Adding DetailsWhen you support your ideas with details, your readers are able to visualize and understand what you are expressing.

Adding DetailsWhen you support your ideas with details, your readers are able to visualize and understand what you are expressing.

The water was great on my forehead.

What is missing from these sentences?

Dogs are great pets.

Adding Details

Notice how adding details makes these sentences clearer and provides support for the writer’s ideas.

When you support your ideas with details, your readers are able to visualize and understand what you are expressing.

The water was great on my forehead.

Dogs are great pets.

ORIGINAL

ORIGINAL

The refreshing water felt cool and soothing on my aching forehead.

REVISED

Dogs make the best pets because they bark to warn of danger, they love to play, and they are waiting to greet you when you return home.

REVISED

Adding DetailsWhen you add details, you provide important information about the main idea or give readers a clearer picture of the characters in your story.

Adding Details

• Similes and Metaphors

• Examples

• Facts and Statistics

• Reasons

You can add details in a variety of ways. Click on the way you want to explore.

• Sensory Details

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Adding Details

Sensory Details

Sight

Sound

Touch

Taste

Smell

blue

scream

silky

bitter

burnt

round

whisper

rough

spicy

perfumed

shimmering water

rustle of leaves

as soft as a kitten

as sweet as hot chocolate

like pine needles

Sensory details are words and phrases that appeal to the five senses. You use them to help readers experience something in the same way you experienced it.

Adding Details

Sensory details are words and phrases that appeal to the five senses. You use them to help readers experience something in the same way you experienced it.

Sensory Details

Sight

Sound

Touch

Taste

Smell

blue

scream

silky

bitter

burnt

round

whisper

rough

spicy

perfumed

shimmering water

rustle of leaves

as soft as a kitten

as sweet as hot chocolate

like pine needles

Adding Details

Identify the sensory details in this paragraph.

Sensory Details

sight

sound

touch

taste

smell

The stage was a rainbow of colors. Scenery of green, orange, blue, and lavender made the dull brown walls disappear. The shimmering costumes glistened under the bright lights. The audience could not tell if the sweet aroma drifting from the stage was real or imaginary. The scent was so powerful that our mouths began to water and I tasted strawberries. Suddenly, as if to take our minds off the fragrance in the air, violins played the opening measures of a song. I felt my heart begin to beat faster. The actors swayed and sang to the music. The play had begun.

Adding Details

Identify the sensory details in this paragraph.

Sensory Details

sight

sound

touch

taste

smell

The stage was a rainbow of colors. Scenery of green, orange, blue, and lavender made the dull brown walls disappear. The shimmering costumes glistened under the bright lights. The audience could not tell if the sweet aroma drifting from the stage was real or imaginary. The scent was so powerful that our mouths began to water and I tasted strawberries. Suddenly, as if to take our minds off the fragrance in the air, violins played the opening measures of a song. I felt my heart begin to beat faster. The actors swayed and sang to the music. The play had begun.

Adding Details

Identify the sensory details in this paragraph.

Sensory Details

sight

sound

touch

taste

smell

The stage was a rainbow of colors. Scenery of green, orange, blue, and lavender made the dull brown walls disappear. The shimmering costumes glistened under the bright lights. The audience could not tell if the sweet aroma drifting from the stage was real or imaginary. The scent was so powerful that our mouths began to water and I tasted strawberries. Suddenly, as if to take our minds off the fragrance in the air, violins played the opening measures of a song. I felt my heart begin to beat faster. The actors swayed and sang to the music. The play had begun.

Adding Details

Identify the sensory details in this paragraph.

Sensory Details

sight

sound

touch

taste

smell

The stage was a rainbow of colors. Scenery of green, orange, blue, and lavender made the dull brown walls disappear. The shimmering costumes glistened under the bright lights. The audience could not tell if the sweet aroma drifting from the stage was real or imaginary. The scent was so powerful that our mouths began to water and I tasted strawberries. Suddenly, as if to take our minds off the fragrance in the air, violins played the opening measures of a song. I felt my heart begin to beat faster. The actors swayed and sang to the music. The play had begun.

Adding Details

Identify the sensory details in this paragraph.

Sensory Details

The stage was a rainbow of colors. Scenery of green, orange, blue, and lavender made the dull brown walls disappear. The shimmering costumes glistened under the bright lights. The audience could not tell if the sweet aroma drifting from the stage was real or imaginary. The scent was so powerful that our mouths began to water and I tasted strawberries. Suddenly, as if to take our minds off the fragrance in the air, violins played the opening measures of a song. I felt my heart begin to beat faster. The actors swayed and sang to the music. The play had begun.

sight

sound

touch

taste

smell

Adding Details

Identify the sensory details in this paragraph.

Sensory Details

The stage was a rainbow of colors. Scenery of green, orange, blue, and lavender made the dull brown walls disappear. The shimmering costumes glistened under the bright lights. The audience could not tell if the sweet aroma drifting from the stage was real or imaginary. The scent was so powerful that our mouths began to water and I tasted strawberries. Suddenly, as if to take our minds off the fragrance in the air, violins played the opening measures of a song. I felt my heart begin to beat faster. The actors swayed and sang to the music. The play had begun.

sight

sound

touch

taste

smell

Adding Details

A simile is a comparison of unlike things and uses the words like or as.

Similes and Metaphors

Adding Details

A simile is a comparison of unlike things and uses the words like or as.

Similes and Metaphors

The stage was as colorful as a rainbow.

Adding Details

A simile is a comparison of unlike things and uses the words like or as.

Similes and Metaphors

The stage was as colorful as a rainbow.

A metaphor directly compares two unlike things and does not use like or as.

Adding Details

A simile is a comparison of unlike things and uses the words like or as.

Similes and Metaphors

The stage was as colorful as a rainbow.

A metaphor directly compares two unlike things and does not use like or as.

The stage spotlight was a bright sun.

Adding Details

What are the simile and metaphor in this paragraph?

Similes and Metaphors

simile

metaphor

Lake Pleasant is loveliest just before the sun sets. The waves move gently onto the shore, and a warm breeze brings the scent of flowers. The water is a mirror filled with the reflections of clouds. When the darkness falls, the water rests as still as glass.

Adding Details

What are the simile and metaphor in this paragraph?

Similes and Metaphors

simile

metaphor

Lake Pleasant is loveliest just before the sun sets. The waves move gently onto the shore, and a warm breeze brings the scent of flowers. The water is a mirror filled with the reflections of clouds. When the darkness falls, the water rests as still as glass.

Adding Details

What are the simile and metaphor in this paragraph?

Similes and Metaphors

simile

metaphor

Lake Pleasant is loveliest just before the sun sets. The waves move gently onto the shore, and a warm breeze brings the scent of flowers. The water is a mirror filled with the reflections of clouds. When the darkness falls, the water rests as still as glass.

Adding Details

What are the simile and metaphor in this paragraph?

Similes and Metaphors

simile

metaphor

Lake Pleasant is loveliest just before the sun sets. The waves move gently onto the shore, and a warm breeze brings the scent of flowers. The water is a mirror filled with the reflections of clouds. When the darkness falls, the water rests as still as glass.

Adding Details

An example is used to show what the whole is like.

Examples

Adding Details

A sports center could solve our soccer league’s problems, such as a too-small field, being forced to practice in an empty parking lot, and the lack of a permanent playing field with goal posts.

What are the examples in this paragraph?

An example is used to show what the whole is like.

Examples

Adding Details

A sports center could solve our soccer league’s problems, such as a too-small field, being forced to practice in an empty parking lot, and the lack of a permanent playing field with goal posts.

Notice how examples identify the specific problems faced by the soccer league.

An example is used to show what the whole is like.

Examples

Adding Details

Some books include several different writing forms.

Which terms in this sentence should be made clearer with examples?

An example is used to show what the whole is like.

Examples

Adding Details

Some books include several different writing forms.

Which terms in this sentence should be made clearer with examples?

An example is used to show what the whole is like.

Examples

Adding Details

An example is used to show what the whole is like.

Examples

Some books include several different writing forms.ORIGINAL

Some books, such as my reading and social studies textbooks, include several different writing forms, like short stories, essays, and biographies.

REVISED

Adding Details

A fact is a statement that can be proved. A statistic is a fact expressed in numbers. Statistics explain the significance of facts.

Facts and Statistics

Adding Details

A fact is a statement that can be proved. A statistic is a fact expressed in numbers. Statistics explain the significance of facts.

Facts and Statistics

Fact: The first CD was made near Hanover, Germany, on August 17, 1982.Statistic: Since 1982, more than 200 billion CDs have been sold.

Adding Details

A statistic can often be used to add details to a fact.

Facts and Statistics

Plant-eaters from the late Jurassic and Cretaceous periods were huge.

How could statistics help you better understand how big the largest dinosaurs were?

Adding Details

A statistic can often be used to add details to a fact.

Facts and Statistics

Plant-eaters from the late Jurassic and Cretaceous periods could be 115–130 feet long and weigh between 80–100 metric tons.

This statistic clarifies the length and weight of the biggest dinosaurs.

Adding Details

A statistic can often be used to add details to a fact.

Facts and Statistics

A lot of people in our community think fast-food restaurants should not be built near schools. Students choose to eat fast food more often than healthy food. These choices lead to poor eating habits and weight gain. The number of young people who are overweight is alarming.

What vague words could be replaced with facts and statistics to make this argument stronger?

Adding Details

A statistic can often be used to add details to a fact.

Facts and Statistics

A lot of people in our community think fast-food restaurants should not be built near schools. Students choose to eat fast food more often than healthy food. These choices lead to poor eating habits and weight gain. The number of young people who are overweight is alarming.

What vague words could be replaced with facts and statistics to make this argument stronger?

Adding Details

Facts and StatisticsA statistic can often be used to add details to a fact.

Notice how adding statistics strengthens the argument in this paragraph.

In our community, almost 90 percent of the people that I asked think fast-food restaurants should not be built near schools. Students choose to eat fast food more often than healthy food. These choices lead to poor eating habits and weight gain. The number of young people who are overweight is alarming. According to a study done by the National Bureau of Economic Research, there is a 5.2 percent increase in obesity in students whose schools are near fast-food restaurants than in students whose schools are not near fast-food restaurants.

REVISED

Adding Details

Reasons are the “why” behind your statements. They support your main idea and help readers believe what you are writing. When you revise, be sure every reason is supported with enough detail.

Reasons

Adding Details

Students in public schools should be required to wear uniforms. Parents and teachers prefer uniforms to everyday clothes. Students won’t get in trouble for wearing certain clothing, and uniforms cost less. Also, teachers say uniforms will be less distracting, and so students will learn more.

What is the reason provided in this paragraph? What details support the reason?

Reasons are the “why” behind your statements. They support your main idea and help readers believe what you are writing. When you revise, be sure every reason is supported with enough detail.

Reasons

Adding Details

Students in public schools should be required to wear uniforms. Parents and teachers prefer uniforms to everyday clothes. Students won’t get in trouble for wearing certain clothing, and uniforms cost less. Also, teachers say uniforms will be less distracting, and so students will learn more.

What is the reason provided in this paragraph? What details support the reason?

Reasons are the “why” behind your statements. They support your main idea and help readers believe what you are writing. When you revise, be sure every reason is supported with enough detail.

Reasons