Download
1 / 52
520 likes | 593 Views
How to write personal narratives…. Choose an important small moment from your life… think about the seed not the whole watermelon!. List some examples of big topics you could write about: Six Flags __________________ __________________.
E N D
How to write personal narratives…
Choose an important small moment from your life… think about the seed not the whole watermelon!
List some examples of big topics you could write about: • Six Flags • __________________ • __________________ • How could we narrow our focus down to a seed story? • My first ride on a roller coaster • _______________ • _______________
What can you learn from Weird Al?’s song Albuquerque ??? Topic: “I hate sauerkraut” Using your lyric sheet, number each time the topic changes…how many times does Weird Al write off topic? Why does this matter?
Include True and Exact details from your memories. None of this is made up!
Include figurative, sensory, and imagery in your writing! I, me, myself… Write it in first person point of view. What did YOU see, smell, think, hear, and feel?
The event happened to you in the past, so write in the past tense!
Brain Break: http://www.teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=281678
Zoom in so you tell the most important parts of the story. Think about the following: Why do they sometimes show scenes in slow motion on television or in the movies? What purpose does slow motion serve?” Life goes by pretty fast, even for sixth graders. Slow motion is an effect that allows a movie director to slow down a moment so that the audience can take in a few more details. The idea behind the visual effect also works when writing narratives. http://www.teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=13019 http://www.teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=272750
Think about the following scenario: You’re a student and you’re really hungry and it’s lunchtime. You have your cold lunch sack with you in the lunchroom at your table, but you haven’t opened it yet. You have a sneaky suspicion that your mother accidentally gave you your brother’s tuna fish sandwich when she packed the lunches this morning, and you hate tuna fish. You know your heart will sink if you discover your peanut butter sandwich is not in the sack. If you, as student, open the sack and examine the sandwich, how long would that take in real time?
A good writer can take ten or fifteen seconds of everyday action and slow it down…turn it into a slow-motion writing moment, if you will. The lunch bag sat in front of me, and my stomach growled. I wondered, If Mom accidentally gave me the tuna fish sandwich, what will I do for food? I don’t have money for a hot lunch. I looked to my left. Stephen had his usual peanut butter sandwich. His mother hadn’t messed up. I looked to my right. Jack had his usual bologna sandwich, because Jack doesn’t like peanut butter. What was in my bag? I unfolded the brown paper once, then twice, and I leaned forward, squinting into the open sack. Beneath the napkin I could see the tin foil that my sandwich was wrapped in. I smelled inside the sack, but it smelled like a bag, not like peanut butter or fish. There was only one way to know for sure. I reached in, and the paper crinkled. I could feel the sweat forming on my brow as I unwrapped that foil. And there it was, the tell-tale smudge of peanut butter on an edge of the crust. I was safe. I would not go hungry today.
A good writer can take ten or fifteen seconds of everyday action and slow it down…turn it into a slow-motion writing moment, if you will. The lunch bag sat in front of me, and my stomach growled. I wondered, If Mom accidentally gave me the tuna fish sandwich, what will I do for food? I don’t have money for a hot lunch. I looked to my left. Stephen had his usual peanut butter sandwich. His mother hadn’t messed up. I looked to my right. Jack had his usual bologna sandwich, because Jack doesn’t like peanut butter. What was in my bag? I unfolded the brown paper once, then twice, and I leaned forward, squinting into the open sack. Beneath the napkin I could see the tin foil that my sandwich was wrapped in. I smelled inside the sack, but it smelled like a bag, not like peanut butter or fish. There was only one way to know for sure. I reached in, and the paper crinkled. I could feel the sweat forming on my brow as I unwrapped that foil. And there it was, the tell-tale smudge of peanut butter on an edge of the crust. I was safe. I would not go hungry today. Now, it’s your turn to analyze this text…Highlight everything that shows time slowing down…
Notice the time slowing down… Can you see the imagery? The lunch bag sat in front of me, and my stomach growled. I wondered, If Mom accidentally gave me the tuna fish sandwich, what will I do for food? I don’t have money for a hot lunch. I looked to my left. Stephen had his usual peanut butter sandwich. His mother hadn’t messed up. I looked to my right. Jack had his usual bologna sandwich, because Jack doesn’t like peanut butter. What was in my bag? I unfolded the brown paper once, then twice, and I leaned forward, squinting into the open sack. Beneath the napkin I could see the tin foil that my sandwich was wrapped in. I smelled inside the sack, but it smelled like a bag, not like peanut butter or fish. There was only one way to know for sure. I reached in, and the paper crinkled. I could feel the sweat forming on my brow as I unwrapped that foil. And there it was, the tell-tale smudge of peanut butter on an edge of the crust. I was safe. I would not go hungry today.
A good writer can take ten or fifteen seconds of everyday action and slow it down…turn it into a slow-motion writing moment, if you will. The lunch bag sat in front of me, and my stomach growled. I wondered, If Mom accidentally gave me the tuna fish sandwich, what will I do for food? I don’t have money for a hot lunch. I looked to my left. Stephen had his usual peanut butter sandwich. His mother hadn’t messed up. I looked to my right. Jack had his usual bologna sandwich, because Jack doesn’t like peanut butter. What was in my bag? I unfolded the brown paper once, then twice, and I leaned forward, squinting into the open sack. Beneath the napkin I could see the tin foil that my sandwich was wrapped in. I smelled inside the sack, but it smelled like a bag, not like peanut butter or fish. There was only one way to know for sure. I reached in, and the paper crinkled. I could feel the sweat forming on my brow as I unwrapped that foil. And there it was, the tell-tale smudge of peanut butter on an edge of the crust. I was safe. I would not go hungry today. Now, it’s your turn to analyze this text…Highlight every word or phrase that shows sensory language…
Notice the sensory language… The lunch bag sat in front of me, and my stomach growled. I wondered, If Mom accidentally gave me the tuna fish sandwich, what will I do for food? I don’t have money for a hot lunch. I looked to my left. Stephen had his usual peanut butter sandwich. His mother hadn’t messed up. I looked to my right. Jack had his usual bologna sandwich, because Jack doesn’t like peanut butter. What was in my bag? I unfolded the brown paper once, then twice, and I leaned forward, squinting into the open sack. Beneath the napkin I could see the tin foil that my sandwich was wrapped in. I smelled inside the sack, but it smelled like a bag, not like peanut butter or fish. There was only one way to know for sure. I reached in, and the paper crinkled. I could feel the sweat forming on my brow as I unwrapped that foil. And there it was, the tell-tale smudge of peanut butter on an edge of the crust. I was safe. I would not go hungry today.
http://www.learn360.com/ShowVideo.aspx?SearchText=writing+dialogue&lid=6818736&player=13&ID=930931&autostart=1http://www.learn360.com/ShowVideo.aspx?SearchText=writing+dialogue&lid=6818736&player=13&ID=930931&autostart=1 http://vimeo.com/35086365 http://www.learn360.com/ShowVideo.aspx?SearchText=writing+dialogue&lid=6818736&player=13&ID=930923&autostart=1 Silent Conversation:You can talk about anything school appropriate, but you cannot say a word! How do you do this? Write it down in the form of dialogue! You must have tag lines (he said, she said), change up your sentence structure and vary the word “said.”
You must include dialogue in your narrative! Make it interesting and vary the tag lines. Follow the rules when writing with dialogue in your essay!
Telling Sentences • Telling sentences are too general and therefore lack the visual clarity that a reader needs to fully understand what the writer is talking about.
She went home in a bad mood. • What kind of a bad mood? • How did she act or look?
Showing Sentences • Showing sentences use specific details and make the image the writer is presenting much more vivid and alive.
She stomped home, hands jammed in her pockets, angrily kicking rocks, dogs, small children, and anything else that crossed her path.
My neighbor bought a really nice old desk. My neighbor bought a solid oak, roll-top desk made in 1885 that contains a secret drawer triggered by a hidden spring.
He was an attractive man. • He had Paul Newman's eyes, Robert Redford's smile, Sylvester Stallone's body, and Bill Gates's money.
The girls were excited. • Giggles and screams filled the arena. The soft curls were now damp with perspiration and the anticipation of the event. They held tight to each other in a mock effort to contain themselves. Arms flailed upward, and voices echoed in varying tones. The moment was here.
The room was vacant. • The door opened with a resounding echo that seemed to fill the house. Cob webs once attached flowed freely in the air as the open door brought light to a well worn floor. The light gave notice to the peeling paint on the walls and to the silhouettes once covered by pictures. The new air gave life to a stuffiness that entrapped the room. Faded and torn white sheets covered once new furniture now drowning in dust.
