1. Writing Workshop Describing a Place
Feature Menu
Assignment
Prewriting
Choose a Place
Consider Purpose, Audience, and Tone
Gather Details
State Your Controlling Impression
Organize Your Details
Practice and Apply

2. Describing a Place
Assignment: Write an essay in which you describe a place that is both familiar and meaningful to you.
Do you have a special place you go to think? to relax? to have fun? Some places have a character all their own. They affect the way we feel and act and stick in our memory.
Share your personal picture of a place by writing a descriptive essay. This type of description, in which you express your attitude toward your subject, is called subjective description.
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3. Describing a Place Prewriting: Choose a Place
What are some places that are meaningful to you and that you know well? Think about
indoor places
public library, grandmother’s kitchen, school gymnasium
outdoor spaces
baseball stadium, apple orchard, skate park
Also, think about places you can describe in a few pages.

4. Describing a Place Prewriting: Choose a Place
Make a list of a few places you could describe well. Which ones would be most interesting to write about and to read about? Choose the one place that seems to stand out.
the kite store downtown
Dad’s woodworking shop
the baseball stadium
our neighborhood park
the lake
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5. Describing a Place Prewriting: Consider Purpose, Audience, and Tone
Your purpose is not only to describe a place but also to share your thoughts and feelings about it.
Subjective descriptions are usually written from a first-person point of view (using I, we, us, me, and so on.)
Note

6. Describing a Place Prewriting: Consider Purpose, Audience, and Tone
Who is likely to read your essay? Teachers? Classmates? Friends? Family? Think about your audience as you decide what descriptive details to use and how to present them.

7. Describing a Place Prewriting: Consider Purpose, Audience, and Tone
Your tone is the attitude toward your subject that comes through in your writing.
Keep your tone informal and conversational.
Let your feelings about the place come across.
Whatever tone you choose, keep it consistent throughout your essay.
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8. Describing a Place Prewriting: Gather Details
Use three kinds of details in your description: sensory, factual, and figurative.
Sensory details are words and phrases that appeal to the five senses—sight, hearing, touch, smell, and taste. Make sure to include details from all the senses (not just sight).
my team running onto the field (sight) the crack of the bat (hearing) smooth wooden seats (touch) hot dogs cooking (smell) warm, buttery popcorn (taste)

9. Describing a Place Prewriting: Gather Details
Use three kinds of details in your description: sensory, factual, and figurative.
Factual details include names, dates, numbers, quotations, and true statements.
My mother has been taking my sister and me to the ball park since I was a baby. (true statement)
I’ll never forget September 27, 1999, the day the Tigers won the pennant. (date)
The stadium seats about 12,000 people. (number)

10. Describing a Place Prewriting: Gather Details
Use three kinds of details in your description: sensory, factual, and figurative.
Figurative details include similes, metaphors, and examples of personification.
I always take my mitt with me; it’s like a reliable old pal, ready to help me catch a foul ball one fine day.

11. Describing a Place Prewriting: Gather Details
Organize your details in a chart like this one:
Details for a description of the baseball park
Sensory details
Factual details
Figurative details
Thoughts and feelings

12. Describing a Place Prewriting: Gather Details
Details for a description of the baseball park
Sensory details
the roar of the crowd
sticky floors
the sun setting behind the stands
Factual details
We go to at least five games every season.
The team has had a winning record almost every year.
My favorite player signed a baseball for me last season.
Finding Details

13. Describing a Place Prewriting: Gather Details
Details for a description of the baseball park
Figurative details
The people piling into the stadium are the blood coursing through its veins; they bring life to the stadium.
Thoughts and feelings
I hope this family tradition stays alive for a long time.
My mom, my sister, and I would not be as close as we are if it weren’t for all special times we’ve shared at Tigers games.
Shifting Vantage Points
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14. Describing a Place Prewriting: State Your Controlling Impression
Your descriptive details will point you to a controlling impression, the main idea or feeling you want to express.
Controlling Impression
Descriptive Details
Descriptive Details
Descriptive Details
Keep your controlling impression in mind as you draft your essay. It will help keep you focused.

15. Describing a Place Prewriting: State Your Controlling Impression
When you state your controlling impression, make sure to clearly convey your perspective, or point of view, about the place you are describing.
Tiger Stadium is a fun and exciting place to be. All the good times we’ve had there have strengthened our special family bonds.
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16. Describing a Place Prewriting: Organize Your Details
Arrange your details using either spatial order or order of importance.
Spatial Order
Organize details according to their location. You can describe a place
from top to bottom
from left to right
from far away to close up

17. Describing a Place Prewriting: Organize Your Details
Arrange your details using either spatial order or order of importance.
Order of Importance
Organize details
from least important to most important OR
from most important to least important
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18. Describing a Place Prewriting: Practice and Apply
Using the information in this presentation, choose a place to describe. Then, gather details and organize them in a logical way.
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19. The End

20. Describing a Place Prewriting: Consider Purpose, Audience, and Tone
Note
Your description should be about 1,500 words long.

21. Describing a Place Prewriting: Gather Details
Use figurative details sparingly. If you use too many, they won’t be effective.

22. Describing a Place Prewriting: Gather Details
Finding Details
To find the details you need, you can
observe the place directly
recall details from memory
read about the place
interview other people who have been there

23. Describing a Place Prewriting: Gather Details
Shifting Vantage Points
Consider shifting vantage points as you list your details. Your vantage point is the position from which you view a place.
When you look at a place from a different vantage point—high, low, near, far—you’re bound to find a different set of details.

24. Describing a Place Prewriting: Organize Your Details
When using spatial order to organize your essay, use signal words and phrases such as on the top, under, next to, to the left, and above.

25. Describing a Place Prewriting: Organize Your Details
When using order of importance to organize your essay, use signal words and phrases such as most important, then, and finally.