Date: Monday, 4th of November, 2019 Lesson: Autobiography Writing (2 sessions)

Lesson Objectives
By the end of the lesson, students will be able to
 Understand the purpose of Personal Narrative writing
 Identify the elements of Personal Narrative writing
 Use a variety of language features used in autobiographical texts; namely, hooking
introduction, descriptive language, short sentences, emotive language, imagery, ellipsis,
exclamation marks and short sentences

Learning Skills ( Collaborating- Communicating - Critical Thinking- use of tech) critical thinking
Life skills (Flexibility – Initiative - Social Skills – Productivity – Leadership) initiative

Learning Strategies
Think-pair-share OR Concentric circles (Students arrange themselves in an inside circle and an
outside circle, the inside facing out, forming pairs. Pairs discuss their personal experiences based on
the prompts given; then, they rotate for another round with a new partner.
Resources and materials
Power point
Model Text for annotation
Journal copybooks for drafting
Coca-cola commercial video
Launch/Warm Up Activating prior knowledge
 “Those who tell the stories rule the world.” This is a proverb, attributed to the Hopi Indians
Begin your lesson by introducing the purpose of learning the craft of storytelling.
 With a well-told story we can help a person see things in an entirely new way. We can forge
new relationships and strengthen the ones we already have. We can change a law, inspire a
movement, make people care fiercely about things they’d never given a passing thought.
 The ability to tell a captivating story is one of the things that make human beings
extraordinary. It’s how we connect to each other. It’s something to celebrate, to study, to
perfect.
 Tell your students that whether the story is true doesn’t matter, as long as they are telling a
good one, and that there is a thin layer between narrative writing (fiction) and personal
narrative (non-fiction); however, they need the same set of skills for both. For example,

 A student might create a completely fictional story, but tell it in first person, which would give
it the same feel as a personal narrative.
 A student might tell a true story that happened to someone else, but write it in first person, as
if they were that person. For example, I could write about my grandmother’s experience of
getting lost as a child, but I might write it in her voice.
Direct Instruction

 STEP 1: SHOW STUDENTS THAT STORIES ARE EVERYWHERE

 Tell your students that they are naturally good story tellers; help them see that they are
already telling stories every day. They gather at lockers to talk about that thing that happened
over the weekend. They sit at lunch and describe an argument they had with a sibling. Without
even thinking about it, they begin sentences with “This one time…” and launch into stories
about their earlier childhood experiences. Students are natural storytellers; learning how to do
it well on paper is simply a matter of studying good models, then imitating what those writers
do.
 In journal quick-writes, think-pair-shares, or by playing a game like Concentric Circles, prompt
them to tell some of their own brief stories:
A time they were embarrassed.
A time they lost something.
A time they didn’t get to do something they really wanted to do.
 By telling their own short anecdotes, they will grow more comfortable and confident in their
storytelling abilities. They will also be generating a list of topic ideas. And by listening to the
stories of their classmates, they will be adding onto that list and remembering more of their
own stories.
 Remember to tell some of your own stories and personal experiences.

 STEP 2: STUDY THE STRUCTURE OF A PERSONAL NARRATIVE

 Move to the power point; display slides 2 & 3. Read through the elements of a personal
narrative – explain briefly as you read.
 Watch the video (Coca-cola commercial). Ask students to try to identify any of the evident
elements in the commercial.

 STEP 3: READ MODELS
 In groups, students annotate the “Model text” given: The Purple Dress for elements of Personal
Narrative.
 This is followed by discussion with the teacher.

Practice
Guided or Independent (Individual/ group/pair/student presentation/ teacher
presentation)
 STEP 4: MAPPING
 Move to power point slides 4, 5 and 6. Read with students, allow them time to reflect and
decide their topic; ask them to write it in their journal copybooks
 STEP 5: DRAFTING
 Through slides 7 to 12, students explore different ways to use to get a hooking introduction for
the topic they have already chosen. Discuss those ways; then, allow them time to draft in their
journals. (Optional: You can choose your own topic and model the thinking process in front of
them-use the white board for that.)
 Move through slides 13, 14 & 15 for the rest of the drafting process.
 STEP 6: ENHANCING
 Slides 16 to 20 display general features that add colour to the Personal Narrative. As you read
through them, ask students to reflect on their chosen topics and to think how they can add
those enhancements. Listen to some suggested ideas, and provide some.

Assessment (Formative/ Summative)

Wrap Up (10 mins)

HW‫ا‬
Students write their own Personal Narrative/ Autobiographical texts

Reflection

HOD Signature: _____________________________