Personal narratives can be one of the most challenging writing units to teach because we want our writers to stretch their moments so that their story has depth and feeling. The problem is their idea of stretching is much different than ours. I have grown to absolutely LOVE this unit because I have found ways to get my students to not only stretch their moments but write stories that take my breath away. Here are some of my essential tips to follow while writing personal narratives:

The Snowy Day is a wonderful story for modeling how to stretch out a story. Let’s add some onomatopoeia…”Crunch, crunch, crunch, his feet sank into the snow.” And let’s paint a picture and streeetch at the same time: “He walked with his toes pointing out, like this: He walked with his toes pointing in, like that.” While we’re at it, we can model how to add our thoughts and feelings: “He thought it would be fun to join the big boys in their snowball fight, but he knew he wasn’t old enough, not yet.”

If you haven’t read Those Shoes by Maribeth Boelts, I suggest you do. This is a fabulous story that teaches empathy and kindness through a little boy who finds that the things he already has are all that he needs. I use this story to model so many different elements of personal narratives, including showing not telling one’s feelings, “My heart is pounding hard as I take off my shoes,” and adding dialogue, “Maybe they wrote it down wrong,” I say. This book also begins in a most creative way. I will keep that a secret so you can see for yourself.

What a great way to teach showing our feelings. In When Sophie Gets Angry-Really, Really Angry…, Sophie “kicks, she screams. She wants to smash the world to smithereens.” This book has so many wonderful examples of how to use beautiful language to paint a picture for your reader.

The Relatives Came is without a doubt one of my all-time favorite read-alouds. The illustrations are simply FABULOUS and the way Cynthia Rylant tells the story is sure to bring all readers to a place in which they too enjoyed precious time with family. In addition to word choice and imagery, this story provides a wonderful way to end your story. “…they crawled into their silent, soft beds and dreamed about the next summer.”

3. Ask questions to guide your writers such as “What did you see/smell when you entered the bakery?”( see donut story above) or “What were you thinking to yourself when that happened?  Write it.”  Also, don’t be afraid to give your writers the right words when they are struggling.  They will learn to use phrases and words you give them over and over if it makes their stories stronger. Never refrain from providing suggestions to your writers as our stories can ALWAYS become stronger. Leave your writers with your questions and suggestions. As you walk the room, carry a clipboard with sticky notes, so you can leave each writer with a sticky note for the day. Will you get to each writer each day? Probably not, but by the end of the week, each writer will have at least one helpful suggestion from you.

I hope this information has provided you with helpful ideas to get the most out of each and every writer as you launch your personal narrative writing unit. Check out my complete unit below.

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog! We are so glad you are here!

XO Nancy

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Cookie Consent with Real Cookie Banner