Tag: SEA

Focus On Imagery

One of the crucial components of well-written narratives is the element of description. Quite a lot has been said about “show don’t tell” and while most writers understand it’s needed, grasping how to do it is more challenging.

Many writers turn to adjectives, adverbs, and even figurative language, thinking this is the answer to their dilemma. The trouble with those solutions, is that they rely too heavily on what the reader knows and sometimes come across as clumsy attempts to express ideas.

Imagery, on the other hand, is a writer’s tool to take a reader from one point and carry them to somewhere magical, totally crafted and created from the writer’s imagination. So, when it comes to mastering descriptive language, focus on imagery. Take some time to explore the different types of imagery. Not only is it going to be lots of fun, but it’s also the type of tangible substance that allows young minds to wrap around intangible concepts. I’ve done posts on imagery before, mainly from the perspective of comprehension because that’s how many people think it applies. But writers need it just as much.

And just in case you’re wondering what imagery is, let me give a brief definition and list the different types.

Imagery: in literature, the use of vivid descriptions to describe a phenomenon.

Types of Imagery

– Visual (what you see) The radiant sun sliced through the dark clouds, bathing the earth below with golden sunshine.

– Auditory (what you hear) The tinkling of the dinner bell echoed down the hall, letting everyone know it was time to eat.

– Tactile (touch sensations) The cushion was soft and smooth, cradling her body in a fluffy embrace.

– Olfactory (smells) His eyes brightened as the aroma of freshly baked cookies wafted down the halls into his nostrils.

– Gustatory (tastes) She savoured the minty freshness of her favourite chewing gum for a long time.

– Kinesthetic (movement) The wave rose above the ocean and gradually curled inward on itself in a graceful arch, as the dolphins lept in and out the water.

– Organic (emotions and physical sensations)
EMOTIONS: Anger rose up the back of her neck and into her face as her eyes burned with fury.
SENSATIONS: This was more than thirst, it was a kind of dehydration that evaporated all moisture from throat and mouth until only parched skin was left.

If you’re looking for ways to infuse students’ writing with vivid descriptions and sensory details, then focus on imagery.

#CreativeWriting#NarrativeWriting#BetterWriters

Interaction is Important

Stories have many moving parts, and sometimes it helps to think of each part as a thread in a tapestry. Each thread has its own colour, texture, and role to play in making the tapestry special. However, it’s the skill with which the threads are woven together that really brings out the beauty.

When it comes to words, there is nothing more beautiful than well-written descriptions. Young writers must learn to include figurative language and imagery throughout their stories. At first glance, this seems challenging, but there are a few strategies and guidelines that help make the process easier.

One way is to have characters interact with the setting. Instead of dropping random sentences of description for characters and setting separately, have the characters react to their environment. For example, if writers want to show that the path characters are walking on is rugged, they can have characters stumble on an uneven pavement. And to emphasize an untidy room, characters can trip on an object that’s out of place. Characters can also make observations about their environment through dialogue, rather than the author just telling readers what’s there.

Those observations should be accompanied by emotional reactions in order to make them meaningful. When these things are done, writers will also have an opportunity to show a character’s attitude or personality through positive or negative reactions. So after the experience, characters could say things out loud or think something that helps readers learn more about them.

As a result, a lot more showing instead of telling can happen because these are instances where imagery can be used. Writers would be able to describe what characters are seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, and touching, as well as how they move and feel. And because actions and reactions are part of plot development, stories can move forward with excitement and energy instead of stopping for unconnected descriptions just to bring readers up to speed.

#CreativeWritingforPrimary#NarrativeWriting#BetterWriters

What Makes Good Characters?

#CreativeWritingforPrimary#NarrativeWriting#BetterWriters

All stories include characters and great characters engage readers. If you read up on developing characters, you’ll realize that often great characters are developed over time, as the audience gets to know them and learn to love (or hate) them. However, short stories don’t have a lot of time or words or pages to fully develop characters the way novels and movies do. So how can young writers use the principles of characterization in their writing? Well, the secret is in using every opportunity to help the audience know more about the character, to develop an emotional connection with them. And to do that, young writers have to use their words wisely.

Here are three things young writers must do well in order to make their characters memorable and believable.

1. Describe the characters in ways that creates an image in the mind of the reader.

This is like explaining who the person is – personality, looks, and behaviour altogether. The main thing here is to create an emotional reaction, not just a physical image in the mind of the reader. Show more than what the character looks like.

EXAMPLE – Andre was the kind of child everyone else in the class hoped to never meet alone on the playground. He was big and burly and the rest of us thought he must have been some kind of mutant teenager who got stuck in standard three.

2. Use dialogue to help readers learn more about the character.

The fact is that we judge people by the way they speak and the words they choose, so dialogue is an excellent way to bring characters to life and make them seem like real people. This also includes internal thoughts. Whether the story is from a first person perspective (writer is main character) or third person (writing about someone else) it puts readers in the head of the main characters and that’s a beautiful perspective to help them know who characters are, and what they think.

EXAMPLE: “Aye! Small head! Tankabean head!” Andre shouted from across the field. My first reaction was to ignore him. Of course he wasn’t talking to me. I tried to run in the opposite direction but somehow Andre had run 15 feet in 5 seconds. He grabbed me by the collar of my shirt and said, “Yes, is you ah talking to! Who else head small like marble and shape like a tankabean?” And with that, he pushed me to the ground, hard.

3. Use actions and behaviour to show who characters are.

Using descriptive words and imagery helps add to the readers’ mental picture of the characters. Compare the examples below to see how much of a difference this makes.

EXAMPLE 1: Andre ran after me.

EXAMPLE 2: Andre charged after me.

EXAMPLE 3: Andre charged after me like a raging bull.

EXAMPLE 4: Andre charged after me like a raging bull intent on impaling its victim.

It takes practice to develop writing skills like this, so be sure to have your child/student practice their writing regularly. And not just through responding to prompts, but guide them in targeted practice.

5 Ways Kids Can Write About Setting (Like a Boss)

Like many other aspects of narrative writing, describing setting requires some skill. Most people think the main skill is in using effective imagery and descriptive writing, but the most important aspects of describing setting are knowing how much to describe and when to include those descriptions.

This post explains five things young writers must do with their setting in order to score high in their narrative writing. But first, let’s understand what setting is.

Setting is the context of the story – where the story is taking place. This includes place, time, and social environment. So, Trinidad, a primary school in Arima, after school, among a group of friends. Pretty basic, but that understanding keeps focus on the interactions and how the story unfolds.

Ok, so now on to the tips.

1. View setting as a part of the story.

Young writers often see setting as something separate that they have to mention all at once as they describe where the story is taking place. Instead, they should see the setting as something that’s integrated into the story, affecting and being affected by the characters and events.

2. Show characters interacting with setting.

We are influenced by what’s in our environment and react to it. So when they’re in school, children interact with desks and chairs and other students, which is very different from being at home interacting with couches and dining tables and siblings/parents.

3. Let setting unfold throughout the story.

This means that readers won’t learn about the setting all at once. Instead, as the characters interact with or notice details about their physical environment, the audience learns more and more about it.

4. Use descriptive language.

Descriptive language goes beyond the use of adjectives and adverbs, or similes and metaphors. In fact, the most effective descriptions incorporate imagery, which is sharing the world of the story from the character’s eyes. How they see it and feel about it.

5. Remember time.

Sometimes young writers forget about time, so they start a story and give many actions and then it seems like only 2 minutes have passed. It’s important to show the realistic change in time. So, no jumps to the future and no lagging in a single moment for too long.

#CreativeWritingforPrimary#NarrativeWriting#BetterWriters

3 Ways to Wow Readers in Reports

To many people, reports don’t feel like creative writing, and figuring out how to score well in reports is a challenge. If students understand a couple of basic things about reports, they will consistently perform better in their writing. #BetterWriting

Report writing takes many students outside their comfort zone because it asks for a formally structured response that excludes all that they’re most familiar with – expressions, casual language, and opinions.

Exceeding expectations in report writing relies heavily on using formal vocabulary and precise language that is void of opinions.

Students must detach themselves from the events and the outcomes and look at situations from an objective position. Even when describing their own role in an event or activity, information should be presented in a measured way.

#chronologicalorder

1. Connect actions using time order

Following time order is especially important so readers can get a sense of how things happened. Connecting ideas is also important, so transition words and phrases should be used to show which came first and which came next.

There are many great transition words and phrases, but the basic ones – next, before, after – work just as well too.

The main thing is that there’s enough information given so readers have their questions answered. It’s good practice to list a few questions that the target audience might want/need to know, then ensure these are answered.

#avoidopinions

2. Avoid opinions

Opinions have a way of sneaking into everything students say and write, even without them knowing. So, to say “avoid opinions” might seem obvious for a report, but it is easier said than done.

One way to ensure that students avoid opinion is to have them think of every detail in terms of their five senses. If they did not see it, hear it, taste it, smell it, or touch it, then they need to be careful.

So, it’ll be a statement of opinion to say that someone got angry. You don’t know that for sure. You see behaviour and interpret it as anger, but you don’t see the anger.

What you see is someone walking away, stomping their feet with a lot of energy. Or maybe someone’s brow getting forrowed and their eyes looking red.

When writing about the actions as they are observed, students should carefully avoid subjective descriptions. Adjectives and adverbs introduce opinions, so avoid that as much as possible.

Also, students should report the words other people say, but not explain what they think the person means.

#telldontshow

3. Tell, don’t show

Report writing asks students to tell what happened, and not to show what happened. This is the exact opposite of what they would be practicing in narrative writing.

For reports, students should carefully avoid descriptive language that introduces how they interpret situations. So, using adjectives and adverbs is frowned upon.

Students don’t have to worry about how participants do their actions. They just need to focus on what was said and what was done.

When relaying information about what was said, reported speech is important. No direct speech or dialogue should be used.

Tell readers what was said, nothing more.

#CreativeWritingforPrimary#WritingReports#BetterWriters