📖 Part 1: Read and Notice

Success criteria: I can find descriptive words and phrases, identify the sense they appeal to, and explain the mood they create.

Read each extract. Underline words that help you picture the setting. Then record one sensory word or precise descriptive phrase and identify the sense it appeals to.

Perseus and Medusa

Beyond the cliffs, the island lay silent beneath a bruised-purple sky. Sharp stones glittered around the cave mouth, and the air smelled of salt and smoke.

Theseus and the Minotaur

The labyrinth twisted below the palace like a giant stone knot. Narrow passages swallowed the torchlight, and every footstep echoed from the cold walls.

King Midas and the Golden Touch

The palace garden shone beneath the morning sun. Roses, fountains, and ripe fruit gleamed like treasure, but the golden branches stood stiff and lifeless.

✏️ Part 2: Build a Mental Image

Choose one extract. You may sketch or describe the setting. Include details from the text.

Use this sentence frame: I imagine ____________________ because the text says “____________________”.

🌟 Support and Challenge

Helpful sense words: see • hear • smell • feel • taste

Helpful starters: “The word ____________________ makes me picture ____________________.”

“This creates a ____________________ mood because ____________________.”

Dyslexia-friendly reading options: Follow the text with a ruler or finger, listen while a partner or teacher reads aloud, and use coloured pencils to underline sensory words.

Extension: Rewrite one sentence using a different precise verb to change the mood. Add one simile and two sensory details.