Grade by Grade
D. Composition: Expressing Ideas and Creating Texts · Writing with Purpose and Voice

Personal Voice: Descriptive Words, Sentence Patterns and Poems

D2.3 D2.1 A1.2About 40 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can show my thoughts, feelings and opinions so my writing sounds like me.
  • I can use descriptive words, including sense words and similes.
  • I can use different sentence patterns: short and long sentences, joined sentences and different sentence beginnings.
  • I can write a poem that shows my voice.

Words to know

voice
The way your personality, feelings and opinions come through in your writing.
descriptive words
Words that help the reader see, hear, smell, taste or feel something.
simile
A comparison using like or as: as cold as ice, ran like the wind.
onomatopoeia
A word that sounds like the noise it names: crunch, buzz, splash.
sentence pattern
The way a sentence is built: short or long, a question or exclamation, how it begins.
joining word
A word that joins ideas: and, but, so, because, or, when.
cinquain
A five-line poem. A word cinquain uses 1, 2, 3, 4, then 1 word.

Remember from Grade 2

In Grade 2 you added voice by sharing feelings, using describing words for your five senses, and choosing strong words like zoomed instead of went. In Grade 3 you will add similes, sound words and different sentence patterns to make your writing sound even more like you.

Who is talking?

Read these two texts about the same thing.

Text A: The storm was loud. The wind blew. The lights went out. We used a flashlight.

Text B: Crash! Thunder shook our whole house, and the wind howled like a hungry wolf. Suddenly, everything went black. I grabbed Dad's arm so tightly that he laughed. Then he found the flashlight, and we told stories until the lights flickered back on. Honestly? It was the best storm ever.

In Text B you can hear a real person. You know how they felt (scared, then happy) and what they think (the best storm ever). That is personal voice.

Voice toolWhat it isExample
FeelingsTell how you felt, or show itMy hands were shaking.
OpinionsTell what you thinkI think this is the coolest rock in Canada.
Sense wordsSee, hear, smell, taste, touchcrunchy, smoky, glittering, fuzzy
Strong verbsExact action wordsdashed, tiptoed, gobbled, whispered
SimilesCompare with like or asThe ice was as smooth as glass.
Sound wordsWords that make the noiseCrash! Whoosh! Drip, drip, drip.
Tools for adding voice
the iceglassas smooth asBoth are smooth!A simile compares two different things using like or as.The leaves crunched like potato chips.
A simile joins two different things that share one quality. Ice and glass are very different, but both are smooth.

Sentence patterns

If every sentence is built the same way, writing sounds like a robot: I went to the lake. I swam in the lake. I saw a fish. I went home.

Mix up your sentence patterns:

  • Short and long: A short sentence after long ones grabs attention. We paddled across the lake, past the beaver lodge and around the rocky point. Then we stopped.
  • Join ideas with and, but, so, because, when: I was cold, so I put on my mitts.
  • Change the beginning: start with a time (After lunch,), a place (Under the dock,) or a -ly word (Slowly,).
  • Add a question or exclamation: Guess what I saw? A loon!
Worked example

Let's revise for voice and sentence patterns

Plain draft: "I went to the lake. I swam in the lake. I saw a fish. It was good."

  1. Add a time beginning and a strong verb: Early in the morning, I raced down to the lake.
  2. Add a simile and sense words: The water was as cold as an ice cube, and it made me gasp.
  3. Add an exclamation: A shiny little fish darted right past my toes!
  4. Add a feeling or opinion: I think morning swims are the best part of summer.
  5. Read it aloud. Does it sound like a real person? Yes!

"Early in the morning, I raced down to the lake. The water was as cold as an ice cube, and it made me gasp. A shiny little fish darted right past my toes! I think morning swims are the best part of summer."

Just for fun

Sound words change around the world! In English a dog says woof, in French it says ouaf, and in Japanese it says wan wan.

A model poem: a simile poem

Poems are full of voice. They use few words, so each word must be just right. They don't have to rhyme.

Our Kitchen in the Morning

The kettle whistles like a train.

Toast pops up as fast as a jack-in-the-box.

My little brother is as noisy as a drum,

and Mom moves like a snowplow,

clearing a path to the door.

I wish every morning could be this busy and this warm.

Worked example

Let's write a word cinquain

A word cinquain has 5 lines: 1 word (a noun), 2 describing words, 3 action words ending in -ing, 4 words about a feeling or thought, and 1 word that renames the topic.

  1. Line 1, one noun: Snowflakes
  2. Line 2, two describing words: Tiny, lacy
  3. Line 3, three -ing words: Falling, twirling, drifting
  4. Line 4, four words with a feeling: I catch them gently
  5. Line 5, one word that renames the topic: Crystals

Snowflakes / Tiny, lacy / Falling, twirling, drifting / I catch them gently / Crystals. Count the words: 1, 2, 3, 4, 1.

Snowflakes1one nounTiny, lacy2two describing wordsFalling, twirling, drifting3three -ing wordsI catch them gently4four words: a feelingCrystals1one word: renames it1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 1
A word cinquain has five lines with 1, 2, 3, 4, 1 words. The lines grow longer, then shrink to one word at the end.

Your voice belongs to you

Your voice is shaped by who you are: the things you love, the way your family talks, the places you know, and the languages you speak. Using a word from another language you know, or a saying from your family, can make your writing sound even more like you. Readers enjoy writing that sounds real.

Hands-on activity

Sense walk and simile hunt

You need: a clipboard or notebook, a pencil, and a grown-up to walk with.

  1. Take a 10-minute walk around your home, yard or neighbourhood.
  2. Make 5 columns: See, Hear, Smell, Touch, Taste (skip taste outside unless a grown-up says a snack is OK!).
  3. Write at least 2 descriptive words or sound words in each column.
  4. Turn 3 of your notes into similes: The leaves crunched like potato chips.
  5. Back home, use your best words to write a short poem or a cinquain about your walk.
  6. Read it to your grown-up with expression. Ask: Can you tell how I felt?

Your turn

1

What is personal voice in writing?

2

Finish the simile: The snow was as white as ___.

3

Give two sound words (onomatopoeia).

4

Join these with so: It was raining. We stayed inside.

5

Change the beginning: We built a fort after school.

6

Add an opinion to this sentence: Our town has a new splash pad.

7

Replace ate with a stronger verb: The puppy ate its food.

More practice: warm-up

1

Which word is a simile clue: like or jump?

2

Name the five senses.

3

How many lines does a cinquain have?

4

Do poems always have to rhyme?

5

Which is a joining word: because or blue?

More practice: on your own

1

Write a simile for something fast.

2

Join with because: I wore my snow pants. It was freezing outside.

3

This writing sounds like a robot. Fix it with different beginnings: I woke up. I ate cereal. I walked to school.

4

Add sense words: We had a campfire.

5

Write line 3 of a cinquain about rain (three -ing words).

Challenge

1

Write a word cinquain about a pet or an animal. Check that the lines have 1, 2, 3, 4 and 1 words.

2

Rewrite with voice, using at least one simile, one sound word and one opinion: The bus came. It was loud. We got on.

3

Why does a short sentence after a few long sentences grab the reader's attention?

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

Which sentence has the most voice?

2.

Which is a simile?

3.

Which word is onomatopoeia (a sound word)?

4.

Which sentence starts with a time beginning?

5.

Which is the best way to join I was hungry and I made a sandwich?

6.

In a word cinquain, how many words go on line 3?

For parents and teachers

Big idea (D2.3): Grade 3 writers show a personal voice using descriptive words and varied sentence patterns to express thoughts, feelings and opinions. This lesson also models a poem form (D2.1) and connects to A1.2 (using transferable skills to express their voice).

How to help at home:

  • Play "as ___ as a ___" in the car: as tall as..., as slow as....
  • When your child says "It was good," ask "What did you see? Hear? How did you feel?"
  • Read poetry aloud together. Many Canadian poets write for children, and your library can help you find them.
  • Celebrate home languages and family sayings in writing.

Common difficulties:

  • Too many adjectives in one sentence ("the big huge giant enormous tree"). Choose the one best word.
  • Run-on sentences when joining ideas ("and then and then"). Read aloud and listen for where to stop.
  • Clichés only. Similes like "as cold as ice" are fine to start; encourage fresh ones from your child's own life.

On the sense walk, stay with your child near roads and remind them not to taste anything outside unless you say it is safe.