You will be writing a descriptive story about the totem pole you will create.  To do this, your group should 1) brainstorm ideas based on your research and creative thoughts; 2) get your thoughts down on paper to create a first draft; 3) edit your story by reading it aloud in your group; and 4) create a final draft and proofread it for any final errors.

Descriptive writing should contain the following elements:

· Adjectives
· Sensory words
· Action verbs
· Detailed examples that create a picture
· Writing that shows rather than tells

<People, places and things should be portrayed with enough detail to give the reader a mental picture of what you are talking about.>

Each story should have a beginning, middle and end – 3 paragraphs is a good format.

Beginning – Create a picture.  Where are you?  What are you seeing, thinking, feeling, smelling?  Make your reader want to keep reading by using lots of descriptive words!

Middle – Describe the totem pole you have created and are looking at.  Your totem must describe at least four animal totems.  What else was happening around you?  Are there any other objects around you that need describing?

End – Remember, you are still writing to create a picture.  How does your story end?  Is the ending mysterious?  Does the ending try to explain anything about the item you just described in the middle?  Think about how to create an ending to make your reader wish there was more!