Language and Grammar: Persuade

Role-Play Work in a group of three. The citizen wants more laws to protect the environment. The business owner does not want more laws. They both try to persuade the mayor. Use participial phrases in your role-play.

Looking at the lake, I saw trash in the water.

Writing and Grammar: Write About the Night Sky

Study the Models When you write about the night sky, make your sentences interesting. Add details to give readers a clearer picture of what you mean, and vary your sentences. Use participial phrases to help.

Not Ok

My family went camping last summer. We drove to the mountains. We arrived at night. We were amazed by the sky. We had never seen so many stars! The twinkling stars seemed to wink at us.

The reader thinks: “The sentences are too much the same, and the details are not interesting.”

Ok

Sitting outside our tent one night, we saw an amazing sight. Looking up, we noticed a shooting star! It looked like a ball of fire with a glowing tail. The star, dragging a thin stream of light behind it, zoomed through the sky. Thrilled by the sight, I clapped my hands and shouted, “Wow!”

This writer uses participial phrases to create interesting sentences. The reader thinks: “The details really help me picture the star.”

Revise It Look back at the NOT OK passage. Work with a partner to revise it. Place each participial phrase near the noun or pronoun it tells about.

Illustration of a pen icon WRITE ON YOUR OWN Write about something you have seen in the night sky. Use participial phrases to help you write interesting sentences.

REMEMBER

Place each phrase near the noun or pronoun it describes.

Shining brightly, the full moon lighted the path.

The full moon lighted the path covered with leaves.