New
New
Year 10
AQA
Structuring paragraphs effectively in creative writing
I can plan and write a piece of creative writing with effective paragraphing.
New
New
Year 10
AQA
Structuring paragraphs effectively in creative writing
I can plan and write a piece of creative writing with effective paragraphing.
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Lesson details
Key learning points
- Paragraphs are the building blocks of creative writing, allowing our writing to take on an interesting structure.
- We should plan an interesting paragraph structure before we begin creative writing to engage the reader.
- We can begin with a wide perspective, narrow into a scene and end with a moment of tension.
- Prepositional phrases help us transition from one paragraph to another.
Keywords
Alluring - powerfully or mysteriously attractive.
Devour - eat or consume eagerly.
Intricate - very complex or detailed.
Common misconception
Planning each paragraph to describe a different aspect of the scene will always create an engaging description.
Describing something different in each paragraph does not necessarily lead to an interesting description - it is the way in which the paragraphs link and build curiosity and tension that can make it more engaging.
You could revisit the opening of 'After Dark' by Haruki Murakami to give students some inspiration for their writing in this lesson.
Teacher tip
Licence
This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on
Open Government Licence version 3.0
except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).Lesson video
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Starter quiz
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6 Questions
Q1.
When should we start a new paragraph in our writing?
when you start a new sentence
Q2.
To improve the structure of our writing what can we do?
vary our vocabulary
use more complex sentences
Q3.
What does 'devour' mean?
to eat something slowly
to eat something calmly
Q4.
Which of these sentences uses the word 'alluring' correctly?
The scorching sun created an alluring heat, leaving people uncomfortable.
Q5.
What should you do first when asked to write a piece of creative writing?
write the last sentence of each paragraph
begin writing everything at once
Q6.
What might be the most thorough and effective way to plan a piece of creative writing?
to write down all the language devices we will use
to write a list of ambitious vocabulary we will use
Exit quiz
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6 Questions
Q1.
Starting with the first, put the points to create an engaging paragraph structure in the correct order.
Q2.
If we use a wide perspective to describe what are we most likely to write about?
a person's facial features
a characters's feelings
Q3.
If we use a zoomed in perspective what are we most likely to do?
provide a birds-eye view of a scene
describe what you can smell, taste, hear and see within a scene
Q4.
If we want to build tension in a narrative, which of these can we do?
describe events in a random order
repeatedly use a one sentence paragraph
Q5.
Complete the sentence: paragraphs are the blocks of a piece of writing.
unimportant
long
Q6.
To help us transition from paragraph to paragraph when describing a scene, it is helpful to use ...
adjective phrases.
noun phrases.