Autobiographical Writing

Mrs. Tweedy
Purpose
You will read an autobiography
You will identify point of view in a story
You will recognize chronological order
Think About It…
Want to know a secret? 
I’m adopted. Yup.

When have you wanted to set the record straight by

writing about your own life to tell YOUR story?

Have you ever wanted to tell others about something

special or important that has happened to you?
Autobiographical Writing
An autobiography is a form of nonfiction where the writer
tells the story of his or her own life. The writers purpose is
to create a written self-portrait.
Because they are writing about their own life, writers use
first person point of view. They use pronouns like I, we, us,
me, and my.
Autobiographies are most often arranged in chronological
order, moving from the writers childhood to adulthood.
Another type of autobiography, called a memoir, focuses
on one particular time or event in the writers life.
What Would Your Autobiography Look Like?
Make a timeline of your life.
Think of important events that have happened during
your lifetime and place them in order on the timeline.
This is how many writers brainstorm ideas for their
autobiographies.

I’ll make my timeline on the board…

Do You Get It?
1. In an autobiography, the writer tells the story of:
a. his or her ancestors’ lives
b. someone else’s life
c. his or her own life
d. a fictitious character's life
Do You Get It?
1. Authors of autobiographies use:
a. first person point of view
b. third person point of view
c. a combination of first and third person points of
view
d. either first or third person point of view – but not
both.
Do You Get It?
3. Autobiographies that move from the writers
childhood to adulthood are arranged in:
a. chronological order
b. order of importance
c. life cycle order
d. natural order
Do You Get It?
4. The author remembers a particular event or person
through a type of writing called:
a. a chronological order
b. a reflection
c. a point of view
d. a memoir
Answers
1. C
2. D
3. A
4. D