Use a variety of different objects to instill an understanding of adjectives in students. Set out molding clay, pieces of satin, bowls of cotton balls and pieces of sandpaper. Invite students to feel, smell, touch and look at the different objects. After observing the objects, ask them to provide one word that describes them and write down the words that they use: for example, smooth, stretchy, fluffy, rough, brown, white and so forth. Explain to students that these words are known as adjectives and that they are used to describe things. Hang the list of adjectives that has been created on a wall so that students can refer to it during writing activities.
In this activity, students use adjectives to describe one another. On pieces of paper, write the names of the students in your class. Fold up the papers and distribute one to each student. Instruct students to read the name they have been given, but tell them not to reveal it to anyone. Inform them that they are going to create a list of adjectives that describes the person they have been given (be sure that they don't use hurtful words). For example, they may provide eye color, height, hair color, the color clothing the person is wearing and aspects of their personality. After composing their lists, invite students to read them aloud and see if classmates can determine the different people based on the adjectives.
Send students on a hunt to find items based on adjectives you provide them with. State a few different adjectives that pertain to a particular item in the classroom; for example, it's yellow, and it has a point on one end and a pink top on the other. The first student to find a pencil earns a point. Continue playing, describing different adjectives with each round of the game. The student who collects the most points wins the game.
In this game, students have to try to guess something they can't see based on a list of adjectives. Print out pictures of different items: a cat, a frog and an ice cube, for example. Select two students to stand at the front of the classroom with their backs facing the board and hang one of the pictures behind them. Classmates offer adjectives that describe the picture and the first student to correctly guess the item in the picture remains standing, while the other student sits down. Select another student to come to the front of the room and hang a different picture behind the two. Continue playing until all students have had a turn. The last student standing, or the one who stood the longest, wins the game.