Connotation- The emotional or cultural meaning attached to a word. Denotation- The literal meaning of a word.

home, house, residence Denotation: Where a person lives at any given time. Connotation:

Writing is painting a picture Alfonzo was tired. VS. Alfonzo shuffled into the kitchen, yawning and blinking. Collapsing onto the chair, he closed his eyes, crossed his arms for a pillow, and slowly tucked his head into the fold. Telling vs. Showing

BRUSHSTROKES Tools to help you add detail and improve your writing.

Participle - a verb that is used as an adjective, usually ending in –ing or –ed. Original sentence: The motor bike drove down the road. Ex. Rumbling loudly, the motor bike drove down the street. Sitting up straighter in his chair, Ben did his best to stay awake while the speaker kept talking.

PAINTING WITH PARTICIPLES Imagine a football player running down a field: The football player darted down the field. Try adding an –ing verb at the beginning of the sentence.

EXAMPLES: ORIGINAL SENTENCE: The football player darted down the field. NEW SENTENCE: Dodging the tackle and weaving through the defense, the football player darted down the field.

DEFINITION PARTICIPLE = A form of a verb that is used as an adjective Examples – the laughing boy - the baked beans

DEFINITION PARTICIPLE = A form of a verb that is used as an adjective Examples – the laughing boy - the baked beans Sitting at her desk, Jane read the letter carefully.

DEFINITION PARTICIPLE = A form of a verb that is used as an adjective Examples – the laughing boy - the baked beans Sitting at her desk, Jane read the letter carefully.

EXAMPLES PAINTING WITH PARTICIPLES Hissing and slithering, the rattlesnake moved swiftly through the tall grass.

EXAMPLES PAINTING WITH PARTICIPLES Hissing and slithering, the rattlesnake moved swiftly through the tall grass.

EXAMPLES PAINTING WITH PARTICIPLES Shifting the weight of the line to his left shoulder and kneeling carefully, he washed his hand in the ocean and held it there, submerged, for more than a minute, watching the blood trail away and the steady movement of the water against his hand as the boat moved. - Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

EXAMPLES PAINTING WITH PARTICIPLES Shifting the weight of the line to his left shoulder and kneeling carefully, he washed his hand in the ocean and held it there, submerged, for more than a minute, watching the blood trail away and the steady movement of the water against his hand as the boat moved. - Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

EXAMPLES PAINTING WITH PARTICIPLES Shifting the weight of the line to his left shoulder and kneeling carefully, he washed his hand in the ocean and held it there, submerged, for more than a minute, watching the blood trail away and the steady movement of the water against his hand as the boat moved. - Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

EXAMPLES PAINTING WITH PARTICIPLES Shifting the weight of the line to his left shoulder and kneeling carefully, he washed his hand in the ocean and held it there, submerged, for more than a minute, watching the blood trail away and the steady movement of the water against his hand as the boat moved. - Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

EXAMPLES PAINTING WITH PARTICIPLES The clown, appearing bright and cheerful, smiled and did his act with unusual certainty for someone who had just killed a man. - Christi F.

EXAMPLES PAINTING WITH PARTICIPLES The clown, appearing bright and cheerful, smiled and did his act with unusual certainty for someone who had just killed a man. - Christi F.

EXAMPLES PAINTING WITH PARTICIPLES The rhino, caught in the tangled rope, looked for freedom. - Erika S.

EXAMPLES PAINTING WITH PARTICIPLES The rhino, caught in the tangled rope, looked for freedom. - Erika S.

GUIDED PRACTICE PAINTING WITH PARTICIPLES The motorbike drove down the street.

The Other Brushstrokes Participles Absolutes Adjectives out of order Active Verbs (no passive) Appositives

Euripides- Medea, punctuation for actors Peri (Greek)- round – All around a subject, well rounded – British word for period Kommas (Greek) - little knife, to cut off

A participial phrase is set off with commas when it: a) comes at the beginning of a sentence b) interrupts a sentence as a nonessential element c) comes at the end of a sentence and is separated from the word it modifies.

A participial phrase is set off with commas when it: a) comes at the beginning of a sentence Sitting quietly, the students read their books.

A participial phrase is set off with commas when it: b) interrupts a sentence as a nonessential element The doctor, shaking nervously, walked into the waiting room to deliver the bad news.

A participial phrase is set off with commas when it: c) comes at the end of a sentence and is separated from the word it modifies. The player jumped for the ball, flailing wildly like a mad man.

When is an appositive NOT set off by commas? When the noun being explained is too general without the appositive; the information is essential to the meaning of the sentence. The respected US president John Kennedy was a symbol of hope when he took office.

When is an appositive NOT set off by commas? When the noun being explained is too general without the appositive; the information is essential to the meaning of the sentence. The respected US president was a symbol of hope when he took office.

Introductory Phrases a group of words that set the stage for the main part of the sentence, but are not a complete thought Ex. Flying through the air with the greatest of ease, he’s a daring young man on the flying trapeze. After the party, Josh swore never to hang out with those people again.