Descriptive Writing Unit

*You have my permission to use my unit plan as an E-Learn example.

Ms. Holly Klein

Philosophy on the Teaching of Writing

Through my observations in the Dubuque community classrooms and courses at Loras, I have
discovered certain principles I have relating to the teaching of writing. The first and most important
principle is that I believe all students should be exposed to writing in multiple forms. I want to give
students the flexibility to write what they want, how they want. This may include having to introduce
many different kinds of writing to my students or different activities within my classroom that will get my
students writing in ways outside of the normal structure. Another principle I believe is that students
should be writing every day in the classroom. The more students write, the more they will develop and
enhance their overall writing. Practicing this every day can make a big impact on my students writing
and possibly their attitudes towards writing. My hope is that the more my students write, the less
intimidated they will feel when given a larger writing assignment.
I also believe in the difference between learning to write and writing to learn. I want my students
to be able to express their knowledge effectively through writing. This is why I like to do entry and exit
slips where I give my students the opportunity to express their feelings or ask questions in just a few short
sentences if that is what they prefer. Another important principle is for my students to learn about writing
through their own writing. I believe in teaching writing by giving them examples from their own papers
or their peers papers. Each student is different and one students weakness might be another students
strength. The teaching of writing should be focused on each individual students strengths and
weaknesses. However, because I wont always have time to hold writing conferences with my students, it
is a belief of mine to identify the common mistakes my class is making and address them by using
specific examples that they can relate to during whole-class instruction.
I want to create a positive writing environment. I want my students to leave my classroom feeling
confident in themselves as writers, not only in my classroom but in all classrooms. For this reason, the
unit I created has my students occasionally sharing their writing with their peers. I want my students to
get used to having an audience for a lot of what they write. I also included different, fun, engaging
activities that will hopefully get them excited about writing in general!

Overview of Descriptive Writing Unit

This unit was created for a 7th grade English/Language Arts class of twenty students
(ideally, 10 girls and 10 boys). The class is held Monday-Friday for fifty minutes. Immediately
preceding this unit, students were introduced to narrative writing and read multiple short stories
including Gary Sotos Seventh Grade. At the end of the unit, students wrote their own
narrative.
This descriptive writing unit mainly focuses on effective portrayal of detail through the
five senses. Students will spend two weeks discovering ways they can incorporate detail into
their writing in order to paint a picture in their audiences mind. They will work collaboratively
with classmates performing various activities that will help them write about their senses,
demonstrate what they have learned by reflecting on exit slips, and write their very own
descriptive essay on their favorite or least favorite place in the world. Through this unit, students
will be expected to individually edit their rough drafts and learn how to enhance their own
writing. They will also be expected to provide constructive feedback to two of their peers
essays. They will be given a peer review guide to help them through the process.
My unit also includes technology and having students work with their tablets. Multiple
times throughout the unit I guide them to two online thesaurus websites to use as references
when completing worksheets. I wanted to be careful when including technology in the classroom
so I made it very minimal. Although games are always fun to play, I steered away from doing
activities as such because I wanted the main focus to be on my students writing.
At the end of this unit, students will be able to identify the definition of descriptive
writing, effectively incorporate detail and the five senses to portray the sense of place within
their essay, and gain practice in individual and peer reviews. All in and out of class activities will
be worth 10pts and graded based on participation and full completion. The final essay (including
individual and peer reviews) will be worth 45pts. Immediately following this unit, we will begin
out next unit on persuasive writing. Students will be exposed to multiple speeches, picking out
effective elements of persuasive writing. They will write their own essay at the end of the unit.

Itinerary of Activities

Monday Day 1: Introduction

Anticipatory Set: 5 mins

Entry Slip-I will instruct students to pull out a piece of paper and write their own
definition of descriptive writing. They will hand me their slips when done.

Teaching Activities: 40 mins

Students will share in a large group discussion what they think descriptive writing
is. I will ask the students what descriptive writing is not and ask if they can
provide examples (10 mins).
I will instruct my students to close their eyes and listen closely to what I say. I
will begin telling a story: I went to the store and spent money. I drove home and
ate dinner. I went to bed. (20 mins)
o I will pause for a moment and instruct the students to keep their eyes
closed. Then, I will retell the story: It was cold and rainy yesterday
afternoon so I went to the grocery store with my mom. I spent a lot of my
allowance there on chips, brownies, and ice cream. My mom and I left the
grocery store, jumped into our van, and drove home. We unpacked the
groceries we bought and began making chicken for dinner. After our big
dinner, we headed to bed for the night.
I will instruct students to write down the differences they heard
between the two stories.
o I will then tell another story: The garbage smells bad.
o I will retell the story: The garbage in my house smells like rotten eggs,
raw onions, and my dads gym shoes. The stench is all throughout the
house.
Students will write down the difference between the two stories.
o I will continue saying: Its very loud in here.
o I will retell the story: The high pitch voices of the basketball fans are earshattering. Its like someone is ringing a bell in my ear.
Students will write down the differences
o I will say: This broccoli is gross!
o Retelling: Eating this broccoli is like eating grass. Its dry and leafy.
Students will write down the differences
o I will say: I picked up the basketball and passed it to Johnny.
o Retelling: I picked up the basketball and the thousands of small rubber
bumps brushed my fingertips as I passed the ball to Johnny.
Students will write down the differences

I will ask the students to point out specific differences they noticed between each
compared story. I will keep asking them to think deeper (if they cannot figure out
that each story was describing one of the five senses, I will tell them). We will
discuss the effect senses have on description. (10 mins)

Closure: 5 mins

Exit Slip-I will hand back the entry slips students wrote in the beginning of class.
I will instruct students to add, change, edit their definitions of descriptive writing.
They will hand me their slips when done (I will post their definitions to our class
bulletin board). I will introduce their Descriptive Essay assignment due at the end
of the unit. *Please see the end of this document for attachment*

Homework: None

Tuesday Day 2: Traveling Description

Anticipatory Set: (5 mins)

I will put students into 5 groups of 4. Each group will come up with a kind of
food (ex. Apple, cake, loaf of bread). They will write it down on paper and hand it
to me.

Teaching Activities: (38 mins)

I will shuffle the papers in my hand and distribute them to one person in the group
instructing them not to show anybody what food they got. Based on the food, the
student will write three sentences describing the food without saying what it is.
They will pass only the description to the next person in the group. Based off the
description, the next student will draw what they think is being described. They
will pass the drawing to the next student. Based off the drawing, this student will
write three sentences describing the picture and then hand the description back to
the student who first started. When complete, the first student will reveal what the
food was and each group will compare their descriptions and drawings.

Closure: (7 mins)

Students will share with the class their food and the drawing (if time, they can
share the descriptions)

Homework: None

Wednesday Day 3: Putting it into Practice

Anticipatory Set: (10 mins)

Instruct students to grab their tablets. Introduce two sites: Online Thesaurus and
Dictionary (http://www.merriam-webster.com/) and Rhyme Zone
(http://www.rhymezone.com/). They will be using these sites as resources.

Teaching Activities: (35 mins)

Students will spend the class period filling out their worksheet. I will be walking
around answering questions and asking students to share with me their
answers/descriptions. *Please see the end of this document for attachment*

Closure: (5 mins)

I will ask if any students would like to share what they wrote.

Homework: Finish worksheet if you did not finish it in class.

Thursday Day 4: Brainstorming

Anticipatory Set: (5 mins)

Project the following quote on the screen. Ask students to read to themselves and
then read aloud to students the quote: There's an old saying that great writing is
simple but not easy, and so it is. The search for that one plain but inobvious word
that will do the work of five, the agony of untangling a complex idea that has
become a mess of phrases in the writer's mind, the process of brainstorming and
the willingness to keep doing it over and over again until it is right--all of that,
plus some luck, yields prose so clear that it seems a child could have written it.
William Souder

Teaching Activities: (37 mins)

I will pass out the Idea Web worksheet and instruct students to think of their
favorite or least favorite place in the whole world. They may not use their house.
(15 mins) *Please see the end of this document for attachment*
o They will put the name of the place in the middle circle.
o The five remaining circles that stem from the middle will represent each
sense. I will ask students to label each sense in its own circle
o Students will then brainstorm the senses they experience relating to their
place. They do not have to fill in the circle for every sense, however, it
would be ideal if they could
I will ask students to pull out a sheet of paper and think of their house, a friends
house, or a relatives house. (15 mins)
o I will ask them to reflect on the following questions:

What color is this place? Is it a dull gray or a velvet red? Is it made

of brick? What color?
What does this place smell like? Does it always smell good? When
does it smell best/worst?
Is there anything distinct about this place? Are there wooden floors
with scratches from your dogs paws? Are there stains on the
carpet from when you spilled your Mountain Dew?
Are there good meals cooked in this place? What do they taste
like?
What are the different sounds you hear? Are there people talking, a
TV in the background, kids outside playing, cars driving by, sirens,
horns, or anything else?
Instruct students to pick a place they brainstormed or maybe a topic they didnt
write about but just thought about now. The topic must be their favorite or least
favorite place in the world (7 mins)
o Students will expand on a place of their choice. They will use their notes
to help them think of something to write about.
o Students must keep their pencils moving for all 5 minutes of the exercise.
If they are stuck, they can write I dont know until something comes to
mind.

Closure: (8 mins)

I will instruct students to look back on what they have expanded on. I will ask the
students if they can identify sentences that display all 5 senses. They will
underline, circle, or highlight these sentences. They will write down what senses
they found and did not find.

Homework: Come to class with a place for your descriptive essay in mind.

Friday Day 5: Topic Due/Tasting Activity!

Anticipatory Set: (5 mins)

I will ask students what place they chose and write it down. I will pull two desks
to the front of the classroom and place a bag of mini marshmallows, M&Ms, sour
patch kids, and chocolate. I will cover the candy up with napkins so students cant
see what it underneath.

Teaching Activities: (43 mins)

I will pair up the students and they will have to choose which partner will be
blindfolded and which partner will be the recorder. (3 mins)

After they choose, I will blindfold the chosen partner. I will walk around with the
bag of mini marshmallows and instruct the partner with the blindfold to hold out
their hand. I will then place one of the three candies in the students hand. (25
mins)
o Blindfolded students: They will suck on the marshmallows for 5 minutes
describing to their partner the taste and texture. After 5 minutes students
are allowed to chew and eat the marshmallows describing something new
they encountered when they chewed the marshmallow.
o Recording students: These students will record everything their partner
describes to them, writing every detail down on a sheet of paper.
*This process will be repeated three more times using M&Ms, sour patch
kids and chocolate. Partners will switch roles each time
Students will look at their notes and write a short paragraph for each candy they
described. These paragraphs will be written in the perspective of the candy (ex.
My outside layer is smooth but can also feel rough on a tongue. My inside layer is
sticky and mushy). (15 mins)

Closure: Remind students the first draft of their essay is due on Monday. (2 mins)
Homework: None

Monday Day 6: Individual Workshop Day

Anticipatory Set: (5 mins)

Entry Slip: Students will write down a question or concern they have about their
essay and hand the slips to me when they are done.

Teaching Activities: (40 mins)

Display the PowerPoint that will take students through individual workshops.
*Please see end of this document for attachment*

Closure: (5 mins)

Exit Slip: Students will write down one thing they improved on with their essay
from the individual workshops.

Homework: None

Tuesday Day 7: Peer Workshop Day

Anticipatory Set: (5 mins)

Pair up students into groups of three (there will be one group of two) and hand
back the entry slip from last class about student questions and concerns regarding
their essay.

Teaching Activities: (40 mins)

I will hand out the Peer Feedback Guides to each student. Students will rotate
their essay, along with their entry slip, within their group of three or two and
follow the guide on how to give peer feedback (each student should give and
receive two peer reviews). *Please see end of this document for attachment*

Closure: (5 mins)

Exit Slip: Students will write one thing they learned about giving and/or receiving
peer feedback.

Homework: None

Wednesday Day 8: Spice it Up!

Anticipatory Set: (5 mins)

Instruct students to get out their tablets and load: Online Thesaurus and
Dictionary (http://www.merriam-webster.com/) and Rhyme Zone
(http://www.rhymezone.com/).

Teaching Activities: (40 mins)

Students will fill out their Spice It Up worksheet with the help of the two
websites. *Please see end of this document for attachment*

Closure: (5 mins)

Exit Slip: Students will write down one sentence using a Spice It Up word. I will
collect all exit slips and add the sentences to our class bulletin board for students
to look at and reference.

Homework: We will be working with your essays tomorrow during class. Please make
sure your essay will be accessible through your tablet (this works best if you email it to
your school tablet). You can bring a hard copy if you prefer.

Thursday Day 9: Style in Writing

Anticipatory Set: (1 mins)

Instruct students to pull their essays up on their tablets.

Teaching Activities: (44 mins)

I will introduce the students to sentence combining. I will write visual examples
on the board. (10 mins)
Now, students will practice sentence combining with their own writing.
o Instruct students to begin reading through their essay and looking for
sentences they can combine. If they combine any sentences, they must
highlight the sentence they edited in yellow. (12 mins)
Introduce wimpy verbs to students (10 mins)
o Instruct students to read through their essay and get rid of wimpy or
unnecessary verbs. They will highlight the changes in red. (12 mins)

Closure: (5 mins)

I will walk around the classroom and make sure students made some changes.

Homework: Work on final drafts of descriptive essay due tomorrow. Also, write a short 3
sentence paragraph describing an object in the room without saying what it is.

Friday Day 10: Essays and Object Paragraph Due/Wrap-Up Day

Anticipatory Set: (8 mins)

Instruct students to pass forward (or email me holly.klein@loras.edu), the final

draft of their descriptive essay.
I will read aloud my own object paragraph as the students guess which object in
the room I am talking about.

Teaching Activities: (37 mins)

Each student will come to the front of the classroom and read aloud their object
paragraph. After a student presents, the audience will guess what the object it.

Closure: (5 mins)

I will briefly introduce our next unit: Persuasive Writing

Homework: None

Connections to the Course Readings

Throughout this course we have read about many strategies and suggestions on how to
effectively teach writing. This course has helped me to identify my own beliefs and principles in
the teaching of writing; beliefs and principles that I am confident in saying Constance Weaver,
Dawn Kirby and Darren Crovitz would support.
Throughout my unit, I wanted to be careful about incorporating technology into the
classroom. I believe technology can be very useful for educational purposes, however, I also fear
that too much focus and emphasis is put on technology and not what the students are learning
with the help of technology. For example, throughout my unit I have my students returning to
two websites. Both of these websites contain thesauruses that will help the students complete
their assignment. However, the emphasis is on the product that comes from these resources, not
their ability to search the internet. Dawn Kirby and Darren Crovitz share similar beliefs on
technology saying, The technology itself is not the focus of the exploration. What is important
is the thinking that students demonstrate regardless of the instructional approach or tool
(Crovitz and Kirby, 2013). Sometimes I fear, with such a tech-savvy society, that students will
lose their ability to simply write with just a pen and paper.
One of many insights I gained from Kirby and Crovitz was the power of routine and ritual.
Kirby explains the impact that writing every day can have on students. Kirby says, Routine
morphs into ritual. Is this a good thing? We think so (Crovitz and Kirby, 2013). When students
are asked to write every day, it often becomes routine and later turns into a ritual. They start
expecting to write in class every day. This extra practice can enhance their writing greatly. For
this reason, I wanted my students writing every day in class. I wanted them to get into the routine
and ritual of writing before they were expected to write their descriptive essays.
Lastly, I borrowed Constance Weavers philosophy about teaching sentence combining.
Weaver believes that, helping students revise by combining their own sentences needs to be part
of our repertoire as teachers and students repertoire as writers (Weaver, 2008). In my unit, I
introduce sentence combining by first showing them a few sentences on the board. I then instruct
students to look at their own writing and find sentences that they can combine. Having students
look at their own writing will help them understand the importance and see the effects of
sentence combining right there in front of them.

Assignments, Handouts, Worksheets

Descriptive Writing Essay Assignment

Due Date: November 15th
Assignment:
Write about a favorite or least favorite place, memory, experience, object, or person that has
made an impression on your life in thorough detail. You need to write in a manner that will
appeal to your reader (myself). Show significance and meaning of your favorite or least
favorite place throughout your writing piece by providing insight, using sentences that show
rather than tell, and using details that include at least 4 of the 5 senses (sight, sound, touch,
taste, and smell). Try to make an exciting introduction that will hook your reader and end your
writing piece appropriately. Pay attention to spelling and grammar! However, I will be grading
more heavily on content for this assignment.
Structure:
3 page minimum, Times New Roman font, 12pt, typed, and double spaced.
Ms. Hollys Helpful Hints:
1. Think back to the activities we did in class and refer to your notes, worksheets, and
handouts
2. Review the comments you received from your peer feedback

3. Online Thesaurus and Dictionary (http://www.merriam-webster.com/) and Rhyme Zone

(http://www.rhymezone.com/)
4. I will be available throughout this unit for any questions or concerns
*Please include your individual and peer workshop feedback with your final draft

Grading Checklist: 45 points

____Individual and peer workshop feedback is included. 5pts
____3 page minimum, Times New Roman font, 12pt, typed, and double spaced. 5pts
____The essay focuses on one general topic (ex. An essay about your house and the park
that is down the street focuses on two different ideas). 15pts
____Includes at least 4 of the 5 senses and effectively uses relevant detail to paint a
picture. 15pts
____Spelling and grammatical errors are not distracting 5pts

Putting it into Practice 10pts

Could you describe brushing your hair without using the words hair or brush? You might
say you are grooming your long, shiny strands!
Look at the tasks below and write a description without using any of the words listed after the
task. Use your powers of imaginationand a thesaurusto help you on your way!

1. Roasting a hot dog. Roast, hot dog, stick

2. Eating a piece of birthday cake. Birthday cake, fork

3. Playing fetch with a dog. Dog, run, fetch, play

4. Sailing. Boat, sail, water

5. Watching television. Watch, television, T.V., look

6. Cooking dinner. Cook, dinner, supper, food

7. Brushing your teeth. Brush, teeth, toothbrush, toothpaste

8. Hiking through the woods. Hiking, woods, mud

Idea Web Brainstorming 10pts

Individual Workshop PowerPoint

Peer Feedback Guide

There are three important steps to remember when you are peer editing another students writing.

Step 1Overview of the papers strengths

Step 2Suggestions on improvement
Step 3Corrections

STEP 1: Overview of the papers strengths

The first rule of peer editing is to be constructive

o Remember, you are helping to enhance someone elses work. Consider the tone of
your comments and make specific suggestions. Understand that this is a working
draft and offer your advice accordingly.
Start your peer editing by mentioning the papers strengths
o Tell the writer what you think he or she did well:
Your strength as a writer are____________________________________
These examples are excellent because____________________________
Your strongest section is_______________________________________
I liked the way you___________________________________________

STEP 2: Suggestions on improvement

Making suggestions means giving the author specific ideas about how to improve their
writing.
Stay positive and be specific in your comment. Make them from the point of view of a
reader so you can communicate where the problem is for the audience.
Some areas of focus:
o OrganizationCan you understand what the author is trying to say?
o DetailsIs there a clear picture of what the author is describing?
o TopicDoes the author stick to the topic or talk about other things that arent
relevant or dont fit?
o Word choiceDid the author choose appropriate words?
o SentencesAre the sentences too long or too short at certain points?

STEP 3: Corrections

Corrections means checking your peers paper for

o Spelling/Grammar mistakes
o Incomplete sentences
o Missing punctuation

Spice it Up! 10pts

Do you ever find yourself repeating the same words over and over again?
Ex. He said I should do this. I said I should do that. She said we shouldnt do either.
Have you ever written or read something where you describe things as good, funny, or
hot?
Today, we will practice spicing up our language using the online thesaurus and Rhyme Zone!
For each of the following words, write down their synonyms next to the word and one sentence
containing a synonym you dont often use!
Good:
____________________________________________________________________________

Bad:
___________________________________________________________________________

Beautiful:
____________________________________________________________________________

Wrong:
____________________________________________________________________________

Said:
____________________________________________________________________________

Big:
____________________________________________________________________________

Dark:
____________________________________________________________________________

Cry:
____________________________________________________________________________

Funny:
____________________________________________________________________________

Enjoy:
____________________________________________________________________________

Think:
____________________________________________________________________________

Happy:
____________________________________________________________________________

Interesting:
____________________________________________________________________________

Important:
____________________________________________________________________________