CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.3d
The Standard
Use precise words and phrases, telling details, and sensory language to convey a vivid picture of the experiences, events, setting, and/or characters.
Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts
What This Standard Means
Students need to choose words that make a narrative clear and vivid. They should replace vague words with exact verbs, nouns, adjectives, and phrases. They also need to add details that show what a place, person, moment, or action feels like through sight, sound, smell, taste, or touch.
Mastery looks like writing where readers can picture the scene without being overloaded. Students often get stuck using general words like nice, bad, went, or said. They may add random adjectives instead of meaningful details, or describe everything equally instead of focusing on what matters most.
Ways to Teach It
- Give students a bland paragraph and have them revise it using five exact nouns, five strong verbs, and three sensory details.
- Ask students to write about a crowded hallway using only details a camera or microphone could capture.
- Collect one revised sentence from each student and check for one precise word and one sensory detail.
- Bring in a restaurant menu or sports article and mark the words that help readers picture the experience.
Before This Standard
If students are struggling here, check these first.
Plan a Lesson for CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.3d
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What This Unlocks
Mastery here sets students up for these next.
Related Standards
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.7.3d
Use precise words and phrases, relevant descriptive details, and sensory language to capture the action and convey experiences and events.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.6.3d
Use precise words and phrases, relevant descriptive details, and sensory language to convey experiences and events.