Note: These are non-graded learning activities, so please do not submit them to the teacher.

In this Module, you will write a personal narrative, which is one type of narrative. A personal narrative is a story about something that happened to the person telling the story.

Part of prewriting is brainstorming.

• What does it mean to brainstorm? (Brainstorming is when you come up with lots of possible ideas you can write about.)
• How will it help you decide your topic? (It helps you find an idea you really like.)

For today’s activities, you will need to download and print the Brainstorming handouts

Part 1: Generate Questions

You will be writing an event from your history. When people read about an event, there are certain kinds of details they expect to learn. Generating questions can help you identify these details. When we generate questions, we brainstorm things to ask about a topic.

• Who, What, Where, Why, When, How

Each of these words can be used to begin one or more important questions readers will have about the event in your story. Your narrative should include details that answer each of these questions.

For example: I’m going to pretend that I’m an interviewer on TV, asking someone else about the event. Let’s see if I can use the words who, what, were, why, when, and how to help me brainstorm some questions to ask.

Here are some ideas:

• Who was with you when you tried to ride the bike?
• Where and when did you try to ride the bike?
• Why did you think riding a bike would be scary?
• What happened when you tried it?
• How did you feel after you tried it?

Part 2: Brainstorming

Use the “Ways Kids Make the World a Better Place” worksheet to help you brainstorm topics. Make notes in the worksheet about ways kids help their friends, family, and community. Remember that a community is a group of people to which you belong, such as your school or your neighborhood.

For example:

Next, use the “Develop an Idea For Your Narrative” worksheet to help you choose an idea for your personal narrative. Then ask yourself the questions in the chart and record your answers. Be sure to provide specific and relevant details.

Save your completed handouts and any notes to continue on Day 3.