Adjectives

1. Adjectives Free-write: What do you think adjectives are, and why do we use them?

2. Adjectives… • Let’s Review for a moment: • What are nouns? • What are pronouns? • Adjectives are words that describe nouns or pronouns. • For example: • He wore a red, wrinkled shirt to school today. • The words “red” and “wrinkled” both describe the word “shirt” in this sentence.

3. Why We Use Adjectives… • We use adjectives to describe things. By using them, we add style to our writing and also give the reader a more accurate description of what we are talking about. • For example: • I had breakfast today. (No adjectives—and quite boring!) • I had fluffy eggs, thick,chewy bacon, and buttery toast for breakfast this morning. (Are you hungry yet??)

4. Adjectives always answer one of the following questions: • What kind? • She wore a red shirt. (What kind of shirt? Red.) • Which one? • He joined the varsity team. (Which team? Varsity.) • Demonstrative adjectives (this, that, these, and those) often answer this question. • I would like to listen to that radio station. (Which station? That one.) • How many? • She earned twenty dollars for babysitting. (How many dollars? Twenty.) • How much? • He spent all of his money. (How much money? All.) • Whose? • That is her car. (Whose car? Hers.)

5. You try…Look at the following sentences. In the Bell-Ringer section of your notebook, write the adjectives, and tell which question it answers.Note: Do not count articles this time. “Have you ever seen a driftwood fire?” Mike asked me. I was sitting on one of the bone-colored benches; the other girls clustered, gossiping excitedly, on either side of me. Mike kneeled by the fire, lighting one of the smaller sticks with a cigarette lighter. “No,” I said as he placed the blazing twig carefully against the teepee. “You’ll like this then—watch the colors.” He lit another small branch and laid it alongside the first. The flames started to lick quickly up the dry wood. -Twilight by Stephenie Meyer, p. 115-116

6. Check your work… “Have you ever seen a driftwood fire?” Mike asked me. I was sitting on one of the bone-colored benches; the other girls clustered, gossiping excitedly, on either side of me. Mike kneeled by the fire, lighting one of the smaller sticks with a cigarette lighter. “No,” I said as he placed the blazing twig carefully against the teepee. “You’ll like this then—watch the colors.” He lit anothersmall branch and laid it alongside the first. The flames started to lick quickly up the dry wood. -Twilight by Stephenie Meyer, p. 115-116