-You are walking home when you notice signs of a storm gathering around you. Describe what happens and how you feel as you make your way to shelter.(IGCSE LEVEL)
Trudging slowly home with my whining younger sister one humid afternoon,after an uneventful seemingly everlasting day at school, I could feel that the grey atmosphere was becoming unusually choppy. The relentless wind was howling around us like a pack of ravenous wolves and the strong odour of dust hung in the sticky air which seemed was as thick as soup.
''I'm hot!'' moaned my annoying sister as she carelessly unzipped her luminous pink jacket and flung it off her shoulders. Ignoring her, I walked on letting her slowly trail behind.
All of a sudden, and with no warning the heavens opened up,and shed thousands of tears onto the muddy ground. The deafening sounds of the raging storm were tremendous and glancing up the ghostly and deserted street, I noticed with a stab of lonesome fear that my sister and I were all alone.
''Hey!I'm drenched!and where's everyone disappeared to?'' hollered my little sister. I glanced back and saw the terror in her wide open eyes.
''Don't worry!'' I replied comfortingly to her ''Quick,here's somewhere we can take shelter until this storm calms down!''
Diving hastily behind a reeking bright yellow bin, I dragged her in after me. She was shivering out of cold and fear, and her dark auburn hair was soaked to the roots.
Pulling my sister close to me for warmth, I peered out from our shelter. The dark sky looked like black ink spilled from a bottle and the sheets of rain were cascading down in colossal torrents..
How I wished I was in the safety of our cozy home, drinking a steaming mug of hot chocolate and watching the angry storm with curiosity from my large bedroom windows.
An earsplitting rumbling in the distance brought me out of my longing thoughts and after a moment flashes of lightning ripped through the sky like a stabbing knife. Shrinking back into our temporary hiding place, I wondered dismally how long this fierce storm would last.
I appreciate the help!
In this passage, the author describes their experience of walking home during a storm and finding shelter. To answer the question of how they feel and what happens as they make their way to shelter, we can analyze the passage.
1. Description of the atmosphere: The author mentions signs of a storm gathering, including a grey and choppy atmosphere, howling wind, and a thick and sticky air. These details create a sense of anticipation and unease.
2. Arrival of the storm: Suddenly, the storm starts with no warning, and the rain pours down heavily. The author describes the sound of the storm as deafening, and they realize that they are alone on the deserted street.
3. Comforting the sister: The author responds to their sister's complaints and fear by assuring her that they will find shelter. They take cover behind a bright yellow bin, which provides temporary protection from the rain.
4. Observing the storm: From their shelter, the author describes the dark sky, the sheets of rain, and flashes of lightning that rip through the sky. These descriptions convey a sense of danger and intensity.
5. Longing for home: The author reflects on their longing to be safe and cozy at home, drinking hot chocolate and watching the storm from their bedroom window. This highlights their desire for comfort and security.
6. Uncertainty: The passage ends with the author wondering how long the storm will last, expressing a sense of uncertainty about their situation.
To fully answer the question, you can use these points to write a paragraph describing your feelings and experiences as you make your way to shelter during the storm. Draw on the details from the passage to add depth to your description.
Hello Zakkiya! I have made some corrections and alterations in your writing. There were a few points where I was unclear as to what you had intended to say, so I wrote comments in brackets. Some of your own words are in square brackets, and my comments are in regular brackets. My intention was that you could see why certain corrections were made. I hope that makes it clear for you, and that you find it helpful!
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Trudging home one humid afternoon with my whining younger sister, after an uneventful and seemingly everlasting day at school, I could feel the grey atmosphere becoming [unusually choppy]. (What do you mean to convey by ‘choppy atmosphere’?)
The relentless wind was howling around us like a pack of ravenous wolves. A strong odour of dust hung in the sticky air which [seemed] as thick as soup. (You have already used the word ‘seem’ in your previous sentence in the form ‘seemingly’. Consider replacing it with a more sensory word… play around with how you might feel air. It could be simply the sticky air ‘felt’ or maybe you can taste the dusty air that is thick as soup.)
''I'm hot!'' moaned my [annoying] sister as she carelessly unzipped her [luminous] pink jacket and flung it off her shoulders. (Consider removing annoying, as it is implied by the moaning. ‘Luminous’ is a bit out of context with a jacket, as it would be used to describe something that emits its own light. Although fluorescent may work better, seeing as it is used to describe both light and colour.)
I walked on, ignoring her as she slowly trailed behind. (You started the sentence with the present participle ‘ignoring’ and finished it with ‘letting’. Particularly in such a short sentence, you should avoid doing that, because it sounds awkward. Rewording the sentence a little bit makes it less confusing as to which actions are happening at a given moment.)
[All of a sudden, and with no warning] the heavens opened up, and shed thousands of tears onto the muddy ground. (Choose one or the other, but not both. Your next sentence identifies this as a ‘deafening’ storm, but your context is not set up in this sentence. Try to introduce some sense of noise or power in this sentence, by perhaps using an adverb with ‘shed’ or adjective with ‘tears’.)
The deafening sounds of the raging storm were tremendous. Glancing up the ghostly and deserted street, I noticed, with a stab of lonesome fear, that my sister and I were alone.
''Hey! I'm drenched! Where's everyone disappeared to?'' hollered my sister. I [glanced] back and saw the terror in her wide eyes. (You have already used ‘glance’ in your previous sentence. Find a synonym. Removed open. That is obvious in the context)
''Don't worry!'' I comforted her. “Here's somewhere we can take shelter until this storm calms down!''
Diving hastily behind a reeking bright yellow bin, I dragged her in after me. She was shivering out of cold and fear, and her dark auburn hair was soaked to the roots.
Pulling my sister close to me for warmth, I peered out from our shelter. The dark sky looked like black ink spilled from a bottle and the sheets of rain were cascading down in colossal torrents.
How I wished I was in the safety of our cozy home, drinking a steaming mug of hot chocolate and watching the angry storm with curiosity from my large bedroom windows.
An earsplitting rumbling in the distance brought me out of my longing, and after a moment flashes of lightning ripped through the sky like a stabbing knife. (It is better to write either ‘longing’ or something like ‘drifting thoughts’, because ‘longing’ and ‘thoughts’ are very close in substance.) Shrinking back into our temporary hiding place, I wondered dismally how long this fierce storm would last.
(One last note: have you considered giving your sister a name? This would useful to mix into your text, seeing as you have much repetition of ‘my sister’. It would be more fluid if you could interchange ‘my sister’, ‘she’ and a name.) Hope this helps! : D
I forgot to mention:
You wrote 'an earsplitting rumbling'. Change this to 'an earsplitting rumble'.
After reading my correction on 'longing' again, I would replace it with 'reverie'.
I feel like it would fit your intention perfectly, and it sounds nice :)
Using 'refuge' instead of 'hiding place' would work well: 'temporary refuge'.
Okay, that's all, finally!