Personal Narrative

Goals/Objectives:
Students create a personal narrative/monologue.
Utah ELA Writing Standard 3b for Grades 11-12: use narrative techniques, such as dialogue,
pacing, description, reflection, and multiple plot lines to develop experiences, events and/or
characters.
Students brainstorm personal narrative ideas.
Utah Theatre Standard 3b for Grades 11-12: use memory and imagination to experience feelings
and moods.

Rationale:
Often times, students are expected to write formally and forget their own sense of voice in order to get
a good grade. By sharing the story first and then writing it down, students can explore ways to stay true
to their own thoughts and feelings. Kelly Gallagher echoes this: The writer shares thoughts, ideas,
feelings, and questions about his/her experiences. Usually, written in first-person point of view, it
exhibits the authors voice. The author tells the reader how she/he feels. (Kelly Gallagher, 25).
Students are able to keep their personal voice as well as stay true to that voice by echoing it in their
writing. Students are encouraged to include sensory details that allow the reader to connect to the
feelings and experiences of the writer. As a result, this type of writing can be more engaging, vivid, and
thought provoking. Through a possible extension, this activity strengthens cross-curricular activities.
Telling the story first and then writing allows students to go deeper with sensory details.

Procedures:
HOOK (5 minutes):
After seeing an example from the teacher, in groups of 5, students create a tableaux (e.g.,
creating a frozen image with ones body, the Mannequin Challenge) to tell the story of Little
Red Riding Hood.
Students rehearse for 30 seconds.
Each group shares their tableaux.
STEP ONE (2 minutes):
Students read the projected Johnny Saldanas Autoethnographic monologue story ideas.
Students pick one prompt from the list and write down a few key ideas to the story.
STEP TWO (12 minutes):
Students pair up and tell their story, using as much sensory detail as possible (e.g., what it
smelled like, the layout of the room, etc.).
o After each student shares, the partner will answer the following questions:
What would be a good title for the story?
Were you able to see the story? What details stood out?
How could they end the story? Whats the zinger?
Students pair up with another person to share and repeat the above process.
STEP THREE (7 minutes):
Students return to their desks.
Students write out their complete story, integrating the feedback from peers.
STEP FOUR (4 minutes):
Two to three students volunteer to share their story with the class.

Possible Extension:
Students memorize their story and perform if for the class.
Drama students perform the monologue for the English students, all the while working together to
create a quality product of text and performance.

Reflection Questions:
What were the challenges of telling the story versus writing it down?
How, if at all, did your story change between telling it and writing it down?

Works Cited:
Gallagher, Kelly. Write Like This. (2011)
Saldana, Johnny. Enthnotheatre.
AUTOETHNOGRAPHIC MONOLOGUE STORY IDEAS:
A time you got into trouble from something you were told not to do
A time you broke something that belonged to somebody else
A night your parents never found out about
A time when you were tricked or lied to
The time your realized you were no longer a child
A time you felt triumphant with an accomplishment
The first person you had a crush on
A secret you failed to keep
The worse time youve ever put your foot in your mouth
A time you defied your parents
Your most embarrassing on-the-job experience
A time you pretended to be someone or something youre not
The one who got away
Your favorite childhood toy
Meeting a celebrity
Your first or earliest encounter when you became aware of your race or ethnicity
An encounter with someone of the opposite sex when you had a disagreement rooted in
gender issues
An encounter with someone you knew who came out as LGBTQ (or, an encounter when
you, if LGBTQ, told someone about your sexual orientation)
An encounter with a homeless person (or, an encounter with someone when you were
homeless)
An encounter with someone whose language or speech you could not understand
An encounter with an elderly person (or, the first time you perceived yourself as old)
An encounter with someone over spiritual beliefs and spiritual disagreements
An encounter with someone who called you a name that offended you.