How to Master the O-Level Descriptive Essay: 2025 O-Level Question, “Sights and Sounds of a Journey”

Hello everyone, I’m Teacher Jemmies, an experienced educator who has been teaching Secondary 3 and 4 students and guiding hundreds through their O-Level English examinations for more than 25 years. (Oh no, I’m so old!) Anyway, I’ve seen this descriptive writing question appear consistently in Paper 1 school exam papers and actual O-Level papers. “Describe the sights and sounds of a journey that you have taken recently either on foot or using any form of transport”  Do you feel challenged by such descriptive essay questions? Do you know that with systematic preparation and the right techniques, this question can become your pathway to securing an A1 grade?

Let me share the strategies that have helped my students consistently achieve top marks in their descriptive essays.

1. Unpacking the Question ACCURATELY: What Examiners Really Want

As an experienced teacher, I can tell you that many students misinterpret this question. Let me break it down precisely:

“Describe” – This is not a narrative essay. You’re not telling a story with rising action, climax, and resolution. Instead, you’re creating a vivid snapshot or a moving motion picture that allows readers to experience your journey through their senses. Think of yourself as a skilled photographer capturing moments in words. Bear in mind that the photos are taken in a logical sequential flow.

“Sights and sounds” – These are your primary focus areas. While you may weave in other senses (smell, touch, taste), visual and auditory details must dominate your descriptive writing. The majority of us are visual creatures and we recall information based on what we see. So I always tell my students: “If a reader closes their eyes after reading your essay, they should still ‘see’ and ‘hear’ your journey in their mind.”

“A journey” – This indicates movement and progression. Your essay must show the transition from Point A to Point B, whether it’s a 10-minute walk, a 45-minute train ride or a 2-hour bus ride. The physical journey often mirrors an internal journey of reflection or realisation. You also need to consider the emotions that are intertwined in your moments of reflection.

“Recently” – Choose something from the past few months. Recent experiences allow for authentic, detailed descriptions that feel genuine rather than fabricated. The teachers marking your essays often have the awareness that you’re a teenager so your writing should reflect something which is representative of your age group.

2. Selecting Your Journey: Strategic Choices for Singapore Students

In my years of teaching, I’ve noticed that relatable yet specific journeys score highest. Here are proven choices that resonate with Singapore examiners:

Here are some tried and tested ideas that helped my students to score A1:

• Dawn bus ride to school  – Perfect for capturing the city’s awakening
• Evening walk through void decks and HDB corridors – Rich in community sounds and familiar sights
• MRT journey during rush hour  – Excellent for human observation and urban soundscapes
• Cycling along park connectors – Great for nature meets urban contrasts
• Ferry ride to Sentosa or Pulau Ubin – Offers unique maritime perspectives
• Walk through hawker centres during meal times – Sensory overload opportunities
• Walk through wet markets during the morning hustle – This can be an essay packed with human descriptions and fine details of a busy place.
• Late-night stroll in neighbourhood park – Atmospheric and reflective
• Journey home during a thunderstorm – Natural drama without forced conflict

Pro tip from my classroom: Choose a journey you’ve taken multiple times recently. Familiarity will be helpful in creating authentic details in your writing. Detailed and authentic recollection of a journey impresses examiners.

3. The Two-Pillar Approach: Mastering Sights and Sounds

Crafting Powerful Visual Descriptions:

Instead of: “The buildings were tall and had many windows.”
Write: “Glass towers stretched upward like crystalline fingers, their countless windows catching the morning light and throwing it back in brilliant, fragmented rainbows.”

Techniques I teach my students:

• Use specific rather than generic nouns: “proud peacocks strutting around in the gardens” not “birds,” “razor sharp dagger” not “weapon”
• Employ strong, precise verbs: “spilled,” “cascaded,” “flickered” instead of “was” or “had”
• Create visual metaphors: Compare unfamiliar sights to familiar experiences
• Vary your visual focus: Wide shots (panoramic views) to close-ups (dewdrops on leaves)

Capturing Compelling Sound Descriptions:

Sound descriptions often separate good essays from excellent ones. Here’s what I teach my students:

Layer your sounds:

• Background sounds: The constant hum of air-conditioning, distant traffic
• Foreground sounds: Footsteps, conversations, specific mechanical noises
• Sudden sounds: A horn blast, laughter, a door slamming

Example from a student’s A1 essay: “The rhythmic thock-thock of my sneakers on wet pavement provided a steady beat, occasionally interrupted by the sharp hiss of bus brakes and the gentle patter of raindrops finding their way through the void deck overhang.”

4. The FATS Framework: Adding Emotional Depth

This is a technique that transforms mechanical descriptions into compelling a narrative that can make a marker feel for your essay:

F - Feelings

Don’t just state emotions; weave them into your descriptions with literary devices.
Weak: “I felt tired.”
Strong: “Exhaustion settled into my shoulders like a heavy backpack, making each step feel deliberate and measured.”

A - Actions

Include small, specific actions that reveal different sides of the character. This will to make the reader feel closer or relate better to the humans in a descriptive essay.
• Adjusting your bag strap
• Pausing to let an elderly person pass
• Checking your phone’s reflection in a shop window
• Stepping around puddles

T - Thoughts

Internal monologue adds sophistication: “As the MRT doors slid shut with their familiar whoosh, I found myself wondering when I’d stopped noticing the intricate tile patterns on station walls. The kaleidoscopic patterns once fascinated my younger self.”

S - Speech

Dialogue and overheard conversations bring scenes alive and bring the reader deeper into the scenes of the story.
• Station announcements
• Snippets of conversations
• Internal questions you ask yourself

5. Descriptive Essay Structure

After marking and teaching descriptive essay writing for so many years, I’ve identified this structure as most effective:

Introduction:

• Establish time, place, and mood immediately
• Include at least two sensory details
• Hint at the emotional or reflective journey to come
Sample Introduction: “The 6:30 AM MRT carriage hummed with quiet efficiency as it curved toward Outram Park, its fluorescent lights casting everything in stark, clinical brightness. Outside the windows, the city’s skyline emerged from pre-dawn shadows like a developing photograph, while inside, the soft rustle of newspapers and muffled conversations created an oddly comforting cocoon of human presence.”

Body Paragraph 1: Journey's Beginning

Focus primarily on initial sights with supporting sounds. Establish the physical and emotional starting point.

Body Paragraph 2: Journey's Middle + A specific action / activity

Make this the climax of your descriptive essay by adding a specific action or activity that can happen mid-journey (e.g. a young toddler’s wail pierced the silence in the MRT cabin, a deep rumble of the sudden thunder reverberated against the windows of the moving bus) Shift focus to sounds with supporting visual details. This is often where the emotional or reflective turn occurs.

Body Paragraph 3: Journey's End

Combine both senses effectively. Show how the physical journey has led to internal change or realisation.

Conclusion:

Reflect on what the journey meant. Connect back to your opening mood, showing growth or change.

6. Advanced Techniques: Elevating Your Writing

Sentence Variety Matters:

Mix sentence lengths strategically:
• Short sentences for impact or to pick up the pace of your storytelling: “The train stopped. Silence.”
• Medium sentences for steady rhythm or adding background details: “Commuters filed past me with practiced efficiency.”
• Long sentences for flowing description and enhanced elaboration: “The morning sun, filtering through the glass canopy above the bus interchange, created a cathedral of light and shadow that transformed the mundane concrete into something almost sacred.” (You must use long sentences with great care. Do not end up writing run-on sentences unknowingly. This is a major mistake that will affect your language score.)

Sophisticated Transition Techniques:

Instead of: “Then,” “Next,” “After that”
Use longer transitional sentences: 
• “As the bus rounded the corner toward Orchard Road…”
• “By the time we reached the third stop…”
• “The moment the doors opened at my destination…”

Figurative Language That Works:

• Metaphor: “The MRT map became a lifeline of coloured arteries”
• Simile: “Conversations bubbled around me like water over stones”
• Personification: “The old shophouses seemed to lean in, sharing secrets”

7. Common Pitfalls: What Costs Students Marks

The Narrative Trap:

Wrong: “I was running late, so I missed my bus. Then I had to wait twenty minutes. Finally, another bus came…” This is more like a personal recount rather than a descriptive essay.
Right: Focus on describing the experience of waiting—what you saw, heard, felt during those twenty minutes.

The Laundry List Error:

Wrong: “I saw trees. I heard birds. I saw cars. I heard engines.”
Right: Choose 2-3 strong details and develop them fully with precise language and emotional connection.

Adjective Overload:

Wrong: “The very busy, extremely noisy, incredibly crowded street”
Right: “Motorcycles wove between stationary cars like urgent messengers, their engines creating a symphony of mechanical urgency.”

Clichéd Descriptions:

Instead of: “Birds chirped sweetly”
Write: “A solitary mynah called from the void deck ceiling, its voice echoing off concrete walls like a question waiting for an answer.”

8. Sample Student Success: A Complete Paragraph

Here’s an excerpt from one of my student’s A1 essay:
“The evening bus swayed gently as it navigated the familiar bends toward my neighbourhood, its interior bathed in the warm glow of LED strips that transformed every passenger into a slightly golden silhouette. Outside the windows, the shophouses of Chinatown slid past like pages in a well-loved book, their traditional colonial structures casting short shadows along the asphalt road. The sharp contrast of old shophouses against the high-rise HDB flats formed a strong juxtaposition of two different eras. The soft humming of the bus’ running engine wove itself into the distant background. As I pressed my palm against the cool glass, I watched my reflection merge and separate with each passing street lamp, like a ghost dancing between two worlds. In that moment, I realised this ordinary journey had quietly transformed into a meditation on all the extraordinary details I had been rushing past for months, details that had been patiently waiting for me to simply pause and notice.”

Beyond the Grade: Why you should learn how to write descriptive essays

Mastering descriptive writing develops crucial life skills: observation, empathy, and reflection. The student who can capture the quiet dignity of an elderly man waiting for the bus, or the hopeful energy of children playing in void decks, is developing the awareness and sensitivity that will serve you well beyond examinations.

The “sights and sounds” essay isn’t just about scoring well—it’s about learning to truly see  and hear  the world around you. In our fast-paced Singapore society, this skill of mindful observation becomes even more valuable.

Remember: every journey, no matter how ordinary, contains extraordinary moments. Your task is to find them, capture them, and share them with such clarity and emotion that your readers feel they’ve taken the journey with you.

Trust in your observations, be specific in your details, and let your authentic voice guide the reader through your experience. The A1 grade will follow naturally.

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q1: What is the 2025 O-Level descriptive essay question and how should students approach it?

The 2025 O-Level question asks students to “Describe the sights and sounds of a journey that you have taken recently.” This isn’t a story, but a sensory description. Focus on vivid visuals and sounds that let readers experience the journey as if they were there.

Q2: How can students score an A1 for the O-Level descriptive essay?

To earn an A1, interpret the question accurately, use precise sensory language, and show emotional depth. Apply the FATS framework—Feelings, Actions, Thoughts, and Speech—to make your writing more human and engaging.

Q3: What are some good journey ideas for this essay?

Choose everyday journeys you know well, such as a dawn bus ride, an MRT trip, or a walk through a hawker centre. Familiar settings help you write with authenticity, clear structure, and rich sensory details that impress examiners.

Q4: Why is descriptive writing important beyond exams?

Descriptive writing builds awareness and empathy. It helps students notice details in daily life, express emotions clearly, and communicate more thoughtfully, skills that extend far beyond the classroom.