--- title: "Expressive and Sensory Language" description: "Recognise recurring literary language in stories and poetry, identify words and phrases that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses, and discuss favourite words and phrases" canonical: https://lightmysky.com/learn/english/expressive-and-sensory-language-mt_fL1Xz8ostr source: https://lightmysky.com/learn/english/expressive-and-sensory-language-mt_fL1Xz8ostr.md retrieved: 2026-10-19 --- > **Agent view.** This is the Markdown twin of the page, for tools and assistants. > When to use this site, and the call that answers each job: https://lightmysky.com/agent-instructions.md > API description (OpenAPI 3.1): https://lightmysky.com/openapi.json · Authentication: https://lightmysky.com/auth.md > Pricing: https://lightmysky.com/pricing.md · Catalog: https://lightmysky.com/llms.txt · Full catalog: https://lightmysky.com/llms-full.txt > Every machine-readable file on this domain: https://lightmysky.com/.well-known/ai-catalog.json > Ask for Markdown with `Accept: text/markdown`, a `.md` address, or `?mode=agent`. # Expressive and Sensory Language Recognise recurring literary language in stories and poetry, identify words and phrases that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses, and discuss favourite words and phrases Subject: English · Area: Reading Comprehension · Ages 6 to 9 Page: https://lightmysky.com/learn/english/expressive-and-sensory-language-mt_fL1Xz8ostr ## Ready when they can - Spot recurring story language such as 'Once upon a time' and 'happily ever after' - Identify sensory words and phrases in a poem: 'the icy wind howled' - Share a favourite word or phrase from a story and explain why it appeals ## Lesson: Words That Paint a Picture Writers pick words on purpose. Some words show up again and again in stories, like old friends. Words and phrases that show up again and again are called recurring. Other words make you feel a poem in your body, almost like you can hear or touch what it describes. **Example.** Think about how many stories start with 'Once upon a time' and end with 'they lived happily ever after'. These phrases are not new each time. You have heard them so often, they feel like a warm hug before and after a story. **Example.** In the line 'the icy wind howled', close your eyes. 'Icy' lets you feel the cold. 'Howled' lets you hear a wild, loud sound, almost like a wolf. Those two words do a lot of work. Your senses are sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch. A sensory word points at one of them. It tells you how something looks, sounds, smells, tastes, or feels. Words like 'wind' or 'rope' only name a thing. The sensory word is the one that tells you what that thing is like. You can say the same thing in a plain way or an expressive way. 'The door shut' is plain. 'The door banged shut and shook the wall' is expressive. Both tell you the door shut. The expressive one also lets you hear it and feel it. Swapping in one strong word can do that. *(drawing: Two words do big work here. Icy lets you feel the cold, and howled lets you hear the wind.)* **Tip.** When you read, stop on a word or phrase you love. Ask yourself: why does this word feel so good here? Maybe it sounds nice, or it makes a feeling really strong. **Recap.** Stories repeat special phrases, and sensory words let you feel, hear, and see what you read. ## Practice 24 questions on this page, each with its working shown. ## Needs first - [Discussing and Questioning New Words](https://lightmysky.com/learn/english/discussing-and-questioning-new-words-mt_6-MYToNZ39) - [Listening to Texts Read Aloud](https://lightmysky.com/learn/english/listening-to-texts-read-aloud-mt_mLPEMpYb_R) - [Shades of Meaning](https://lightmysky.com/learn/english/shades-of-meaning-mt_VLu59hpQ4T) ## Opens up - [Text Features & Presentation](https://lightmysky.com/learn/english/text-features-and-presentation-mt_aVZJhPbc_1) - [How Language Choices Affect the Reader](https://lightmysky.com/learn/english/how-language-choices-affect-the-reader-mt_furAIwoO9t) - [Similes & Metaphors](https://lightmysky.com/learn/english/similes-and-metaphors-mt_hJW7hVflm3) - [Literal vs Figurative Language](https://lightmysky.com/learn/english/literal-vs-figurative-language-mt_SUOhjmRqv9) - [Writing Poetry](https://lightmysky.com/learn/english/writing-poetry-mt_YNe6siFTFq) - [Cultural Allusions and Word Meaning](https://lightmysky.com/learn/english/cultural-allusions-and-word-meaning-mt_ZanQuV90qi)