Virtual Reality: Using Sensory
Details to Bump Up Our
Writing
Copyright © 2014 by Write Score LLC
Explicit Instruction
Readers want to feel as though they are a part of a
story. They want to be engaged in such a way as to
feel what the writer feels in that moment in time.
Adding just the right sensory details provides the
reader the virtual experience that makes them want
to keep reading.
Sensory details are just as you would imagine.
They are the descriptive details that use our
five senses to help us to not only make a movie
in our minds, but to hear, touch, taste, and
even imagine the smell as we read. It is
sometimes difficult for students to write using
sensory details; therefore, one way to help
them is through photography. When we gaze
at an image, it can often invoke our senses
when our imagination fails.
Modeled Instruction
What are sensory details?
Sight:
shimmery
bowing
melting
bubbly
frozen
watery
massive
dangling
dripping
steamy
hatching
sandy
rainy
overcast
windy
shiny
swaying
fuzzy
snowy
stormy
shiny
tiny
furry
rocky
Modeled Instruction
Sensory Details Word Bank
Sound:
crash
bang
squawk
whistle
squeak
thud
slam
crack
roar
sigh
clap
whisper
screech
jangle
gurgle
whine
hiss
clink
Modeled Instruction
Sensory Details Word Bank
Smell:
minty
spicy
musty
moldy
burnt
flowery
rotten
damp
earthy
fishy
woodsy
like___________(fresh
baked cookies, lemon
blossoms, road kill,
cinnamon, a new puppy,
attic, etc.)
Modeled Instruction
Sensory Details Word Bank
Taste:
buttery
sour
fruity
sweet
fishy
salty
oily
bitter
peppery
burnt
lemony
creamy
Modeled Instruction
Sensory Details Word Bank
Touch:
cool
icy
smooth
oily
gritty
mushy
slippery
silky
oily
fuzzy
hot
sandy
silky
sticky
warm
furry
Modeled Instruction
Sensory Details Word Bank
Modeled Instruction
It was so incredibly beautiful that it was almost unreal. From his
height he could see not just the lake but across part of the forest,
a green carpet, and it was full of life. Birds, insects—there was a
constant hum and song. At the other end of the bottom of the L
there was another large rock sticking out over the water and on
top of the rock a snaggly pine had somehow found food and
grown, bent and gnarled. Sitting on one limb was a blue bird with
a crest and sharp beak, a kingfisher—he thought of a picture he
had seen once—which left the branch while he watched and dove
into the water. It emerged a split part of a second later.
In its mouth was a small fish, wiggling silver in the sun. It
took the fish to a limb, juggled it twice, and swallowed it
whole.
-from Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
Modeled Instruction
Darkness fell between the trees
edging the field. Suddenly the sky
exploded in color. Sparks of red,
white, and blue rained down around
the crowd. Bolts of light created
bursts of daylight, ending with a
thunderous “BOOM!” Our ears
rang and we jumped, startled from
our lawn chairs.
Guided Instruction
With your partner, discuss, then write to describe the image
below. Use a variety of sensory details.
 The following slide depicts two images in which several types
of sensory details may be used to describe what is happening
in each photo.
 In your writer’s notebook (or plain lined paper), write
sentences describing the two photos. Be sure to use a variety
of sensory details.
Independent Practice
Today’s Task:
Independent Practice