Show, Don’t Tell Strategies (also known as binocular or descriptive writing) Show Through Dialogue* Show Through Character’s Actions Show Through the Five Senses (Imagery)* Show Through Figurative Language* * These things are considered Compositional Risks and are part of the 5 & 6 score on the rubric.

Show, Don’t Tell Strategies Tami was angry when she got her test back and saw that she had gotten an F. Show Through Dialogue “I can’t believe it! I studied all night for this test. Ms. Sun, that’s not fair!” “Now there’s no need to get upset, Tami,” Ms. Sun said calmly, “We can go over what you missed, then you can do the extra credit to bring up your grade.” Show Through Character’s Actions Ms. Sun placed Tami’s test upside down on her desk. Tami picked it up and her eyes opened wide. Her ears turned bright red. She scowled and crumpled up the paper. Show Through the Five Senses Tami felt her face flush, and her ears go red hot when she saw the grade at the top of her paper. Her hands curled around the paper, and it crackled as she crumpled it into a ball. Through gritted teeth, and with a hiss, she asked Ms. Sun about her test score. Show Through Figurative Language Tami couldn’t believe what she saw – the F screaming at her from the top of her test. It was like spending an hour at the grocery store, checking everything off your list as you added it to the cart, getting to the cashier, and realizing you’d left your wallet at home. All that time and effort studying for the test wasted!

Figurative Language Simile – compare 2 things by using the words ‘like’ or ‘as’. Metaphor – compare 2 unlike things by saying one is the other. Personification – Giving an inanimate object human qualities. Onomatopoeia – a word that resembles the sound it represents. Alliteration – repeat the same consonant sound at the beginning of neighboring words. Idiom - an expression that does not mean what the words literally (actually) say. Ex: Cat got your tongue? Hyperbole - An exaggeration. Ex: The building can touch the clouds.