Languages and literacy
Storm warning: sensory descriptive writing
Build a storm description from sensory notes, carefully chosen vocabulary and a model paragraph. A storm ladder supports changes in intensity, while the final task moves from a wide scene to a close detail for the reader.
Look closely at the harbour before describing the storm with your senses.
Read the complete materialRead the material
Build a storm description from sensory notes, carefully chosen vocabulary and a model paragraph. A storm ladder supports changes in intensity, while the final task moves from a wide scene to a close detail for the reader.
Activity. Use the preview for diagrams and layout.
Page 1
NAME CLASS DATE LEARNING GOAL Plan and write a descriptive paragraph that builds atmosphere. SUCCESS CRITERIA I can collect details for all five senses. I can use a simile, a metaphor and personification. I can write a paragraph that shows a storm arriving. Imagine you are standing on the quay in the picture. Write words and phrases, not full sentences. Gullscar Harbour, 4 pm. The storm is coming in from the sea. Picture and planner by the class teacher IN THIS ISSUE 1 SENSES 2 TOOLKIT 3 WRITE E N G L I S H W R I T I N G A G E S 9 T O 1 1 D E S C R I P T I V E W R I T I N G Storm warning! Stand on the harbour quay, use all five senses, then paint the storm in words. ISSUE 05 1 Gather your senses P L A N HEAR Wind, water, boats, birds? SMELL Salt, seaweed, fish, rain? TOUCH Wind, spray, cold stone? TASTE What is on your lips? SEE Colours, shapes and movement. Look up, look out, look down. THE SKY THE SEA THE HARBOUR Page 1 of 3
Page 2
Read each example. The underlined words show the tool. Then write your own about the harbour. TOOL EXAMPLE YOUR OWN Simile Compares two things using like or as. The sky turned as dark as wet slate. Metaphor Says something is something else. The harbour wall was a stone giant's arm. Personification Gives a thing human qualities. The lighthouse stood guard over the boats. Onomatopoeia A word that imitates a sound. Ropes creaked and rain pattered on the deck. Alliteration Repeats the opening sound of nearby words. Wild white waves washed over the wall. Start wide, then move closer. Write one detail for each shot. The words get stormier as you climb. Circle the words you will use in your paragraph. 1 Calm still · glassy · gentle · lapping 2 Uneasy grey · chilly · choppy · restless 3 Rising gusting · rattling · swelling · gloomy 4 Stormy lashing · churning · howling · crashing 5 Wild raging · roaring · thundering · furious Descriptive writing sensory planner · Toolkit desk I S S U E 0 5 D E S C R I P T I V E W R I T I N G T O O L K I T D E S K Writer's toolkit 2 Five tools for vivid writing T H I N K 3 Zoom in like a camera P L A N WIDE SHOT The whole harbour. CLOSER One boat, or the wall. CLOSE-UP One tiny detail. 4 Climb the storm ladder T H I N K Page 2 of 3
Page 3
NAME CLASS DATE Read it twice. Each numbered mark points to a tool. Then underline one more sound word. The storm arrives BY THE CLASS TEACHER B y late afternoon, the sky above Gullscar Harbour had turned as dark as wet slate. 1 A cold wind tugged at the sails and whistled 2 through the ropes, while the little fishing boats bumped and creaked 3 against the quay. Gulls screamed overhead, then wheeled away inland. Out beyond the harbour wall, wild white waves 4 reared up and smashed into the stones. The wall was a stone giant's arm, 5 holding back the sea. Salty spray stung my cheeks and the air smelt of seaweed and diesel. 6 High on the rocks, the lighthouse began to flash: once, twice, again. Then the first fat raindrops fell, drumming on the tin roof of the fish market. The storm had arrived. 7 TOOLS IN THE MODEL 1 Simile 2 Personification 3 Onomatopoeia 4 Alliteration 5 Metaphor 6 More senses 7 Punchy ending Use your plan from pages 1 and 2. Begin wide, then zoom in. End with a short sentence. WRITER'S CHECKLIST Three or more senses A simile A metaphor Personification A sound word Wide shot to close-up A short last sentence Read it aloud. Change one dull word for a stormier one. Descriptive writing sensory planner · About 100 words I S S U E 0 5 D E S C R I P T I V E W R I T I N G W R I T I N G D E S K Read the model, then write 5 Meet the model paragraph R E A D 6 Write your own paragraph W R I T E Page 3 of 3
A teaching sequence
Plan and write a descriptive paragraph that builds atmosphere using sensory details, figurative language and a wide-to-close structure.
Look closely at the harbour before describing the storm with your senses.
Read the complete materialGather sensory notes from wide to close
Collect short sensory notes about the harbour, moving from the whole scene to a small detail.
Which picture detail gives you a specific word or phrase?
Try a language tool and storm intensity
Try one of the language tools in your own words and use the storm ladder to select vocabulary with a suitable intensity.
Does the chosen image or word fit the atmosphere you want?
Annotate the model's techniques
Annotate the model paragraph to identify its imagery, sound and final sentence.
Which exact phrase shows imagery, sound or the short ending?
Draft aloud and revise one choice
Draft a paragraph from wide shot to close-up, then read it aloud and revise one dull word. Revise one image or sound to strengthen the scene.
Which revised detail brings the reader closest to the approaching storm?
Before you teach
Look for the thinking behind an answer, choose the support your class needs and leave room for an independent response.
What to look for
Look for selected sensory details and language choices that build a coherent atmosphere rather than a list of devices. Ask: “Which detail brings the reader closest to the storm?” The model is an example to analyse, not the only acceptable way to describe weather.
Give a little support
Provide a word bank for one or two senses and model a wide-to-close sequence. Pupils can say their description aloud or use a sentence frame before writing a full paragraph.
Take the idea further
Ask pupils to write a second paragraph from a different viewpoint, such as a person inside the fish market, and compare the sensory details they select. They can revise the ending to change the pace or mood.
Things to keep in mind
The harbour and model paragraph are writing examples. The prompts do not prescribe one correct description or assessment judgement; invite pupils to support choices with details from their own writing.
Keep the idea. Make it yours.
Bring your topic, learning goal and class context to PLAI™, then review what you create.
Ideas to try with your class
Sample teaching perspectives on what to try, what to adapt and what to watch for.
Meet The Creators
Meet a creator whose teaching interests connect with this template.
Storytime Sidekick
The harbour scene is set at Gullscar at 4 pm with a storm approaching. Pupils first gather five-sense details, study simile, metaphor, personification and sound devices, then write from a wide view towards a close detail.
Gentle Reminder
For ages 9 to 11, the planner connects sensory observation with deliberate language choices and paragraph structure. The example lines about the stone-giant wall and lighthouse guard show different tools without requiring pupils to copy a single description.
Planning List
The five-sense prompts can be completed as words and phrases before full sentences, reducing the initial writing demand. A teacher can model moving from sky to sea to harbour and then zooming in on one chosen detail.
Chalk Dust & Checklists
The quay image and approaching storm are a writing prompt, not a record of real weather. Keep imagined sensory details distinct from observation, and use the later writing page to check that figurative language supports the atmosphere rather than becoming a checklist.