Lead your class into the wonderful, wild woods with this rich and varied array of descriptive words, similes and creature references. Draw from it for your own use and to prompt more suggestions from your students. This comprehensive list provides for every sort of wood, from damp and soggy to misty and mysterious, sparkling and scented, and twitching with animal life. The last column lists hints of creature and plant activity - squawks, squeaks, prickles and stings… Let your young writers roam this absorbing concept-bank to build their own ideas for creative writing, drama, art, music or speaking.

Sea similes and free style creative writing are invited on this wavy-sea picture poem, entitled “Summer’s Day Sea”. Children in my workshops are keen to write on the waves, thinking up their own similes for the sea and sand, and details to follow ‘It goes…’ and ‘You may find…’ IDEAS: The sea might be as blue as the fresh, summer sky, as refreshing as a dripping, mouthwatering, mint ice lolly, and as lacy as a bride’s frilly wedding dress. Or it might be as curly as hair rollers, as fun as your dream birthday party, or as reflecting as a gleaming, polished mirror. Perhaps start children off with similes for sparkly, e.g. as a whirl of precious diamonds, as silver glitter on a Christmas card, or as the twinkling stars in the night sky. SEE ALSO Stormy Sea simile sheet:**** https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/stormy-sea-poetry-frame-guide-12043779**** and Treasure Map alliteration fun: https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/treasure-map-alliteration-game-yr1-6-guide-for-use-11887395 - both very popular!

Bring fun and laughter into your space studies with this two-page, quick-fire roll of crazy, snappy rhymes about aliens, rockets, stars and more! Most are couplets, with a few 4-line verses too, and all are bonkers! They’ll inspire variations and brand new rhymes from your class, boosting their literacy skills. The rhymes are my own, and I’ve used some in my space poetry sessions. TIPS for class rhymes - I recommend starting with “space”, eliciting a list of single words that rhyme with it to write below. Then fill up the line leading up to “space”, e.g. I saw an alien up in space, and finally think up a line to end with your rhyming word, e.g. She was doing up her lace. Have fun! **SEE ALSO ** - PLANET poetry frame (Yrs 2-4) - https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/planet-poetry-frame-ys-2-4-12018025 + Planet picture-poem frame (KS2) - https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/planet-picture-poem-frame-ks2-guidance-sheet-11886984

Windy Day poetry-writing sheet. Creative writing frame on wild, blustery day theme, illustrated, with** teacher’s guide sheet.** Format: poem in 4 verses, with gaps for action words, onomatopoeia and similes. Rhymes incorporated. Guide sheet provides completed example poem, with word and simile bank below, handy for quick reference when guiding and prompting students. Able writers can develop the poem with follow-on verses, introducing their own approaches if wished, while those needing support will enjoy the simplicity of inserting their word and simile ideas into the gaps to make a flowing, rhyming poem. More weather poem frames available in my catalogue too.

Great for St David’s Day dragon writing! Watch out for the ________ dragon! This exciting writing sheet starts. It’s as ___ as a ___ (perhaps hot as a volcano or red as a ripe tomato). Two more open similes follow, then two lines for features details, an action line - 'He goes__ ing __ ’ (perhaps gliding through the sunset to his secret cave, or cartwheeling over the mountaintops, or flame-blasting through your classrooms). The last line is always a favourite in this tried and tested sheet: His favourite food is __ ’ . Recommended for lower juniors. Supports Literacy, particularly poetry, creativity and vocabulary-stretching; also enriching Myths & Legends studies.

Stormy Day poetry format with prompts and gaps to fill, illustrated, in three grades, recommended for ages 6-7, Yr 2. Tried and tested successfully with three Y2 classes of mixed ability. Warm up with discussion, pictures, opening window to check today’s weather, and acting out. Be the wind, rain, lightning, thunder and finally the welcoming sun coming out. Remember the rainbow too! Discuss simile ideas for the lightning and thunder. Share describing words for the sun at the end - gentle, kind, merry, warm, cheerful… The wind might be blowing at your coat, howling round the trees, roaring at the washing on the line. The rain might be going pitter-patter, drip-drop, or splish, splash, splosh. The lightning might be as bright as a flashing firework, flame or torch. The thunder could be as loud as drums, a lion’s roar or a popping balloon. Above all, have fun!

Seaside Creative Writing Sheets - easier/harder: Seaside writing on wavy lines is fun! Children love using these sheets in my poetry workshops. The sea is __ and __. It is as sparkly as __. You might find , My sandcastle is as big as a - and more on the harder sheet. These line-starters open up exciting possibilities for young writers. See my very simple version too. Many other sea-themed writing sheets here too.

These attractive star pictures are fun to write in, and there are plenty of straight lines to write on - shooting in all directions. The variations are graded in difficulty, with increasing opportunities for words and similes, the hardest having three descriptive lines to complete below, about stars, sky and space. Colouring possibilities are wide open. Recommended approach: first, in a wide space, ‘be’ stars with your group, pointing, shooting, whirling, glowing, winking, blinking, dancing, spinning. Then prompt for verbs like these, and adjectives, such as spiky, sharp, peaceful, gentle, high up, twinkly, pretty, delicate, dainty, tiny - and different colours. The similes are for sparkly stars and dark space. The 3-sheet resource has been used with rewarding results in my workshops. They are hand-drawn and home-produced, so don’t expect perfect symmetry!

This beautiful and fascinating picture of a lush, flowery meadow will inspire children to colour in the details with thought and imagination. It promotes understanding of the natural world, including mini-beasts and birds, and develops fine motor skills, colour sense and pattern and shape awareness, also offering a focus for discussion. See also my video-poem - ‘Summer Grass’ - https://youtu.be/WWBSjiBTDOg

Birds in flight is a fascinating, exhilarating theme, ideal for the evocative mini-poem, the haiku. This sheet provides 3 haiku frames, three haiku starter-lines, information about haiku and how they work, inspirational commentary on the theme, and tips for preparing your children to compose them. Birds may sweep and swoop, tip and tilt, glide and cruise through skies of all sorts, perhaps catching the sun on their wings. What do they look like, up there against that crystal blue, peachy sunset or leaden cloud? Are they like darts, bullets, a swarm of bees, dancing butterflies or some other image? Where are they heading, how long is their journey and how do they know the route? Young, fluffy chicks are fun to write about, too, hop-skip-flapping off on their first, bumpy flight. More haiku sheets here, on other topics.

FREE: Meadow words and similes are invited for the ten writing gaps in this vibrant, flowery meadow picture - an engaging writing task, stretching vocabulary and building literacy confidence while developing appreciation of nature. A gap-clear version of the photo is included for inspiration. A Guide Sheet for teachers provides handy ideas for word and similes to give as prompts and examples. Supports poetry and descriptive writing, all-round literacy, nature study, global warming discussion, plant, colour, outdoor world and other topics. A great gap-filler, too, for any time, any class (approx. Yrs 2-6). See my other word-gaps in topical pictures too.