1st grade · English Language Arts · Unit 8 of 17
Describing Words
Opposites and describing words
What your child practices
Opposites (hot and cold) and describing words that tell how something looks, feels, tastes or sounds, including finding the describing word in a sentence.
Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) teks student expectation: 1.11(D) · describing words and opposites
How we explain it
Children can open this short lesson before they practice.
- Describing words tell how something looks, feels or sounds.
- Opposites mean very different things: big and small.
- Other opposites: fast and slow, loud and quiet.
Example: What is the opposite of “hot”? Hot is very warm. Its opposite is cold. Answer: cold
Describing Words in Texas
In the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS), this is unit 8 of 17 in 1st grade English Language Arts, after Story Time and before More Than One.
Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.
- 1st grade guide for Texas parents
- Printable 1st grade English Language Arts sheet
- Texas report cards explained
Source: Texas Education Agency (TEA)
Sample questions
A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.
Question 1
What is the opposite of “up”?
⬆️up- 🐘big
- ⬇️down
- 📕closed
⬇️ down
Hint: Opposites are as different as can be, like up and down.
Question 2
Which word tells about the picture?
🐢turtle- fast
- loud
- slow
slow
Hint: Think about how it looks, feels, tastes or sounds.
Question 3
What is the opposite of “sad”?
😢sad- 😀happy
- 🐘big
- 📕closed
😀 happy
Hint: Opposites are as different as can be, like sad and happy.
Question 4
Find the describing word: “Leo sees a red bus.”
- Leo
- red
- bus
red
Hint: A describing word tells what something is like, such as big, red or soft.
Question 5
Which word tells about the picture?
🧸teddy bear- soft
- spiky
- sour
soft
Hint: Think about how it looks, feels, tastes or sounds.
Question 6
Find the describing word: “Sam ate a sweet plum.”
- Sam
- sweet
- ate
sweet
Hint: A describing word tells what something is like, such as big, red or soft.