effect Affect – influence, emotional expression (noun)

How do the budget cuts affect your office? She showed little affect when told she had won the

game.

Effect – cause, result, preceded by a/an/any/the/take/into What is the effect of behavior modification on students? What effect did her speech have?

HINT: Affection is emotional and helps you gain influence

2

Allude vs. Elude

Allude – to refer indirectly She alluded to the fact that she doesn’t

like American food.

Elude – to avoid capture The thief eluded the police for a month.

HINT: Elude – evade

3

Assure vs. Ensure Assure – To promise or say with confidence

I assure you that Korea is a very safe country.

Ensure – To make sure something will/won’t happen To ensure the event would be successful, the

committee planned several months in advance.

HINT: The prefix “en” means to put into some-thing. We put a lot of hard work into some-thing to ensure it happens/doesn’t happen.

4

Complement vs. Com-pliment

Complement – go well together Your shirt complements your purse

quite nicely. Compliment – praise

The teacher complimented the student.

HINT: I like to give compliments.

5

Description Paragraph Activity Add one of the “confusing words” to it!

Accept - the people will accept you with open arms Except - except for the cold rainy season… Allude - the museums allude to a less prosperous time Elude - the traditional dances will elude your senses Assure - you can rest assured that… Ensure - to ensure you get the most out of your trip… Affect - seeing this country firsthand will affect you Effect - the effect of visiting another country is… Complement - complement your trip to the museum with Compliment - the people will give you many compli-

ments

Your Homework

Write a descriptive paragraph on the topic of your choice; any person, place or thing is ok.

Feel free to expand on your travel writing!

Experiment! Use complex, difficult-to-use English!

Para-graph Type

Purpose

Example To explain a topic. The reader should ask, “For example?”

Illustra-tion

Extended examples frequently pre-sented in story form.

Narrative Tells a story or part of a story using details.

Descrip-tion

Sketches a portrait of a person, place or thing by using details that appeal to the senses.