Write Well. Right Now.

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Write Well. Right Now.

• How To Strengthen Personal Narratives

Adapted by Lisa C. Landis for middle school
students from Lucy Calkins Units of Study
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Writing A Personal Narrative

• Your life is not what happens to you, but your
  responses to what happens.
• For this reason, each one of us is ultimately the
  author of our own lives. We do not always
  control what happens to us, but we control our
  responses to what happens.

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Telling Your Story

• Objectives
• Provide strategies for writing a personal
  narrative
• Provide specific tools for deconstructing the
  prompt
• Strategies for internal story to further your
  personal narrative and make it come alive.

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Internal Story

• Connection
• Focusing your stories--keep your eyes on what is
  important.
• Focus, focus, focus in order to show me, instead
  of just tell me.

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Attack the Prompt

• Narrow the prompt and make it manageable.
• Put a box around the words (verbs/action words)
  that tell you to DO something (explain, describe,
  tell, etc)
• Circle any numbers that follow the actions.
• Underline the key words

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Attack the Prompt--Make it Small!

• Here is an example
• A persons life is filled with many good
  memories and experiences.
• Describe a time in your life in which you were
  happy, and explain why you were happy at this
  particular time.

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• "Amusing things happen to everyone. Sometimes we
  do things that are funny or something funny
  happens to us. Many times we see a comical thing
  happen to someone else. Describe an incident
  that happened to you or to someone else that you
  found very humorous."

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Attack the Question

• "You have been given the opportunity to go back
  in time to change one thing. What would it be
  and why?
• "Do you ever daydream about a place you have
  visited that you would like to see again? Try to
  imagine the details of the place clearly in your
  mind and then write a paper in which you describe
  that perfect place to your reader."

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Tell Your Story!

• Ready to write your story!
• First, think of a time with a person, a place, or
  an idea that could relate to this prompt.
• List moments about this person, place, idea.
• Think of just one moment--one story that
  illustrates your point--not a big story.

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Tell Your Story

• Weekend at Disneyland
• Think of specific moments
• If you tell the story of the whole weekend, you
  will be telling a watermelon" story.
• Tell me a small seed story instead-- tell me one
  moment, not the whole weekend.

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Tell Your Story

• Disneyland
• Canoe ride with the family
• Sister got lost, but we found her
• Indiana Jones with my son
• Swimming at the Disney hotel
• Exploring on Tom Sawyers Island
• Sister got stuck in rock on Tom Sawyers Island
• Choose one of these moments to write about as
  a reason why the time you spent in Disneyland was
  fun. Make this a small seed story--just describe
  the moment.

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How to Tell Your Story

• Choose your moment
• sketch what happened first, second, next, and
  last in your moment.

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Strategy for Narrative

• A persons life is filled with many good memories
  and experiences.
• Describe a time in your life that was exciting,
  and explain why this particular experience was
  more exciting than any other.
• Moments
• Going to Oklahoma football game--our seats
• Parasailing in St. John
• Riding the plunge at Silver Dollar City
• Traveling to Orient Beach on St. Martin
• Getting lost on the metro in Paris
• Skin diving in St. John, U.S.V.I.

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Parasailing on St. John

• Small Seed Story--Quick Rough draft telling what
  happened first, second, and last.
• Body Paragraph One
• We boarded the small ship anticipating the
  parasailing adventure. The guides gave us
  instructions on how they would hook us up in the
  equipment, and because the machine was automated,
  there were some very precise instructions. I
  just hoped I could remember everything I was
  suppose to do so that I did not get injured like
  the guide mentioned. We were the second couple
  to ride tandem, and so we eagerly watched every
  move that the other couple made. Finally, it was
  our turn to fly.

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Jump into the narrative
Notice that the narrative started right in the
action!
Body Paragraph 2

• We boarded the small ship anticipating the
  parasailing adventure. The guides gave us
  instructions on how they would hook us up in the
  equipment, and because the machine was automated,
  there were some very precise instructions. I
  just hoped I could remember everything I was
  suppose to do so that I did not get injured like
  the guide mentioned. We were the second couple
  to ride tandem, and so we eagerly watched every
  move that the other couple made. Finally, it was
  our turn to fly.

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Paragraph Two

• Body Paragraph Two
• We helped each other get hooked in the harness,
  sat down on the back of the boat, and suddenly we
  were lifting into the air. Being in the air,
  soaring through the sky, was incredibly fun. As I
  looked down, I saw giant sea turtles swimming
  through the crisp, bright blue water with a pod
  of dolphins playing nearby. It was almost
  soundless except the fluttering noise of the wind
  blowing past my ears and the parachute above. I
  wondered, Is this how birds feel as they fly
  through the air? Flying like a bird, feeling more
  than human, was a truly incredible moment.

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Your finished essay will eventually have four
parts
Para. 1 Lead--your introduction using setting, action, dialogue. Para. 2 Body Paragraph 1--Part of your small seed story.
Para. 3 Body Paragraph 2--Part of your small seed story. Para. 4 Ending--your conclusion using setting, action, dialogue.
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Add Setting, Action, Dialogue

• Write the lead (intro) and ending (conclusion)
  for your essay.
• A lead and ending should have setting, action,
  and dialogue.
• Having setting, action, and dialogue will hook
  your reader.

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You Try

• A persons life is filled with many good
  memories and experiences. Describe a time in your
  life that was exciting, and explain why this
  particular experience was more exciting than any
  other.
• Deconstruct--take apart--the prompt and use the
  strategies for writing the narrative. List
  moments that could be considered exciting, choose
  one to write about, sketch what happened first,
  second, and last. Follow the sketches to write
  two body paragraphs that follow the movie in your
  mind.

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Next Step

• Once you have written what happened first,
  second, and last, and made a movie in your mind
  of the action in the narrative, it is time to
  construct the lead (introduction) and ending
  (conclusion).
• Add your lead and ending to the small seed story
  that you have written. Then revise it all to
  create a the perfect personal narrative. Easy,
  right?

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The Lead

• How do you begin the lead of a personal
  narrative?
• Authors often begin by adding setting, action,
  and dialogue. You can do this in any order, but
  try and include all of these things in the lead
  to make it exciting and capture your readers
  attention. Lets try

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The Lead
What if I deleted this part?

• I have had many experiences that I can describe
  as exciting and fun. On a warm summer day, on the
  Virgin Island of St. John, when I yelled Sure
  lets go parasailing! who would have known I was
  going to experience the most excitement of my
  life.
• In this lead (introduction), I address the
  question, provide setting, action, and brief
  dialogue.

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The Conclusion

• Again, like the lead, include setting, action,
  dialogue and wrap up my narrative about an
  exciting time of my life.
• Ending
• As I flew through the air, I stated to my
  husband Is this just one of the best times in
  your life? He agreed happily, as we slowly
  descended towards the ship, back to reality, with
  a new appreciation for adventure and excitement.

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Put It All Together

• On a warm summer day, on the Virgin Island of
  St. John, when I yelled Sure lets go
  parasailing! who would have known I was going to
  experience the most excitement of my life.
• We boarded the small ship anticipating the
  parasailing adventure. The guides gave us
  instructions on how they would hook us up in the
  equipment, and because the machine was automated,
  there were some very precise instructions. I
  just hoped I could remember everything I was
  suppose to do so that I did not get injured like
  the guide mentioned. We were the second couple
  to ride tandem, and so we eagerly watched every
  move that the other couple made. Finally, it was
  our turn to fly.
• We helped each other get hooked in the
  harness, sat down on the back of the boat, and
  suddenly we were lifting into the air. Being in
  the air, soaring through the sky, was incredibly
  fun. As I looked down, I saw giant sea turtles
  swimming through the crisp, bright blue water
  with a pod of dolphins playing nearby. It was
  almost soundless except the fluttering noise of
  the wind blowing past my ears and the parachute
  above. I wondered, Is this how birds feel as they
  fly through the air? Flying like a bird, feeling
  more than human, was a truly incredible moment.
• As I flew through the air, I stated to my
  husband Is this just one of the best times in
  your life? He agreed happily, as we slowly
  descended towards the ship, back to reality, with
  a new appreciation for adventure and excitement

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Lets Practice

• Deconstruct the prompt.
• Think of moments from your life that illustrate
  what is being asked--make a list of these
  moments.
• Choose one moment and sketch what happened first,
  second, last.
• Then write your story of what happened first,
  second, and last by making a movie in your mind.
• Write your lead (introduction) and ending
  (conclusion) by including setting, action, and
  dialogue.

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Internal Story

• You have learned
• How to deconstruct the prompt
• How to write the small seed
• How to write the lead and ending using setting,
  action, dialogue

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Internal Story

• The next strategy is to learn how to write the
  internal story
• Internal story
• develops voice
• shows instead of just tells the story
• depicts your feelings and develops ideas
• It is the commentary in your narrative writing!

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Internal Story
Internal story happens when you say I wonder
this reminds meI thought about It happens when
you include narrative aspects in your writing.
In the past, a teacher might have told you to get
to the point when you tell your story. Now, we
want you to use these ideas and thoughts to
develop and tell your story. You can add
internal story to your rough draft as a way of
revising it.
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Internal Story

• In a story, I can run, spin, climb, yell, dig,
  clamor, but I can also yearn, fantasize,
  remember, regret, worry, and imagine
• When I pause in the middle of a draft to re-read
  my writing, I sometimes say to myself, Let me
  re-read and pay attention to whether Ive told
  the internal as well as the external story. The
  internal story is how I feel.

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Internal Story

• I have had many experiences that I can
  describe as exciting and fun. On a warm summer
  day, on the Virgin Island of St. John, when I
  yelled Sure lets go parasailing! who would
  have known I was going to experience the most
  excitement of my life.
• We boarded the small ship anticipating the
  parasailing adventure. The guides gave us
  instructions on how they would hook us up in the
  equipment, and because the machine was automated,
  there were some very precise instructions. I
  just hoped I could remember everything I was
  suppose to do so that I did not get injured like
  the guide mentioned. We were the second couple
  to ride tandem, and so we eagerly watched every
  move that the other couple made. Finally, it was
  our turn to fly.
• We helped each other get hooked in the
  harness, sat down on the back of the boat, and
  suddenly we were lifting into the air. Being in
  the air, soaring through the sky, was incredibly
  fun. As I looked down, I saw giant sea turtles
  swimming through the crisp, bright blue water
  with a pod of dolphins playing nearby. It was
  almost soundless except the fluttering noise of
  the wind blowing past my ears and the parachute
  above. I wondered, Is this how birds feel as they
  fly through the air? Flying like a bird, feeling
  more than human, was a truly incredible moment.
• As I flew through the air, I stated to my
  husband Is this just one of the best times in
  your life? He agreed happily, as we slowly
  descended towards the ship, back to reality, with
  a new appreciation for adventure and excitement.
  

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Our Lives Are Not Just What Happens To Us

• A great writer named Theodore Roethke said to
  me (actually, he wrote this but I pretend he said
  it to me), Lisa, he said, It is an illusion
  that writers live more significant lives than
  non-writers. Writers are just more in the habit
  of finding the significance that is there in
  their lives.

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Internal Story

• These are hugely important words to me because it
  means that I can write about any moment in my
  life--a climb to the top of The Eiffel Tower, the
  day my little sister got into an elevator and it
  took off without us, or a time when our dog,
  Itsy, was really bad--and I can make that moment
  carry the biggest truths of my life. You can do
  the same!

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Bringing Forth The Internal Story

• Specifically, I want to teach you that if Im
  going to write not only what happens but my
  response to what happens, then much of story will
  be the internal story, and not just the external
  one.

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Internal Story

• At the start of the lesson, I suggested that our
  lives are made up of not only what happens to us
  but also our responses to what happens to us.
• As writers, this means that we pause in our
  actions and ask What was I thinking? We offer
  our readers clues to reveal our thoughts and
  feelings. This is especially true in the heart
  of our stories.

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Follow-up

• Tonight for homework, your job is to re-read your
  draft and find the heart of your story, Re-read
  each part of the narrative and ask What was I
  thinking/feeling? Check that you give clues
  that reveal your thoughts and feelings. If you
  havent included clues that reveal your thoughts
  and feelings, you will need to add some tonight.

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Qualities of Good Personal Narratives

• Write a little seed story dont write all about
  a giant watermelon story.
• Zoom in so you tell the most important parts of
  the story.
• Include true, exact details from the movie you
  have in your mind.
• Stay inside your own point of view. This will
  help you write with true and exact details.
• Make sure stories tell not just what happens, but
  also the response to what happens.