The

Readers and
Writers Manual
Name: _____________________
Class: ______

COMMONLY MISSPELLED WORDS

a lot
a while
acceptable
accidental
across
again
always
animal
argument
ate
beautiful
because
begin
being
believe
bicycle
biscuit
bring
broccoli
business
buy
by
calendar
camouflage
cantaloupe
carry
category
cheese
close

clothes
committed
conscience
could
definite
disappear
disappointment

discipline
dont
eight
embarrass
embarrassing
every
example
experience
February
first
for
four
friend
government
grammar
grateful
guarantee
guess
hear
height
here
humorous

immediate
its
its
jewelry
knowledge library
license
lightning
loose
lose
many
medival
might
misspell
mosquito
much
neighbor
no one
onomatopoeia
people
picture
pleasant
principal
pronunciation
receipt
receive
recipe
religious
remember
restaurant

rhyme
rhythm
right
said
salary
sandwich
school
scissors
second
separate
should
sight
some
something
story
their
there
theyre

thought
threw
through
to
together
tomorrow
too
twelfth
two
until
vacuum
weather
weird
when
which
without
woman
women

wont would
write
yesterday
youll

Sizzling Vocabulary
Onomatopoeic
bam
bang
boink
burp
clang
clink
crack
crash
drip
gurgle
kaboom
sizzle
smack
splash
thud
tinkle
twang
varoom
wheee
whizzzz
whir
whoosh
zoom

Said
agreed
argued
asked
begged
cried
demanded
exclaimed
interrupted
moaned
mocked
muttered
questioned
reminded
scolded
screamed
screeched
shouted
threatened
whispered
yelled

Good

Bad

awesome
delicious
delightful
enjoyable
excellent
exceptional
extraordinary
fabulous
fantastic
marvelous
phenomenal
stupendous
super
superb
superlative
terrific
the best ever
to die for
wondrous
wonderful

appalling
atrocious
awful
catastrophic
disgusting
dreadful
evil
foul
frightful
horrendous
horrible
horrifying
nasty
naughty
no good
rotten
shocking
terrible
terrifying
wicked

Ugly

Pretty

disgusting
dog-face
dowdy
frumpy
grotesque
gruesome
hard on the eyes
hideous
homely
loathsome
mousy
mud ugly
plain
repulsive
revolting
skank
unappealing
unattractive
unsightly
vile
wretched

adorable
attractive
beautiful
breathtaking
charming
cute
dazzling
enchanting
exquisite
eye-candy
eye-catching
fetching
foxy
good-looking
gorgeous
handsome
lovely
radient
striking
stunning

Big

Small

astronomical
behemoth
colossal
elephantine
enormous
giant
gigantic
herculean
huge
humongous
immense
jumbo
king size
large
mammoth
massive
monster
monstrous
mountainous
titanic
vast
whopping

dinky
dwarf
eensy weensy
itsy bitsy
itty bitty
little
micro
microscopic
miniature
minuscule
minute
petit
pint-size
pocket-size
puny
shrimp
teeny
tiny
wee
weensy

Hot

Cold

blazing

arctic
bitter
bone-chilling
brisk
chilly
cool
freezing
frigid
frosty
frozen
icy
nippy
sub-zero
teeth-chattering
wintry

blistering
boiling
broiling
burning
fiery
scalding
scorching
searing
sizzling
spicy
steamy
stifling
suffocating
sultry
sweltering

Happy Emotions
appreciated
elated
excited
exhilarated
included
joyful
joyous
jubilant
loved
noticed
overjoyed
proud
relieved
safe
special
successful

Sad Emotions
ashamed
dejected
depressed
disrespected
embarrassed
excluded
frustrated
guilty
lonely
lost
neglected
rejected
sad
shameful
shocked
worthless

Fast

Slow

blitz
careen
fly
hurtle
jet
peel out
race
rip
rocket
scratch off
skyrocket
speed
take off
whiz
whoosh
zip
zoom

barely moving
crawl
creep
edge
inch
meander
move at a snails pace
move in slow motion
shuffle
sidle
skulk
slink
tip toe

Tasty

Yucky

angel food
appetizing
delectable
delicious
divine
finger-lickin-good
flavorful
heavenly
luscious
melt-in-your-mouth
mouthwatering
savory
scrumptious
succulent
to-die-for
yummy

bitter
disagreeable
dreadful
foul
gross
indigestible
inedible
nasty
putrid
rank
repulsive
revolting
rotten
unpleasant
unsavory
wretched

Interesting

Boring

absorbing
appealing
attractive
captivating
curious
enthralling
exciting
extraordinary
fascinating
intriguing
mesmerizing
noteworthy
remarkable
spellbinding
stimulating
thought-provoking

dreary
dull
lackluster
mind-numbing
monotonous
repetitive
tedious
tiresome
unexciting
uninspiring

Strong

Weak

beefy
brawny
burly
heavy-duty
intense
made to last
muscular
strapping
study
tough
well-built

anemic
delicate
drained
exhausted
faint
feeble
flimsy
frail
helpless
puny
scrawny

Happy

Sad

appreciative
blissful
cheerful
content
delighted
ecstatic
elated
glad
joyful
over the moon
overjoyed
pleased
satisfied
thankful
thrilled

dejected
depressed
desolate
despondent
down
feeling blue
gloomy
heartbroken
melancholy
miserable
sorrowful
woeful

Irritating

Angry

aggravating
annoying
bothersome
exasperating
frustrating
getting on my nerves
grating
infuriating
provoking

annoyed
blow my top
boiling over
cross
disgusted
enraged
flip my lid
fuming
furious
mad
outraged
seething
steaming
ticked off

List of Similes
as big as a bus
as big as an elephant
as black as midnight
as brave as a lion
as bright as day
as busy as a bee
as clean as a whistle
as clear as a crystal
as clear as day
as cold as ice
as cunning as a fox
as cute as a button
as dead as a doornail
as delicate as a flower
as different as night and
day
as dry as a bone
as dull as a dishwasher
as easy as A.B.C
as easy as pie
as fit as a fiddle
as flat as a pancake
as free as a bird
as fresh as a daisy
as gentle as a lamb
as happy as a lark

as hard as nails
as hoarse as a crow
as hungry as a bear
as hungry as a wolf
as innocent as a lamb
as large as life
as light as a feather
as light as air
as mad as a hatter
as mad as a hornet
as neat as a pin
as nutty as a fruitcake
as old as the hills
as pale as death
as plain as day
as poor as a church mouse
as poor as dirt
as pretty as a picture
as proud as a peacock
as quick as lightening
as sensitive as a flower
as sharp as a tack
as sharp as a razor
as sick as a dog
as silly as a goose
as slow as molasses

as slow as a snail
as smooth as silk
as snug as a bug
as solid as a rock
as tight as a drum
chatters like a monkey
cooks like a chef
cries like a baby
cuts like a knife
draws like an artist
dresses like a model
drives like a maniac
drives like an old lady
eats like a bird
eats like a horse
eats like a hawk
feels like velvet
fits like a glove
flies like a bird
floats like a boat
jumps like a frog
laughs like a hyena
like finding a needle in a
haystack
looks like a giant
plays the guitar like a rock
star
plays like an athlete

reads like a bookworm

roars like a lion
runs like a rocket
runs like a wind
searches like a
bloodhound
shimmers like a diamond
sings like an angel
sits around like a coach
potato
sleeps like a baby
smells like a wet dog
smells like money
smells like rain
smokes like a chimney
smooth like silk
snores like a hog
soars like an eagle
sounds like trouble
sparkles like gem stones
spends money like it grows
on trees
stretches like a rubber
band
swims like a fish
talks like a parrot
works like a dog
works like a horse

Idioms
Idioms are expressions that we use to make our
speech and our writing more colorful. They are phrases
that are not true but are used to entertain.
Idioms for really good
7th heaven
a little piece of heaven
a little slice of wonderful
all that and a bag of chips
apple of my eye
beyond imagination
beyond my/your wildest dreams
crme de la crme
off the chain
off the charts
on cloud 9
out of the world
the absolute be all and end all
the be all and the end all
the cats meow
the cats pajamas
the genuine article
the gold standard
the mack daddy
the real deal

Idioms for working

hard
burning the
midnight oil
burning the
candle at both
ends
going full speed
ahead

the top of the world

world class
Idioms for exceptionally terrible
not pretty
pretty ugly
that smells trouble
the last straw
the straw that broke the camels back
train wreck
up the creek without the paddle
youre asking for it
youre asking for trouble
youre barking up the wrong tree
youre in deep water
youre in hot water
youre in the dog house
youre standing on my last nerve
youre toast
your goose is cooked
Idioms for easy
a snap
as simple as pie
easy breezy
like falling off a log
like taking candy from a baby
piece of cake

Transitional Phrases & Sentences

After all...
After what seemed like a long time...
And guess what?
At that point...
At the same time...
Because of this...
But at the same time...
Come with me and Ill show you...
First of all...
For instance...
For that reason...
Heres the best part,
Heres the thing,
Hold on. It gets better!
I especially like...
I must tell you...
I still have nightmares about what happened next.
I wish I had more time to tell you about...
If you think thats bad, it get worse.
If you think thats scary, wait till you hear..
In any case...
In fact...
In other words...

In the first place...

In the meantime...
Just then...
Just when I thought it could not get any worse...
Later on...
Let me begin.
Let me end my story by saying...
Let me give you an example.
Let me remind you...
Let me sum up my thoughts by saying..
Lets start at the beginning.
Moving on...
My favorite part is...
My story wouldnt be complete if I didnt tell you
about...
Never again will I...
Now comes the part that got me into trouble.
Now you see...
On the other hand...
Once that happened...
Once you complete that step...
Right after that...
Right away...
Sooner or later...
The first step is a piece of cake...

The first thing that happened was...

The lesson I learned is...
This happened because...
This may be true, but...
To begin with...
To put it a different way...
Until now...
Until then...
When all said and done...
When I found out the truth...
When I realized what actually happened...
When we finally got home...
You need to know that...
You wont believe what happened next.
And Avoiding Tacky Expressions...
Im going to tell you a story about...
Do you want me to tell you about...
Let me tell you about...
The first reason is...
The second reason is...
Im going to write about...
Finally...
I hope you like my story...

And thats the end of my story...

Conclusions
A conclusion wraps up your writing piece using the
most important points and makes a statement based
on those important points.
Good conclusions typically start with:
Because of this, we can agree...
Based on this evidence, I can say...
Evidence shows...
For these reasons...
My experiment proves...
Now you can see...
These things all add up to the conclusion that...
These things lead us to believe...
This experience leads me to believe...

Punctuation Rules
It is important to check your writing for correct punctuation.
Periods: Happens at the end of the sentence. It shows that
an idea has finished. (.)
Exclamation point: An exclamation at the end of a sentence
shows feeling. (!)
Question mark: If you are asking a question, you use a
question mark. (?)
Quotation marks: When you want to show dialogue, use
quotation marks at the beginning and end of the sentence (....)
Indentation: When you start a new paragraph, you should
always indent the paragraph.
Commas: Use a comma between words in a series of nouns,
adjectives, adverbs, verbs etc. (,)
Capital Letters: Always begin a sentence with a capital
letter. Use a capital letter for proper nouns, names, a book title,
a movie title, name of a city, state, or country etc.

Traits of Writing

Voice

I show my personality in my
writing.
You show your unique self in writing.
Match your voice to your audience.
Match your voice to the purpose of your writing
The tone describes the emotions of the writer or
characters.
Write about how you feel and what you think
Be a risk taker! Try something new.
Write from a different point of view.
Set the mood with your setting description.
Experiment with different types of print.
Find YOUR WAY of saying familiar things.

Traits of Writing

Organization

I arrange my writing so
readers can understand it.
Hook the reader with a bold beginning
Sequence details in time or in order
Develop a MIGHTY middle.
Finish with an EXCELLENT ending.
Grad the readers attention with a snazzy title.
Your piece has a beginning, middle and end.
Experiment with different organizational structures
Use graphic organizers to plan your writing.
Group similar thoughts together.
Use time order words to sequence writing.
Read aloud to check your writing makes sense.
Add clear transition words to connect ideas.

Traits of Writing

Ideas

My writing is clear, focused

and interesting.
Think small! Zoom into a moment.
Add quality details!
Who? What? Where? Why? How?
Emotions!
Tell how you feel.
Write about what you know.
Write from experience.
Write about things you love.
Let your ideas flow.
Use graphic organizers to flesh out your ideas.
Write about topics you understand.
Add specific details to elaborate on ideas.
Narrow down general topics.

Traits of Writing

Conventions

I show my pride in writing by

editing my work.
Use capital letters.
Start proper nouns with a capital letter.
Name the noun before the pronoun.
Circle each misspelt word and write the correct
spelling above it.

Add a period (.) at the end of every telling

sentence.

Add a question mark(?) at the end of every asking

sentence.

Add an exclamation (!) mark to show command

or emotion.

Use commas when listing a series of things or

events.

Traits of Writing

Word Choice

I create images and evoke

emotion with my word choices.
Use sizzling vocabulary
Use interjections
Use vivid verbs to bring your writing alive.
Choose juicy words that create a mental image.
Avoid using the same word over and over again.
Show, Dont Tell!
Use sensory details!
Experiment with new and exciting words.
Be specific with your details
Show emotion with your words
Use specific adjectives that paint a picture
Substitute words or details to make your writing more
vivid.

Traits of Writing

Sentence Fluency
I vary sentence length,
structure and rhythm.
Read aloud. Does it flow from sentence to sentence?
Use different sentence beginnings.
Use repeating refrains to add poetic rhythm.
Borrow the rhythm of songs and rhymes.
Write short and long sentences.
Stretch out simple sentences by adding specific
details.
Weave in questions, demands and exclamations.
Repeat sounds, words and phrases to create a
pattern.
Use dialogue.

Non-Fiction Text Features

Title: Tells us what the text is about.
Map: Helps us understand where things are in the world. Shows us
places, landforms and bodies of water.
Caption: Words under a picture that gives you more explaination on the
topic.
Heading: Tells us what each section of the text is about.
Sub-heading: Breaks information into more headings into more precise
bits of information.
Photograph: Shows us exactly what something looks like in real life.
Diagrams: Shows us how a process works.
Labels: Helps us identify the parts of a picture.
Table of Contents: This shows us all the main ideas in the text and tells
us what pages they are on.
Types of Print: bold, underline, italics.

Big 6 Research Process

Source:
http://586c40.medialib.glogster.com/thumbnails/eba8c56b5b5e174acff024865d016c08b4b7dfe6db6881eb58f54fc977b6227c/resear
ch-skills-the-big-6-source.jpg

Making Connections
Text to Text (TTT):

A connection between you and another book/text you have read

Text to Self (TTS):

A connection between the book and your life or experiences

Text to World (TTW):

A connection between the book and events in the real world

Drawing Conclusions

Drawing conclusions helps us understand the story better. We use story clues and
our background knowledge to draw conclusions. Authors dont always explain
everything that happens in a story. Readers can use clues to figure out what is not
said.
Sentence starters:
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o

This makes me think

This is important because
The character feels
The author probably thinks
I can infer
It could be that
This could mean
I predict

Literary Elements:

Characters

Characters are the people, animals, or creatures that are in stories, plays, and other texts
o Flat Characters Characters whose actions do not affect the plot. They may be
mentioned by name, but their personalities are not fully developed.
o Round Characters Characters who are fully developed. You get to know these
characters as you read. You learn
What they look like
How they act
What they say
What they think
What others think about them
How they change through the story

Setting

The setting is when and where a story takes place

o Place
o Time
o Environment
Plot

The plot of the story is make up of the

o Exposition The beginning of the story, including characters and setting
o Rising Action The events that build suspense. Conflict is show with the characters
o Climax The most exciting / intense part for the characters.
o Falling Action Events lead to the story end
o Resolution How the story ends and problem solved
Theme

The theme is the message, or lesson, that the author wants you to learn from the story
Common topics for theme
courage
dreams
kindness
fears
individuality
equality
hope
differences
friendship

hard-work
honesty
love
family
jealousy
never giving up
acceptance
achievement
peace
doing the right thing

Character Traits List: The following words can be used to describe the characters in
your book.
evil
rowdy
excited
adventurous
rude
fearless
afraid
sad
foolish
ambitious
scared
friendly
angry
selfish
frustrated
annoyed
serious
funny
anxious
shy
gentle
arrogant
sickly
grateful
bad
silly
greedy
bossy
smart
grouchy
brave
sneaky
guilty
busy
sorry
happy
calm
spoiled
hard-working
careful
stubborn
helpful
careless
sweet
honest
cautious
talented
imaginative
cheerful
thankful
impatient
childish
thoughtful
impolite
clever
trustworthy
independent
clumsy
unhappy
intelligent
confident
upset
jealous
cooperative
week
kind
courageous
worried
lazy
cruel
lonely
curious
Add your own
loving
daring
loyal
demanding
mean
dependable
messy
depressed
mischievous
determined
mysterious
dishonest
naughty
disrespectful
nervous
doubtful
obnoxious
eager
polite
easygoing
proud
embarrassed
quiet
energetic
responsible

eager
easygoing
embarrassed
energetic