WHICH ONE IS DESCRIPTIVE?

1. Your birthday is approaching and your parents intend to give you a birthday present. What would
you like to have? Explain your choice.
2. Write a story where your action helped to save someone’s life. In your story, give details of the
incident and state the lessons that you have learnt.
3. Co-curricular activities help to instill leadership qualities in students. Do you agree? Give reasons to
support your view.
4. Write a story about a teenager whose hard work and determination helped him to win a
competition. End your story with: “… He jumped with joy as all his hard work and determination
had paid off.”
5. Describe your first experience with online shopping. You should write about what you bought and
your feelings.
AT A GLANCE . . .
LEVEL DIFFICULT EASIER
ARGUMENTATIVE: NARRATIVE:
DIFFICULT
- Need to mention both pros and - Need to be creative with plot
cons but need to have a and narration.
standpoint. - Use of dialogues and various
- Mature conclusion. narrative techniques.
FACTUAL / EXPOSITORY: DESCRIPTIVE NARRATIVE:
EASY
- Need to elaborate facts*. - Need to elaborate flow of
DESCRIPTIVE EXPOSITORY: events.
EASIER - Need to describe information
- Need to describe information**. using five senses.

* Facts here refer to real information that really exist.

** Information here refers to information based on one’s experience.
TYPES OF DESCRIPTIVE:
• “THE HAPPIEST DAY IN MY LIFE.” DESCRIBE THE DAY IN DETAIL AND EXPLAIN WHY.

• BASED ON THE QUESTION ABOVE, HOW MANY TYPES OF DESCRIPTIVE CAN YOU
WRITE?

• ARE YOU SURE?

• CAREFULLY READ THE SAMPLES THAT FOLLOW AND TELL THE SIMILARITIES AND
DIFFERENCES.
SAMPLE A (1)
They say, a person can only be happy when he has everything. I know how
that feels because I have experienced it before. The happiest day in my life is the day
I celebrated my seventeenth birthday on April 20th. It was a day filled with
scrumptious food, truckload of presents, and not to forget – the warmth of loving
friends and family.
Let me start with the food. My seventeenth birthday was the best birthday I
ever had. Before the celebration, I helped my mom to prepare the food. For
appetisers, we prepared finger foods such as cheesy bites and creamy shrimp dips.
We also prepared fruit salads served with cold mayonnaise and colourful puddings for
desserts. As for the main course, it has to be the lip-smacking baked meaty lasagna
and my mom’s special recipe: moist chocolate cake filled with cheesy sauce and
topped with almond and nuts. I could not stop salivating just imagining all the
delectable delicacies my mom could make from scratch!
SAMPLE A (2)
It was not only the food that made me the happiest boy: It was also the truckload
of birthday presents I received on that day. Mom gave me the latest DIY Gundam model I
had been craving for. The model includes the tools such as mini screwdriver and plier,
and also the colouring kits I need. I felt like I was in seven’s heaven when I unboxed the
present. Dad said he did not know what to choose for my present so he gave me a $100
iTunes gift card instead. Can you imagine how many songs and apps I can purchase with
that card? Yes, a lot of them! My classmates came with a weird-shaped present. It filled
me with curiosity. Guess what was inside? A white parrot that can imitate speech in
weird looking cage! They said the parrot can cheer me up during my gloomy days.
More than just the food and the presents, the real reason my seventeenth
birthday celebration was the happiest day in my life is because I was surrounded by
people who love me. Yes, my family and friends. Scrumptious food and expensive gifts
mean nothing if you do not have people you can share them with. This is why I am so
grateful to God that He sent these loving people into my life. With them around me, every
day is a happy day.
SAMPLE B (1)
They say, a person can only be happy when he has everything. I know how
that feels because I have experienced it before. The happiest day in my life is the day
I celebrated my seventeenth birthday on April 20th. It was a day filled with
scrumptious food, truckload of presents, and not to forget – the warmth of loving
friends and family.
The day before the big day, I helped my mom to prepare the food. For
appetisers, we prepared finger foods such as cheesy bites and creamy shrimp dips.
We also prepared fruit salads served with cold mayonnaise and colourful puddings for
desserts. As for the main course, it has to be the lip-smacking baked meaty lasagna
and my mom’s special recipe: moist chocolate cake filled with cheesy sauce and
topped with almond and nuts. To get the ingredients, we went to Tesco. My mom is a
picky shopper so she chose only quality ingredients such as sugar, cream cheese,
meat and lasagna. I also helped mom to choose the fruits for the fruit salad. I picked
the freshest apples, green and red grapes, navel oranges, and pineapples.
SAMPLE B (2)
After we finished preparing the food, I helped my siblings to decorate the house.
We chose superhero as the theme so there were photos and posters of DC and Marvel
superheroes such Batman, Superman, Ironman and even Doctor Strange. We also hung
colourful balloons around the living room. The balloons were vibrant and they were a
perfect match of the photos and posters. I was glad I was allowed to choose the
decorations! Next, we prepared the most important thing which also the heart of every
birthday celebration: the party poppers! Can you imagine a birthday without one? It
must be a boring one.
The awaited day finally arrived! My classmates came half hour early. They
brought with them a weirdly shaped present which I later found out was a white parrot
that can imitate speech! They said the parrot can cheer me up whenever I feel down.
How thoughtful of them! At 2pm when every guest had arrived, the party finally started.
The whole crowd sang ‘Happy Birthday’ song and wished me well as they popped the
party popper. Everyone laughed merrily and they all enjoyed the food. It was such a
reminiscent day, and of course, my happiest to be surrounded by the people I love who
also love me. I’m grateful!
THE SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES?
SAMPLE A SAMPLE B

Has topic sentence in each paragraph. YES NO

Describe things and feelings. YES YES

Focused on specific idea. YES NO

Focused on specific events. NO YES

TYPES OF DESCRIPTIVE:
• DESCRIPTIVE EXPOSITORY
 What? Just like writing factual.
 How? List down ideas.

• DESCRIPTIVE NARRATIVE
 What? Just like writing narrative, minus the dialogues.
 How? Plan the flow of events.

Conclusion:

LISTING DOWN IDEAS VS FLOW OF EVENTS

BEFORE YOU START WRITING . . .
• PLAN OUT YOUR IDEAS FIRST!

• In other words, you need to spend the first 5 or 10 minutes to map out or brainstorm
the ideas first.

• This is to ensure that your ideas are coherent and well-organised.

LISTING DOWN IDEAS
FOR EXAMPLE,
Truckload of presents
oMom – Gundam model
• The happiest day in my life:
Seventeenth birthday oDad – iTunes Gift card
oClassmates – white parrot
Scrumptious food
oFruit salads, moist choc Friends and family
cake, baked lasagna oBe grateful
oWent shopping – ingredients
When planning your “Listing Down Ideas,” please make sure you have at least
four (4) to five (5) paragraphs of ideas excluding the intro/closure.
 2) Decoration
FLOW OF EVENTS oTheme: Purple
FOR EXAMPLE,
oPosters and pictures
oParty poppers
• The happiest day in my life:
Seventeenth birthday

1) Food Preparation 3) The Party

oWent shopping – ingredients oClassmates – arrived early –
bring presents
oFruit salads, moist choc oEveryone happy
cake, baked lasagna
oBe grateful
When planning your “Flow of Events,” please make sure you have at least
four (4) to five (5) paragraphs of events excluding the intro/closure.
WHAT SHOULD YOU DESCRIBE?
• BASED ON YOUR FIVE (5) SENSES:

 WHAT YOU SEE

 WHAT YOU HEAR
 WHAT YOU SMELL
 WHAT YOU TASTE
 WHAT YOU FEEL (TOUCH)
 WHAT YOU FEEL (EMOTION)

Note: You do not need to use all of these in each paragraph. Try to choose at
least 3 or 4 from this list which you can describe a lot.
CHOOSING YOUR WORDS…
• WHEN DESCRIBING,

 CHOOSE LEAST FREQUENTLY USED ADJECTIVES / WORDS

 USE IMPRESSIVE PHRASES / EXPRESSIONS TO REPLACE CERTAIN
WORDS
 AVOID REPEATING THE SAME WORD IN ONE SENTENCE.
 ALWAYS REPLACE RE- OCCURRING WORDS WITH SUITABLE
PRONOUNS OR SYNONYMS.
LEAST FREQUENTLY USED WORDS
• For example,
Frequently used words Least frequently used words

The news made me feel sad. The news made me feel devastated.

The hotel is big and famous. The hotel is majestic and prominent.

The food is tasty and the drink is fresh. The food is lip-smacking and the drink is
satiating.
IMPRESSIVE PHRASES / EXPRESSIONS
• For example,
Frequently used words Impressive phrases / expressions

He was shocked when he heard the loud He stood rooted to the ground when heard
scream. the ear-piercing scream.

She is in love with Jungkook. Her heart skips a beat when she sees
Jungkook.

She cried. Her eyes were wet with tears.

REPEATING WORDS
• For example,
DO NOT DO THIS
Today is my birthday so I woke up early in the
morning. After shower, I helped my mom in the
kitchen. My mom was baking a moist chocolate
cake. My mom asked me to wash the fruits and
dice the fruits for the fruit salads.
Next, I went to help my siblings in the living
room. My sister was putting up the decorations
around the house so my sister asked me to help
her with the decorations.
Can you do better than this?
DO THIS
Today is my birthday so I woke up early in the
morning. After shower, I helped my mom in the
kitchen. She was baking a moist chocolate cake.
My mom asked me to wash the apples and
navel oranges and dice them for the fruit
salads.
Next, I went to help my siblings in the living
room. My sister was putting up the decorations
around the house so she asked me to help her
by hanging the posters and balloons.
WHICH ONE IS DESCRIPTIVE?
1. Your birthday is approaching and your parents intend to give you a birthday present. What would
you like to have? Explain your choice. [Descriptive / Listing Down Ideas]
2. Write a story where your action helped to save someone’s life. In your story, give details of the
incident and state the lessons that you have learnt. [Descriptive / Flow of Events]
3. Co-curricular activities help to instill leadership qualities in students. Do you agree? Give reasons to
support your view. [Argumentative]
4. Write a story about a teenager whose hard work and determination helped him to win a
competition. End your story with: “… He jumped with joy as all his hard work and determination
had paid off.” [Descriptive / Flow of Events]
5. Describe your first experience with online shopping. You should write about what you bought and
your feelings. [Descriptive / Listing Down Ideas / Flow of Events]

Source:
Penang 2018
TO CONCLUDE . . .
When you look at CW questions,

• Decide: Listing Down Ideas VS Flow of Events

When writing your descriptive composition,

• Describe using the Five Senses

• Use least frequent vocabulary
• Avoid repetition