1. WRITING MINI- LESSON Show, Don’t Tell!

2. STRATEGIES TO SHOW  describe the character’s actions rather than just saying how he or she feels. Holding his graded test in his hands, Mark groaned audibly and buried his head in his hands. Mark was frustrated with the grade he got on his test. TELLS SHOWS

3. STRATEGIES TO SHOW  use action verbs. Lydia was crying. LINKING VERB Tears streamed from Lydia’s eyes. ACTION VERB!

4. STRATEGIES TO SHOW  use similes and metaphors. The boy ran fast. With cheetah-like speed, the boy blew by his competition. Action verb…but still tells!

5. STRATEGIES TO SHOW  use dialogue. She was excited when he asked her to homecoming. “AHHHH!!” Elizabeth squealed with excitement as Matt walked away after asking her to be his date to the dance. TELLS

6. STRATEGIES TO SHOW  Use sensory details! Appeal to some of the five senses to paint a picture of what is happening.  Smell  Sight  Touch  Taste  Sound Her eyes darted around the carnival as she tried to take in the flashing lights. Screams from kids on the tilt-o-whirl blocked out her previous thoughts of finding a deep fried twinkie, whose sweet aroma tempted her despite the dripping oil that would inevitably accompany it.

7. SHOW, DON’T TELL  The girl cried a lot.  Describe the picture that this sentence paints in your mind.  What words could we use instead of girl? What are more specific words that mean cry?  How else can we say a lot? Example: The teenager threw herself on her bed and sobbed into her pillow until she fell asleep.

8. LET’S TRY IT…  The little girl looked in the window.

9. LET’S TRY IT…  As her nose pressed against the window, the glass fogged with her breath.

10. YOUR TURN—IN YOUR NOTES, CHANGE THESE FROM TELLING TO SHOWING!  The students decorated the halls.  He climbed the fence.  I danced to the music.  She was happy.  The scent of cookies was in the kitchen.