David Writing Tutor
... bringing the writing class to you
Word Banks
Word Banks are an excellent tool for writers – especially when tackling the GCSE English paper.
A Word Bank lets you collect together words and short phrases about a subject and note them down. It’s like putting money in the bank: you save up ideas now and use them later when you need them.
Word banks help avoid the dreaded blank page.
How can a word bank help in the GCSE exam?
Before you begin to write your response to an exam question, give yourself a minute or two to complete a word bank. It is all part of your planning process.
You’re not writing for the examiner to read, so there’s no pressure. Relax and write whatever you think would help you to write the best answer you can.
You maybe noting down details from the picture prompt in the exam paper. You might want to note down some ideas from part one of the paper. Both these can spark your imagination for the descriptive writing section.
Word banks help you prepare for your writing and are a proven way to avoid the “blank page” problem.
Ideas for adult learners
You can use a word bank for many things: character design, outlining scenes, describing places, or world-building. They’re also helpful when preparing blog posts and other online writing.
Here are a few subjects to get you started:
-
Nature – summer, winter, forests, the sea, trees, flowers, butterflies, foxes
-
Feelings – happy, sad, fear, joy, contempt, power, vulnerability
-
Everyday life – travelling, work, sleep, food, family, holidays
Keep using word banks in your writer’s notebook. Completing word banks regularly will keep your creative writing muscles nicely toned.
How I use them in my classes
In the worksheets I use in class, we start by choosing a subject or using a picture prompt. Then there’s space for the first words that come to mind. This is very creative and free – nothing is ‘wrong’.
After that, there’s a section for any additional thoughts, including words from a dictionary or thesaurus.
Finally, there’s space for any other creative ideas that have come to mind. For adult learners, this might include writing a short verse or a haiku. For my GCSE students, we would then use this to plan out or write an exam style response.
There are a couple of word bank examples from my journal to show how they work along with a free downloadable blank Word Bank Worksheet.
Enjoy your writing!
David
“Never be lost for words with a Word Bank.”
Downloadable Word Bank Worksheet
