Identifying Descriptive Language — Activity

Name Date

The Thunderstorm

Find and colour these language features in the following narrative text:
• adjectives used to describe nouns (red)
• adverbs used to describe verbs (blue)
• onomatopoeia (green)
• saying verbs (orange)
• direct speech (purple).

CRASH! “What was that?” Chrissy cried, waking suddenly from a deep sleep. She sat upright
in her bed and stared anxiously around the bedroom. It was completely black. Chrissy was
scared. She clutched tightly to her teddy.
Chrissy didn’t like being alone in the dark in the middle of a wild thunderstorm. Nervously, she
threw back the covers and tiptoed over to her big sister.
Julia was sleeping soundly, so Chrissy gently shook her shoulders to wake her. “Julia? Are you
awake? Julia?”
“No, I’m not,” Julia mumbled sleepily. “Go back to bed, Chrissy.”
BANG! Chrissy jumped fearfully at the sound of the door slamming shut. Julia could see that
her little sister was scared. She pulled her close and hugged her tightly.
Safe at last, Chrissy sighed contentedly. She listened to the melodious music of rain on the tin
roof and drifted back to sleep.

LANGUAGE
Identifying Descriptive Language — Activity

Name Date

The Forest Path

Find and colour these language features in the following narrative text:
• adjectives used to describe nouns (red)
• adverbs used to describe verbs (blue)
• action verbs in past tense (green)
• connecting phrases (orange)
• direct speech (purple).

David and I stopped abruptly. We stared at the dividing path in front of us. "What now?" David
asked. He looked from the right fork to the left one. He was clearly confused about our next
move.
"I'm not sure," I replied. I carefully examined the map in my shaking hands. "The map only
shows one path at this point. So there's no way of knowing which one we should follow.”
David sighed. He was tired. "Perhaps we should stop for a while," he said wearily, sitting on
the cold forest floor. "Who knows? Maybe someone will send us a sign about which path is the
right one to take."
At that moment, a beautiful, majestic eagle emerged from the branches of an overhanging
tree. I gasped loudly. I had thought that David and I were alone in this strange, lonely place. For
what seemed like minutes, we stared at the soaring eagle. It circled around in the sky, directly
above the left path. It waited patiently.
"Maybe that's your sign?" I asked David, nervously. He nodded in silent agreement and slowly
rose to his feet. Hand in hand, we cautiously walked towards the left path. The eagle finished
its graceful circle and lead us onward.

LANGUAGE
Identifying Descriptive Language — Activity

Name Date

The Park

Find and colour these language features in the following narrative text:
• adjectives used to describe nouns (red)
• adverbs used to describe verbs (blue)
• onomatopoeia (green)
• emotive phrases (orange)
• action verbs in past tense (purple).

I went for a walk to the park one day, so what do you think I found?

A busy bee high up in a tree and a beehive down on the ground!

I bravely walked up to that beehive, so what do you think I did?

I poked that hive, it was alive, so I ran away and I hid!

I quickly peeked out from my shelter, so what do you think I saw?

Bees everywhere, buzzing here, buzzing there, now I don’t like the park anymore!

I ran back to my home to my mother, so what do you think I said?

“No park for me, it’s scary, you see, I think I’ll stay home in bed!”

LANGUAGE
Identifying Descriptive Language — Answers

The Thunderstorm
CRASH! “What was that?” Chrissy cried, waking suddenly from a deep sleep. She sat upright
in her bed and stared anxiously around the bedroom. It was completely black. Chrissy was
scared. She clutched tightly to her teddy.
Chrissy didn’t like being alone in the dark in the middle of a wild thunderstorm. Nervously, she
threw back the covers and tiptoed over to her big sister.
Julia was sleeping soundly, so Chrissy gently shook her shoulders to wake her. “Julia? Are you
awake? Julia?”
“No, I’m not,” Julia mumbled sleepily. “Go back to bed, Chrissy.”
BANG! Chrissy jumped fearfully at the sound of the door slamming shut. Julia could see that
her little sister was scared. She pulled her close and hugged her tightly.
Safe at last, Chrissy sighed contentedly. She listened to the melodious music of rain on the tin
roof and drifted back to sleep.

The Forest Path

David and I stopped abruptly. We stared at the dividing path in front of us. "What now?" David
asked. He looked from the right fork to the left one. He was clearly confused about our next
move.
"I'm not sure," I replied. I carefully examined the map in my shaking hands. "The map only
shows one path at this point. But there's no way of knowing which one we should follow.”
David sighed. He was tired. "Perhaps we should stop for a while," he said wearily, sitting on
the cold forest floor. "Who knows? Maybe someone will send us a sign about which path is the
right one to take."
At that moment, a beautiful, majestic eagle emerged from the branches of an overhanging
tree. I gasped loudly. I had thought that David and I were alone in this strange, lonely place. For
what seemed like minutes, we stared at the soaring eagle. It circled around in the sky, directly
above the left path. It waited patiently.
"Maybe that's your sign?" I asked David, nervously. He nodded in silent agreement and slowly
rose to his feet. Hand in hand, we cautiously walked towards the left path. The eagle finished
its graceful circle and lead us onward.

LANGUAGE 1
Identifying Descriptive Language — Answers

The Park
I went for a walk to the park one day, so what do you think I found?
A busy bee high up in a tree and a beehive down on the ground!
I bravely walked up to that beehive, so what do you think I did?
I poked that hive, it was alive, so I ran away and I hid!
I quickly peeked out from my shelter, so what do you think I saw?
Bees everywhere, buzzing here, buzzing there, now I don’t like the park anymore!
I ran back to my home to my mother, so what do you think I said?
“No park for me, it’s scary, you see, I think I’ll stay home in bed!”

LANGUAGE 2