Glencoe/

Glencoe English/

Using Sensory Details in Descriptive Writing P. 46/

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A good descriptive paragraph gives a single main impressionof a person, place, or thing. The topic sentence usually statesthat support the topic sentence.

Sensory details are particularly important in descriptiveparagraphs. Sensory details help the reader see, hear, feel,smell, and taste what is being described.

�"WORKING WITH THE MODELœ•

The afternoon was green and gold with spring. Underneaththe spread branches of the oaks the plants grew pale and tall,and on the hills the feed was smooth and thick. The sagebrushesshone with new silver leaves and the oaks were hoods of goldengreen. Over the hills there hung such a green odor that thehorses on the flats galloped madly, and then stopped, wondering;lambs and even old sheep jumped in the air unexpectedly andlanded on stiff legs, and went on eating; young clumsy calvesbutted their heads together and drew back and butted again.

John Steinbeck

The Red Pony

A. Think about the paragraph.

1. What time of day is the author describing?

2. Which sentence gives the author's main impression of the afternoon? What is the main impression?

3. What details in the paragraph appeal to the reader's sense of sight?

4. What details appeal to the sense of smell?

5. What details appeal to the sense of touch?

B. Each sentence below states a main impression. Give sensory details to support each main impression. Include details of sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch.

The winter storm brought bitter cold.

The bustle of the carnival was overwhelming.

As the sun rose, the forest awoke.