Now in a fully updated third edition, Descriptosaurus is the first
book for creative writing that is a thematic expansion of a dictionary
and a thesaurus; it provides children with a comprehensive resource with
which to expand their descriptive vocabulary, experiment with language
and sentence structure and build up narratives based around settings,
characters and creatures.
Descriptosaurus positions the word, zooms in on it to examine the
meaning, expands it into phrases, and then provides alternatives in
words, phrases and sentences; the model was created and refined over a
number of years as a result of feedback from children inside and outside
the classroom as to the resources they required to inspire and assist
them with their writing. For reluctant writers or those faced with blank
page syndrome, it provides essential starting points to encourage
putting pen to paper, not only inspiring children, but also building
their confidence, encouraging them to use, apply and create using the
correct grammatical structures, and adding colour to their writing
through evaluation and experimentation.
New features for this updated third edition include:
- Sample poems
- Word banks and model sentences to provide a step-by-step process for
development of vocabulary and understanding of phrase, clause and
sentence structure
- Contextualised grammar and punctuation instruction and guidance
- Units of work where the models can be incorporated in a creative focus
- A companion website containing all the features of the book, games,
planning sheets and vocabulary builders
This is an ideal resource to dramatically improve children's creative
writing for all KS2 primary and KS3 secondary English teachers, literacy
coordinators and parents. It would also make an excellent classroom book
for PGCE students, particularly Primary PGCE with English specialism.
