Curated OER
Strong Descriptive Writing: James and the Giant Peach
Support your writers! Clear procedures and appropriate support make this a superb resource for elementary writing instruction. Ready your class to compose original descriptive paragraphs inspired by the episode in Roald Dahl's James and...
EngageNY
Writing the Children’s Book: Day One
With a brief mini-lesson, scholars learn about using strong verbs, sensory details, and precise descriptions. Next, pupils continue working on their children's book storyboards before choosing their strongest pages for peer critiques.
National Endowment for the Humanities
Vengeful Verbs in Shakespeare’s “Hamlet”
It's time for pupils to read, examine, and contemplate literature to explore the difference between vivid and generic verbs. Pupils distinguish between the two types of verbs as they read the ghost scene from Shakespeare's Hamlet. They...
Curated OER
Grammar Worksheets: Using Strong Verbs
Strengthen your pupils' writing with this worksheet, which provides a reference guide to using strong verbs instead of forms of is and have. Learners then rewrite twelve sentences to make them stronger. This is a great activity to work...
Curated OER
Example of a Description of Action
Read the descriptive paragraph (included) with your middle schoolers, and have them study the stylistic elements included. They'll look for vivid verbs, alliteration, assonance, similes, and personification. Before writers craft their...
Curated OER
Part I: Principle of Effective Writing
Designed for higher education, this 151-slide presentation focuses on effective writing techniques, specifically in scientific manuscripts. While the slides contain readable amounts of text (none are text heavy), consider spreading this...
Curated OER
Word Choice: Descriptive Verbs
In this word choice worksheet, students will read a 5 paragraph essay about an igloo hotel. Then students will replace 10 verbs with more descriptive verbs. Next, students will use strong verbs from a word bank to complete 14 sentences...
Curated OER
Narrative Writing
Fifth graders study narrative writing. In this language arts lesson, 5th graders review how an author uses vivid verbs, imagery, and adjectives to capture reader's attention. Students explore literary devices of foreshadowing, flashback...
Curated OER
Irregular Verbs
While short and to the point, this presentation focuses on present, past, and past participle forms of irregular verbs. Examples, charts, and definitions are included on the 3 slides. By adding additional content this could be a great...
Curated OER
Writing with Vivid Verbs
Students find vivid verbs in literature and use them in their own writing. In this vivid verbs lesson, students use a 'Thinking Thesaurus' of major verbs to study common verbs. Students then practice rewriting sentences using vivid...
Curated OER
Powerful Verbs
In this vivid verbs practice worksheet, students examine 9 sentences and 3 paragraphs. Students then replace the boldfaced verbs with more vivid verbs. A word bank with suggestions in included.
Curated OER
Using a Thesaurus
In this using a thesaurus worksheet, students read a sentence with a word underlined. Students use a thesaurus to change the underlined word to a stronger or more interesting synonym. There are 5 sentences.
Curated OER
Vivid Verbs in Writing
Eighth graders explore how to incorporate vivid verbs in their writing. They review action verbs in sentences and view a Power Point presentation discussing possible verbs and their meanings. They view a website and retell a Greek myth...
Curated OER
Homophones and Vivid Verbs
Students define and practice using synonyms, antonyms, homonyms, and homophones in complete sentences, paragraphs and essays. They include "vivid verbs" in their writing with the aid of a dictionary or thesaurus.
Curated OER
Writing a Comparison/Contrast Paragraph: Using Vivid Verbs
In this vivid verbs worksheet, students complete three activities that help them use strong, vivid verbs in the comparison and contrast writing.
National Endowment for the Humanities
Neh: Edsit Ement: Vengeful Verbs in Shakespeare's Hamlet
In this lesson plan, students will consider Vengeful Verbs in Shakespeare's Hamlet. Worksheets and other supporting materials can be found under the Resources tab. In this lesson, students will learn to distinguish generic verbs from...
ReadWriteThink
Read Write Think: More Than One Way to Create Vivid Verbs
Contains plans for three lessons to help students use vivid verbs in their writing. In addition to objectives and standards, this instructional plan contains links to sites used in the lessons as well as assessment and reflection...
Writing Fix
Writing Fix: Exploring a More Specific Story
In this lesson, Ralph Fletcher's Marshfield Dreams is used as a mentor text. Students will write stories about an important friendship in their life. Then students will revise and attempt to make sure their writings have stayed on topic,...
Utah Education Network
Uen: Vivid Verbs W.5.3.d
This lesson plan engages students in analyzing word choices. Students will write descriptive paragraphs about interesting magazine pictures and ensure that they are using vivid words in their writings.
Texas Education Agency
Texas Gateway: Polish Tone, Style, and Figurative Language
[Accessible by TX Educators. Free Registration/Login Required] In this lesson, you will learn strategies for evaluating and revising the tone, style, and figurative language in an essay. It also includes practice exercises.