Descriptosaurus Story Writing
Language in Action for Ages 5-9
2nd Edition
Will be published approx. on 5. August 2026
326 pages
E-Book
978-1-040-85377-1 (ISBN)
Description
Now in full colour, the new edition of the bestselling Descriptosaurus Story Writing is a must-have resource for primary classrooms. Fully updated to reflect the DfE Writing Framework, it equips children aged 5-9 with the tools to expand their descriptive vocabulary and understand how to construct compelling narrative texts.
Packed with practical guidance, this book provides essential building blocks for writing, helping young learners overcome the cognitive challenges of mastering words, phrases, clauses and sentences. Combining proven methods with innovative approaches, it dramatically improves children's knowledge, understanding and application of language, grammar and punctuation in KS1 and KS2. This exciting new edition includes:
Vocabulary for settings, characters, sensory descriptions and dialogue.
Five model narratives written in different styles and levels of difficulty.
Resources for poetry to encourage creative language play.
A grammar-in-context section showcasing effective methods like sentence imitation, innovation, combining and expansion.
New sections exploring the use of AI to enhance literacy development.
Accessible and easy-to-follow, Descriptosaurus Story Writing is an indispensable resource that provides a step-by-step approach to assist young writers in mastering sentence construction while empowering them to craft their own stories with confidence and creativity.
Packed with practical guidance, this book provides essential building blocks for writing, helping young learners overcome the cognitive challenges of mastering words, phrases, clauses and sentences. Combining proven methods with innovative approaches, it dramatically improves children's knowledge, understanding and application of language, grammar and punctuation in KS1 and KS2. This exciting new edition includes:
Vocabulary for settings, characters, sensory descriptions and dialogue.
Five model narratives written in different styles and levels of difficulty.
Resources for poetry to encourage creative language play.
A grammar-in-context section showcasing effective methods like sentence imitation, innovation, combining and expansion.
New sections exploring the use of AI to enhance literacy development.
Accessible and easy-to-follow, Descriptosaurus Story Writing is an indispensable resource that provides a step-by-step approach to assist young writers in mastering sentence construction while empowering them to craft their own stories with confidence and creativity.
Reviews / Votes
"I've loved every version of Descriptosaurus, and this Story Writing edition is no exception. It breaks story writing into clear, child-friendly steps, packed with rich vocabulary, sentence models and ready-to-lift examples. Perfect for KS1 and lower KS2, it supports planning, modelling and scaffolding without killing creativity. A genuine time-saving saviour for busy teachers and a resource pupils actually love to use."Andrew Jennings, author of Vocabulary Ninja.
More details
Edition
2nd edition
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Target group
College/higher education
Professional and scholarly
Illustrations
328 Tables, color; 3 Line drawings, color; 9 Halftones, color; 12 Illustrations, color
ISBN-13
978-1-040-85377-1 (9781040853771)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Book
approx. 08/2026
2nd Edition
Routledge
€31.50
Not yet published
Persons
Alison Wilcox is the creator of Descriptosaurus, a resource designed to scaffold and enhance children's creative writing. Developed for her own teaching, it led to the first book's publication in 2009. Alison now researches, writes, collaborates with schools and conducts workshops, inspiring educators and students through innovative educational practices.
Adam Bushnell is a former primary school teacher and author of over fifty books spanning fiction and academia. He delivers writing workshops for children in the UK and internationally, offers CPD for schools and gives keynote speeches at conferences about reading and writing in education.
Adam Bushnell is a former primary school teacher and author of over fifty books spanning fiction and academia. He delivers writing workshops for children in the UK and internationally, offers CPD for schools and gives keynote speeches at conferences about reading and writing in education.
Content
Part 1: Settings 1. Woods, forests and rainforests 2. Hills and mountains 3. Sea and Oceans 4. Islands and Beaches 5. Caves 6. Cold climates 7. Castles 8. Modern Street 9. Sounds 10. Smells 11. Touch 12. Sun 13. Wind 14. Rain 15. Thunder and lightning Part 2: Characters 16. Characters' appearance 17. Characters (heroes) - personality 18. Characters (heroes) - animals 19. Characters (villains) - personality 20. Characters (villains) - animals 21. Defeating a villain 22. Dialogue Part 3: Resources for 'Language in Action' 23. 'The Ninjabread Girl' 24. Modelled sentences 25. Innovating sentence model 26. Coordination and subordination 27. 'Captain Moody and his pirate crew' 28. Modelled sentences 29. Innovating sentence model 30. Coordination and subordination 31. 'Ruby Red' 32. Modelled sentences 33. Innovating sentence model 34. Coordination and subordination 35. 'Jack and the Crystal Fang' 36. Modelled sentences 37. Innovating sentence model 38. Coordination and subordination Part 4: Mastering Sentence Construction Through Story Writing 39. Belle the Dog and Jet the Tortoise 40. Modelled sentences 41. Using Descriptosaurus to collect vocabulary 42. Grammar Tools 43. The Chunking Method 44. Sentence imitation 45. Sentence Expansion 46. Sentence Combining 47. Poetry Combining 48. AI & Descriptosaurus Appendix 1. Plot Outline Template 2. Scene Outline Template 3. Collecting Descriptive Words and Phrases Template 4. Sentence Parts and Structure Template 5. Stretching a Sentence Template 6. Experimenting with Vocabulary and Sentences Template 7. AI resource for the Land of Nod by RL Stevenson 8. AI generated fact sheets for pets 9. AI generated similes for a dog
