Introduction to Narrative Writing: Personal Narrative

Introduction to Narrative Writing

Personal Narrative & The Writing Process

Things to think about...

• Why do we write? What is the importance of writing?

• What are the steps in the writing process? How do these steps help us become more effective writers?

• What are the goals of narrative writing?

Open Ended

Take the next few minutes to respond to the following quote:

"Writing is thinking on paper."

- William Zinsser

Why write?

• Why should I write? To think critically and get in touch with one's own thoughts about a specific subject matter either academic or personal.

• Why do teachers assign writing? Writing is an excellent evaluation tool, it gives us insight on your knowledge of a subject.

Open Ended

List as many steps of the writing process that you can. Briefly describe the work that goes into each of the steps.

The Writing Process

• Prewriting. Explore the possible topics before selecting one to write about. Collect details about the topic and plan how to use them when writing.

• Writing. Complete a first draft using your plan as a road map. Use this draft to get everything down on paper.

• Revising. Review the first draft and make changes to any ideas that are not clear or complete. Get a partner or parent to read your work, a fresh set of eyes can be very helpful.

• Editing. Check your writing for correctness. Proofread for errors before publishing.

• Publishing. Share your work with others!

Multiple Select

Select all that apply.

Which of the following are not included in the steps of the writing process?

• Prewriting

• Revising

• Reflecting

• Writing

• Publishing

Multiple Choice

Choose the best answer.

The main purpose of revision is to...

• select a topic to write about.

• develop a first draft.

• check for correctness.

• improve your writing.

Multiple Choice

Choose the best answer.

During prewriting, a writer should...

• share their writing with a partner.

• check for correctness.

• select a topic and gather details about that topic.

• develop a first draft.

Goals of Narrative Writing

• Ideas. Use details and dialogue to tell about a specific experience or event. Make the reader want to know what happens next.

• Organization. Open with a clear beginning that hooks the reader. Then present ideas in the order in which they happened.

• Voice. Write the narrative in a way that sounds natural- like the real you. Give the people in your narrative voice too.

• Word choice. Use specific nouns, vivid verbs, and colorful adjectives.

• Sentence fluency. Use a variety of sentence styles that flow smoothly from one idea to the next.

• Conventions. Be sure that your punctuation, capitalization, spelling, and grammar are correct.

Multiple Choice

What type of ideas should be included in narrative writing?

• Interesting details and dialogue.

• A clear beginning, middle, and end.

• Giving the characters a natural voice.

Multiple Select

What is a quality of writing that DOES NOT enhance word choice?

• Using vivid verbs.

• Using general nouns.

• Using colorful adjectives.

Open Ended

Why is it helpful to the reader to organize your narrative writing in chronological order?

Multiple Select

How should a narrative sound?

• Academic and formal

• Natural

Poll

Rate your understanding of narrative writing and the writing process.

• Piece of cake! I've got this!

• I understand for the most part, but I wouldn't mind a review.

• I'm feeling a bit confused, I still have a lot of questions about this topic.

• I do not understand this topic at all.

Let's review!

• Why do we write? What is the importance of writing?

• What are the steps in the writing process? How do these steps help us become more effective writers?

• What are the goals of narrative writing?