Creative Writing Lesson Plan: A Heros Journey

8th Grade
Chris Buford, Emily Pipkin, and Morgan Bennett

We have not given nor received unauthorized assistance on this project to the best of our
knowledge.

Table of Contents:

Item

Page Number

Table of Contents

Rationale
(Chris and Emily)

Unit Calendar
(Context + weeks 1-2: Morgan
weeks 3-4: Chris
weeks 5-6: Emily
week 7: Morgan)

Un-Developed Lesson Plans

12

Developed Lesson Plans

13

Assignment Sheet
(Morgan)

28

Rubric
(Morgan)

29

Reflections

30

Rationale:
This seven week unit plan will focus on archetypes in literature, especially the hero. By
including different genres in which to illustrate this concept, our students will be exposed to
different conventions of literature that revolve around heroes. The three separate examples
included, Greek mythology, comics and fairy tales are all genres students are already slightly

familiar with, yet offer an excellent opportunity to focus on archetypes in literature. While this
unit does include other aspects of literature, it mainly focuses on character development. It
includes close reading of each genre, with multiple aspects of writing (Summary, expository,
narration, dialogue, plot/character development and descriptive grammar usage) associated with
each genre and will be scaffolding for the next, building off previous knowledge.
The final product students will be asked to create will be a short fictional narrative which
can stem from any of the three sub-genres studied through the unit and they will be expected to
incorporate the knowledge they have learned about writing in this genre thus far. Understanding
the heros journey is an important part of interpreting a wide variety of literature and writing a
creative piece attempting to depict a heros journey will lead to an even better understanding of
the concept. In addition, writing a creative narrative involves many aspects of writing, from basic
conventions to dialogue to descriptive imagery; skills which can be carried over into many other
writing activities.
Common Core State Standards addressed (8th grade):
CCSS ELA-Lit. W.8.3 Effectively use content-specific language, style, tone, and text structure to
compose or adapt writing for different audiences and purposes
Note: Other standards will be addressed throughout the unit, but this overarching standard will
be our main focus.
The overarching goal of this unit plan is to understand what a heros journey is and where
it shows up in various literature such as Greek mythology, comic books, and fairy tales. Students
will come to this understanding through various reading and writing activities, culminating with
a final creative narrative piece which depicts their own heros journey. In order to write this
piece, students will need to know how to: plot stories according to Freytags pyramid, understand
how the heros journey is depicted in the three genres we will be studying, write dialogue and
descriptive languages, write a coherent story which follows the basic elements of Freytags
pyramid, and workshop drafts individually and with peers.

Unit Calendar: Heros Journey Creative Writing

Color-coding guide:
1. Daily writing
2. Peer response
3. Collaboration
4. Digital composing
Bolded/Underlined Calendar Days= developed lessons

Context: (Information gathered from Morgans EDUC 350 Placement at Lesher Middle School
and http://publicschoolsk12.com/middle-schools/co/larimer-county/080399001408.html)
Lesher Middle School, 8th grade class
Student to Teacher Ratio: 17:1
Demographic:

(http://publicschoolsk12.com/middle-schools/co/larimercounty/080399001408.html)

ELL Population: More than 30% of students are ELLs

The school is on a block schedule; therefore, our class meets for 83 minutes every other day.

Week
1

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Day 1

No Class

Day 2

No Class

Day 3

-Free write (10

minutes) Prompt:
What is your
favorite movie or
book? Is the main
character a hero?
Explain. If not,
think of a time
when youve seen
a hero in a movie.
-Introduce Heros
Journey to the

-Free Read (10

minutes) Book
of Choice
-Answer any
questions about
final project (10
minutes)
- Introduce
Freytags
pyramid (15
minutes)

-Free write (10

minutes) Prompt:
What makes up a
hero?
-Using
http://www.readwri
tethink.org/files/res
ources/interactives/
herosjourney/
make a heros
journey as a class
(20 minutes)

class (50 minutes)

(Watch video:
https://www.youtu
be.com/watch?
v=Hhk4N9A0oCA
)
-Go over Joseph
Campbells Heros
Cycle (15 minutes)
-Introduce
assignment (5
minutes)

(http://www.ohio
.edu/people/hartl
eyg/ref/fiction/fr
eytag.html)
-Read myth:
Poseidon and
Athena
(http://greece.mr
donn.org/greekg
ods/athena.html)
and partner-plot
via Freytags
pyramid
(Strategy:
Airmail-Students
will plot part of
the diagram,
make a paper
airplane, then
toss it and pick
up another
airplane ). (50
minutes)

- Use mindomo to
start brainstorming
story ideas for final
assignment and
share with partners
(10 minutes)
- Plot story on
Freytags pyramid
(40 minutes) (Exit
slip) (Can be hw if
students dont
finish)

Homework:
Flipped classroom
lecture on
characterization

Week
2

No Class

Day Four
-Free Read (10
minutes) Book
of Choice
-Review
characterization
(10 minutes)
-Pair and share
characterization
worksheet (25
minutes)
-Group share via
Padlet and
discuss (15
minutes)
-Read myth in
partners:
Theseus and the
Minotaur
(http://greece.mr
donn.org/theseu
s.html) (15
minutes)

No Class

Day Five
-Free Write
(10 minutes)
Prompt: Write
a story to go
along with this
picture (
http://finding
mickey.square
space.com/dis
ney-animatedfeatures/hercul
es/)
-Review story
and discuss
characteristics
of Theseus as
class via
Padlet (25
minutes)
-Write an
argumentative
paragraph
responding to
the question:
What makes
Theseus a
hero? (35
minutes)
-Wrap up
Greek
mythology
heros journey
(10 minutes)
-Return
Freytags
pyramid sheet
with
comments (As
students exit)

No Class

Week
3

Day Six

No Class

Powerpoint
regarding styles of
Comics. (15 min)

Day Seven

No Class

Free write about

Comic book
character,
(10 min)

Designate comic
books to students.

Discussion about
Archetypes in the
comics (10 min)
AND
Narrative vs comic
stylistic
approaches,
(15 min)

Small group
discussions,
sharing and
learning about
other characters,
plots and styles,
Show and Tell
(15 min)

In- class reading,

to familiarize with
comic (15 min)

Day Eight

Introduce
www.fanfiction.co
m (10-15 min)
Plot and character
development,
(worksheets),
Word Wall,
(descriptive words)
(worksheet)
(15 min)

Class discussion
about plot &
character
development.
(10 min)

Brainstorm rough
draft Writing, (1015 min)
Homework--Finish rough draft
Week
4

No Class

Day Nine
Workshop
Fanfiction rough
drafts,
Students pair
up, read, offer
suggestions
(20 min)
In-class writing
time (30 min)
(Teacher is
available for
conferences and
offer help)

No Class

Day Ten
Fanfiction
Due
Quick writeWhat went
well what was
troublesome?
Debrief about
stories.
Positives and
negatives
Segue into
Fairy tales

No Class

Week
5

Day Eleven

No Class

Introduce fairy tale

archetypes
-Free write (10
min)
Prompt: Write
down as many
fairy tales as you
can think of,
including any
variations

Day Twelve

No Class

-Free read (10

min) Book of
Choice

-Free read (10 min)

Book of Choice
-Finish fairy tales
as needed (10-15
min)

-Watch heros
journey clip
from Shrek 2
https://www.yout
ube.com/watch?
v=jjLhSlLWMX
E and use
ReadWriteThink
tool to write a
heros journey
http://www.read
writethink.org/cl
assroomresources/student
interactives/fract
ured-fairy-tales30062.html?
tab=5#tabs (60
minutes)

-Introduce fairy
tale archetypes and
sort out some of
the common
characters
(specifically
heroes) in well
known tales (50
min)
-Exit ticket (10
min) Sticky
note with
notes about
how what we
learned today
connects with
Greek
mythology and
comics

Day Thirteen

-Share stories with

2-3 classmates (15
minutes)
-Relate fairy
tales back to
heroes where
do we see
heroes in fairy
tales? Are
there different
types of heroes
which we can
categorize?
Class
brainstorming/
writing activity (35
min)

Homework:
Work on fairy
tale if needed

-Exit ticket (10

min) Think
Pair Share with
a classmate
about your
final paper
Homework: Work
on rough draft of
final paper

Week
6

No Class

Day Fourteen
-Free write (10
min) Prompt:
What questions
do you still have
about the final

No Class

Day Fifteen
-Free read (10
min) Book of
choice
-Mini lesson

No Class

paper? Do you
know what you
are going to
write about?
What do you
need to
complete a
polished final
draft?
-Question and
answer time
about final
paper (15-20
min)
-Individual
work time/
quick check in
with each
student for
choosing a piece
to develop and
polish as well as
their progress
(45 min)
-Exit ticket (5
min) Sticky
note with
any pressing
questions/
concerns
about paper
Homework:
Emailed
copy of
rough draft
to teacher
for a quick
glance for
any patterns
of error in
conventions

on any
patterns of
error noted
from drafts
(15-20 min)
-Work time to
look over
drafts for any
errors
addressed in
mini
lesson(s) (10
min)
-Return to
Freytags
Pyramid
color-code
draft to
show the
stages of
plot (15
min)
-Share with a
friend offer
positive
feedback
and
constructiv
e criticism
(20 min)
Homework:
Work on final
project as
needed

10

Week
7

Day Sixteen
-Free Read: Book
of Choice (10
minutes)
-Computer
lab/peer review
time

No Class

Day Seventeen
-Free Write:
Prompt: What
was something
that you have
enjoyed learning
about in this
unit? What is
something that
would have
made this unit
more fun? (10
minutes)
-Final work day
for project
-Final paper
due at the end
of class

No Class

Day Eighteen
-Free Read: Book
of Choice (10
minutes)
-Final Paper
Sharing Time

11

Undeveloped Lesson Plans: Morgan

Day Two
(10 minutes) Students will free read the book of their choice, while I take
attendance and prepare for the class.
(10 minutes) Review the final assignment (assigned last class) and answer any
questions students might have about it. Let students pair and share something they might
be interested in writing about for the final project.
(15 minutes) Introduce Freytags pyramid to students using this link.
(http://www.ohio.edu/people/hartleyg/ref/fiction/freytag.html). Plot a well-known story
together for student understanding (i.e,- Frozen).
(50 minutes) Read myth: Poseidon and Athena
(http://greece.mrdonn.org/greekgods/athena.html) and partner-plot via Freytags pyramid
via airmail.(Strategy: Airmail: I will set a timer and students will answer one part of the
pyramid, make an airplane, toss it to the center, then go pick up a random airplane. I am
hoping that by having students reading other peoples pyramids, they will be able to
collaborate with other students and be able to learn from each other.

Undeveloped Lesson Plans: Emily

Day Fifteen
(10 minutes) Students will free read the book of their choice, while I take
attendance and prepare for the class.
(20 minutes) In the last class period, students were required to hand in a draft
which I used to compile common errors. The time now will be used to teach a minilesson or two on these errors and how to fix them. NOTE: These lessons will change
based on the students and their needs as writers, which is why I am not picking any

12

specific mini-lesson to teach.

(10 minutes) After teaching the mini-lessons, students will look at their own
drafts, specifically looking for the errors we just talked about and figuring out how to fix
them.
(15 minutes) While still looking at their drafts, students will shift to looking back
at Freytags Pyramid and color-coding their own draft to show where they are using each
stage in their story.
(20 minutes) Students will swap their papers with at least one other person to give
and receive feedback from their peers. This task may become homework as needed.
Developed Lesson Plans: Morgan
Day Five
NAME OF ACTIVITY

Read and Respond

FEATURED STANDARD
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1

Write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and

relevant evidence
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1.A

Introduce claim(s), acknowledge and distinguish the claim(s)

from alternate or opposing claims, and organize the reasons
and evidence logically.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1.B

Support claim(s) with logical reasoning and relevant evidence,

using accurate, credible sources and demonstrating an
understanding of the topic or text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1.C

Use words, phrases, and clauses to create cohesion and clarify

the relationships among claim(s), counterclaims, reasons, and
evidence.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1.D

13

Establish and maintain a formal style.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1.E

Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from

and supports the argument presented.

DESCRIPTION OF THE
CLASS

Lesher Middle School: The context can be seen above the calendar.

WRITING LESSON
FOCUS

Although the majority of the unit will focus on narrative writing, I

think that it is important for students to be practicing different styles
of writing as well during every unit. With that being said, the focus on
this assignment is for students to argue what makes Theseus a hero
based off of textual evidence. According to The Dynamics of Writing
Instruction, Peter Smagorinsky says that argumentative essays should
be scaffolded throughout the year. Argumentative essays are critical
for students to be able to write since they help students work on
summary and synthesis of material. Since students will have written
argumentative essays before, we will only briefly review how to set
up an argumentative essay with an outline to aid in their drafts. To
additionally support students in writing their paragraph, we will read
the story in partners and then we discuss the traits that make Theseus
a hero via Padlet.

MATERIALS

PROCEDURES

Reading from previous class

Outline handout
Padlet Page
(10 minutes) Students will come into class and begin
free writing to a picture on the screen.
(http://findingmickey.squarespace.com/disney-animatedfeatures/hercules/) During this time, I will be preparing the
classroom and taking attendance
(25 minutes) On the previous day, students read the
myth of Theseus and the Minotaur
(http://greece.mrdonn.org/theseus.html) in partners. When
students come in, we will review details of the myth and
students will share why they think Theseus was a hero. This
will also bring up the question of what makes a hero. We will

14

end by using Padlet for students to write ideas and collaborate

for their paragraph.
The Padlet categories will be:
What makes a hero?
What actions did
Theseus take that made him a hero?
Share textual evidence of
his heroic acts.
(35 minutes) Students will be given a handout to
outline their paragraph. Using Padlet and the text, students
will fill out the outline, then type up their paragraph to turn in.
It will be graded on the corresponding rubric. I will require
that the students turn the paper in at the end of class.
If my ELL students (or any other
students) do need more time, I will offer them the
option to finish it as homework.
(10 minutes) We will wrap up the Greek myth part of
this unit by reviewing the heros cycle and the myths we read.
EXIT: As students are leaving, I will pass back their
Freytag's pyramid with comments so they can begin working
on their first draft of the final project.

ONGOING
ASSESSMENT

Since we are working on Padlet, I will be able to see what students

have to contribute to the web document to assess their understanding.
Additionally, I will be walking around during the student paragraph
writing to check in with students.

REFERENCES

See links above

The Dynamics of Writing Instruction by Peter Smagorinsky

15

Argumentative Outline: T.E.X.T. (Adapted from Margaret Ketterman)

Thesis:

Evidence:
eXplain (:

Evidence:
eXplain:

Evidence:
eXplain:

Tie it Together (A.K.A- Conclusion):

16

Rubric for Argumentative Paragraph:

This assignment will be graded based off of the CCSS.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1.A

Introduce claim

/5 points

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1.B

Support claims with logical reasoning and relevant evidence

/5 points

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1.D

Establish and maintain a formal style.

/5 points

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.8.1.E

Provide a concluding statement

Total:

/20 points

The Prose and Commas of Comics

/5 points

17
Developed Lesson Plan: Chris
Day Eight
NAME OF ACTIVITY

From Comics to Prose / Fan Fiction

FEATURED STANDARD

Standard 3.3
a. Demonstrate command of the conventions of
Standard English grammar and usage when writing or
speaking (CCSS:L.8.1)
b. Capitalization and punctuation (CCSS:L.8.2)
d. Produce clear and coherent writing in which the
development,
organization, and style are appropriate to
the task, purpose, and audience. (CCSS:W.8.4)

DESCRIPTION OF THE
CLASS

Lesher Middle School

(See context above calendar)

WRITING LESSON
FOCUS

Students will grasp setting and plot development, while focusing

on archetypes within the comic genre. This assignment reinforces
the use of word choice, outlines, workshop and peer editing, plot
development with a focus on the character or archetypes within the
comic genre. This assignment is designed to allow for ample
opportunity for scaffolding the writing process and developing a
well drafted plot with strong character attributes.

MATERIALS

Comic books, Assignment sheet with Rubric, Word wall sheet,

Plot development worksheet, and Character development prompt
sheet.

PROCEDURES

Introduce Fan fiction, students read aloud a couple different

examples from the Fan fiction website. https://www.fanfiction.net/
(15-20 min)
Class discussion about Character and Plot development activities
(5 min)
Class discussion about the similarities and differences between
comics and prose styles of writing. (10 min) Grammar, sentence
structure and format
Give students handouts and explain each:
Word Wall- Characters, Scene and Items. Picking at least two
examples of each from the example book. Under each list at least 3

18

adjectives or other describing words. (10 min)

Plot Development- (Handout) Brainstorm ideas for

continuing or adding to the comic book. (10-15 min)

Character Development- (Handout). What are the attributes

of the main characters? What is it about them that makes them an
archetype? (define archetype) (10-15 min)

(Does he or she remind you of any other archetypes within

literature weve discussed previously?)
Hand out assignment sheet and scoring guide for the assignment,
From Comics to Prose. (handout)
Class discussion about assignment expectations. (5-10 min)
ONGOING
ASSESSMENT

Class participation, (formative) Assignment rubric including each

step of this writing assignment. (summative)

REFERENCES

Fanfiction.com

From Comics to Prose / Fanfiction

Assignment:
After you have read your chosen Comic, filled out the Word Wall, Character and Plot
Development worksheets, and read from the Fan Fiction website, you will construct your own
version of Fan Fiction. You will either add a character or archetype (even yourself) that you
would like to focus on. The story can be a continuation of the where the comic left off, or a new

19

chapter utilizing the existing plot and characters. (It is important to be character focused, as this
is a study of archetypical behavior in comics.) Each step is worth 1/5 of your grade, (20 points
each). To receive full credit you must include all five steps.
Writing Steps:
Step One: In one or two short paragraphs, summarize the plot of your comic.
Step Two: Draft an outline suggesting the basic storyline you intend to go with. (Who is the
archetype you chose to work with?)
Step Three: Draft your Fan Fiction story.
Step Four: Workshop and edit
Step Five: Final draft

Scoring guide: Comics to Prose

Steps:

20 pts

15 pts

10 pts

0-5 pts

Summary

Complete
summary that is
coherent, Focus
on archetype,
Includes proper
usage of

Complete
summary, Not
specific, no
mention of
archetypes,
adequate

Incomplete but
includes some
aspects of the
comic, Weak
grammar

Incomplete or
not done at all

20

grammar and
sentences

grammar usage

Outline

Specific
storyline
direction and
well thought out
ideas

General idea of
storyline, needs
more specifics

Incomplete or
vague

Incomplete or
not done at all

Rough Draft

Well thought out

story, use of
proper English
conventions,
(Grammar and
sentence
structure)

Completed but
does not follow
original comic
archetype
chosen, proper
use of
conventions

Incomplete but
has potential,
Needs work on
conventions

Incomplete or
not done

Workshop

Offered sound
advice to your
partner, AND
made notes for
revision

Attended
workshop but
offered little
advice or made
notes

Attended
workshop but
did not offer
suggestions or
take notes

Did not
workshop

Final Draft

Turned in final
draft on time,
(with revisions)
including rough
draft, workshop
notes and outline

Turned in final
draft, revised,
maybe missing
parts of the other
four steps.

Turned in late, or Did not turn in

did not include
final or revise.
other materials

What are the elements of character development?

1. Communication style: How does your character talk? Does he or she favor certain words or
phrases that make her distinct and interesting? What about the sound of his/her voice? Much of
our personality comes through our speech, so think about the way your character is going to talk.
2. History: Where does your character come from? What events shaped his/her personality?
3. Appearance: What does he or she look like? This may be the least important ingredient to
make your character a person to the reader, but you should still know it in your own mind. Not
every character needs to be drop-dead gorgeous, by the way. Most people arent.

21

4. Relationships: What kind of friends and family does he have? How does he relate to them? Is
he/she very social or reclusive, or somewhere in between? People can be defined by the company
they keep, so this can be a good way to define your character.
5. Ambition: Just as this is the central letter of the acrostic, so too this concept is absolutely
central to your character and plot. What is her passion in life? What goal is she trying to
accomplish through your story? What is her unrecognized, internal need and how will she meet
it?
6. Character defect: Everyone has some personality trait that irritates his friends or family. Is he
too self-centered? Too competitive? Too lazy? Too compliant? Too demanding of others? Dont
go overboard on this. After all, you want your reader to like the character.
7. Thoughts: What kind of internal dialogue does your character have? How does she think
through her problems and dilemmas? Is his or her internal voice the same as the external? If not,
does this create internal conflict for him/her?
8. Everyman-ness: How relatable is your character? While James Bond is fun to watch on
screen, most of us arent uber-trained special agent-assassins so its a little hard to relate to him
on a personal level. (This may, or may not apply to Superheroes)
9. Restrictions: More than a personality flaw, what physical or mental weakness must your
character overcome through her arch? After all, even Superman had Kryptonite. This helps
humanize your character, making her more sympathetic and relatable.

This information was drawn from this website;

(http://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/guide-to-literary-agents/the-9-ingredients-of-character-development)

Word Walls for Comics,

Adjectives; (modify or affect the meaning of nouns and pronouns and tell us which, whose, what
kind, and how many about the nouns or pronouns they modify. They generally come before the
noun or pronoun they modify, but there are exceptions to that rule.)
Directions: Pick at least 2 characters, (people), 2 scenes, (place), and 2 items, (things) from your
comic and make a list, (word wall) of as many adjectives as you can that describe each. There
will be 3 word walls of adjectives when youre finished.

22

Characters __________________________________________________________________

Scenes ____________________________________________________________________

Items _____________________________________________________________________

Plot development
Plot; also called a story line; the plan, scheme, or main story of a literary or dramatic work, as a
play, novel, or short story.
The following questions are to help with your plot or story line.

What is the comic about?

Is there a particular goal within the characters and story? Why?

23

What do you want to do with it? Continue the same plot? Add a twist? Add yourself as a
character?

Are there going to be any new characters? (besides yourself) Why or why not?

Is this comedy, tragedy, mystery or romance?

Is it going to be a continuing saga or will it come to a conclusion?

Developed Lesson Plans: Emily

Day Twelve
NAME OF ACTIVITY

Fractured Fairy Tales

FEATURED STANDARD

CCSS: W.8.3
a. Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences
or events using effective technique, relevant descriptive details,
and well-structured event sequences.

DESCRIPTION OF THE
CLASS

Lesher Middle School

See context above calendar

WRITING LESSON
FOCUS

Through this lesson, students will be reading and/or watching

fractured fairy tales which will prepare them to write their own
fractured tale. While the classic tales are well known, there are
many spin-offs which take place in different regions or time
periods or combine several stories. After learning about the heros
journey in Greek mythology and comic books, this is yet another

24

activity to stretch students imagination and get them writing in the

fictional narrative genre.
MATERIALS

Youtube video of heros journey from the movie Shrek 2,

ReadWriteThink online interactive tool for brainstorming,
assignment sheet for requirements of finished fairy tale

PROCEDURES

-(10

minutes) Students enter the classroom, get seated and pull out
a book as a part of the daily reading/writing segment of the class.
By looking at the board, students can see that there are several
fractured fairy tale books they can choose to read during this time
(refer to https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/fractured-fairy-tales for ideas)

-(10 minutes) As students wrap up their reading, start a discussion

by asking if anyone can define what a fractured fairy tale is,
possibly by asking some of the students who read something from
the front to summarize what they read and what they noticed about
the story and style.
-(10 minutes) Present a definition of a fractured fairy tale and have
students watch this YouTube clip
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjLhSlLWMXE of a heros
journey within a larger fractured fairy tale. Hand out assignment
sheet.
-(50 minutes, or remainder of class) Direct students to
ReadWriteThink online tool
http://www.readwritethink.org/classroom-resources/studentinteractives/fractured-fairy-tales-30062.html?tab=5#tabs to begin
brainstorming and writing their own tale. Note that the online tool
is simply that, a tool, to begin brainstorming about setting,
characters and plot. Students do not need to use this tool to write a
complete tale and can even bounce ideas off their peers as long as
they are staying on task and getting their story written.
-(last 2 minutes of class) Announce that finishing up this tale is
homework, though you will give a few minutes in the next class
for any finishing touches.
ONGOING
ASSESSMENT

Walk around the class during given work time answering

questions and making sure students are on task and understanding
what is being asked of them. For any ELL students: when walking
around during work time, be sure to stop by and conference
quickly with these students to ensure they understand the
assignment. Maybe bring in fairy tales from their native country if

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possible to further understanding.

REFERENCES

See links above

Assignment sheet for Day Twelve Lesson

Fractured Fairy Tale Assignment
Student Name:___________________________
Due Date: Day Thirteen
As practice for your final fictional creative narrative piece, you will be writing a fractured fairy
tale which focuses on the heros journey we have been learning about up to this point. This piece
is not expected to be a polished final draft, though you do need to show evidence of thought and
effort as this could be a rough draft of your final paper. You will have class time to work on this
piece, but you may need to work on it outside of class as well.
What you will be graded on:
____ At least one page, typed and double spaced, size 12 Times New Roman
____ Use of a fairy tale archetype to write a heros journey (ex. Prince Charming rescuing a
damsel in distress)
____ Evidence of effort and thoughtfulness (ex. grammar and spelling
mistakes are okay, but the story needs to be complete follows basic
Freytag pyramid structure, and I must be able to follow the story with ease
no confusing plot jumps!)

Grades: + (20-25 points= excellent work, goes above and beyond)

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(10-20 points= average work, meets all the criteria)

(10 and below= developing work, may not meet all the criteria)

Total: ____/25 points

Creative Writing Final Project

Due: March 15th, 2015

From Greek mythology to comic books to fairy tales, we see heroes emerge from every
culture and every society. After studying different cultures heroes over the next seven weeks,
we will complete this unit with a fictional narrative about a hero. Creative writing is an
important way for you to share new ideas and your brilliant thoughts in an entertaining and fun
way for your audience. On this assignment, your audience will be your classmates and me. Since
the archetype of hero is so commonly found in history, it is important for you to understand the
heros journey and how it can be seen and written about in different types of literature. By
completing this assignment, you will be expanding your cultural understanding and exploring
different forms of writing in the same genre.
During this project, you will be meeting CCSS: ELA-LITERACY.W.8.3
Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective
technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences.
Since we will be studying three different heroes (Greek, comic book, and fairy tales), you
will have the option to complete your final draft using inspiration from one of the three subgenres of the heros journey. You may write a classic heros story, a short story about a superhero,
or a fairy tale narrative. Regardless of the sub-genre you choose, it is important to include the
parts of a heros journey in your writing. We will be going over Joseph Campbells heros cycle
during the first week of this unit. Since this writing is not going to be longer than 5 pages, it is
okay to not include the entire heros cycle in your story.
Most importantly, remember to have fun with this assignment; you could be writing the
next Hunger Games or Lord of the Rings!

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This project will be worth 100 points; the rubric will tell you what you need to have
included to get all the points.
If you need any help or inspiration, please send an email or stop in the class to talk.
Although this seems broad now, we will be brainstorming final writing ideas over the
course of the unit.

Rubric

Name:

Title:
Each item must be present and in order to get all the possible points. Although some
assignments have already been graded, you will get additional points for having them present in
the final product.
Included Items in Final Product:
Rubric

/5 points

Freytags Pyramid

/5 points

Draft One

/10 points

Peer Review Feedback

/10 points

Final Draft

/55 points

For full-credit, you must have:

A developed hero
An event for the hero to overcome
A conclusion for the hero
Descriptive language
A title

Presentation:
Story is neatly presented and must be between 2-5 pages long. Type is 12 point font and double
spaced. All parts of the final are in order and paperclipped together.

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/15 points
Total:

/100 points

FEEDBACK:

Reflection:
Morgan
To what extent (and how) does your paper reflect the limitations and success
of the collaborative process?
Our paper is hopefully a very cohesive project; however, there are
parts that have been limited by this being a group project. For example, it was
difficult for people to decide what things needed to happen daily and what did not.
As can be seen in our calendar, there are certain teaching philosophies that differ
between us. Nonetheless, I believe that because we formed a trifecta of subgenres
to aid students in their understanding of narrative writing and the heros journey,
if we taught this unit to a class, all the students would learn and gain something
from it.
What did you learn about yourself through this process?
Through this process, I learned that I would prefer to work alone
on certain projects. Although my teammates did good work on the project, I feel
like it is less stressful for me to do all the work than to trust other people to do the
best they can do. Also, this was a tricky part to do as a group, because it was one
unit. I think that sharing lesson plans with co-workers is fantastic, but it is
difficult when it is supposed to be one cohesive project. With that being said, I
think certain ideas were amplified by working in a team. For example, viewing
the heros journey from different sub-genres of narrative writing could help all
different students find a connection to this unit. That is something that we would
not have come up with if we didnt work as a team.
Which of your contributions to the project do you consider the most
successful?
As with my partners, I am most proud of my lesson plan. Lesson
plans are so exciting to create and I really enjoy it. I think that by having my
lesson plan be about a different form of writing than our main standard, I am
helping my students with the scaffolding that must always be taking place.

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Which of your partners contributions do you consider more successful?

I am really impressed with the ideas and innovation my partners
applied to their lesson plans. I think that they are both very good at coming up
with teaching ideas and I am interested in adapting their plans for a future
classroom.
What, if anything, would you do differently?
Next time I would like to have more time to meet with my group
outside of class. Since this project is supposed to be cohesive, I felt that it was
important that we work as a team to smooth out the bumps along the way.
However, since the project homestretch was over a break when I was out of the
country and everyone else had family affairs, it was impossible to meet up.
Additionally, I would like to set personal project deadlines for our group, so we
do not have to rush at the end.
What two reasons would you add to my why collaborate list?
Two reasons collaboration is good are:
1)Having a team to share ideas with
2)Splitting up the workload.
What advice would you give to future students about collaborative projects?
I would advise my students to have all parts of the project planned
out in the class before they go to work on it on their own. My group picked parts
and assigned each person to complete certain tasks, but I felt like it would have
been better if each person was more accountable for their parts of the project.
Also I would caution them to not procrastinate on the project. Since it is a team
effort, it can stress teammates out when partners dont promptly finish work.

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Reflection:
Emily
To what extent (and how) does your paper reflect the limitations and success
of the collaborative process?
As has been mentioned in Morgans reflection, as a team we all
brought different ideas to the table from various classes and teaching experiences
which not all of us have had. I believe the sub-genres we came up with to aid in
our final product were something innovative we all came up with and that I would
not have thought of on my own. However, there were many things that were not
ideal about this being a group project, one of which is the fact that this is
supposed to be a cohesive assignment and that is sometimes hard to do when your
group mates have great ideas which dont quite fit into your own sequence of
events.
What did you learn about yourself through this process?
I think the biggest thing I learned about myself is that while I
might procrastinate a bit more than I should on individual projects, when it comes
to group projects I want everything to be done as early as possible so that I know
how my part fits into everyone elses and I expect other people to have the same
mentality. I found it hard to edit my own work when I did not have others work
to base mine off of (in terms of being cohesive) and this led to a last minute rush
which caused a fair bit of stress.
Which of your contributions to the project do you consider the most
successful?
I had quite a bit of fun figuring out my two weeks and
trying to think of activities revolving around fairy tales, so I am
proud of my first week on the calendar (week 5) and the lesson I
fully developed to match this. I also think my use of my learning
from another class (English Language for Teachers mini-lessons
on patterns of errors) was quite successful in the context of
incorporating writing instruction into this unit.
Which of your partners contributions do you consider more successful?
All of our lessons are so diverse because of the nature of the unit
we have created and I think this is one of the true benefits of collaborating. Since

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we are teaching different aspects of the same theme every two weeks, there are
many different strategies in place and I hope to look back on this project to use
some of the great strategies my group mates employed in their lessons.
What, if anything, would you do differently?
It would have been very helpful to meet outside of class more to
make sure we were all on the same page with deadlines and ideas as these can be
hard to convey simply over text and email. I also would have liked to have more
definite deadlines for myself and group mates so that I would know for sure if and
when everything was getting done and to avoid the last minute rush of finishing
things, instead having that time to edit and refine.
What two reasons would you add to my why collaborate list?
Learning how to communicate effectively
Building ideas based off of others
What advice would you give to future students about collaborative projects?
I would strongly advise each member to know exactly what they
are doing by talking to each other face-to-face before breaking off to do individual
work as well as having personally set deadlines for each segment. I would also
recommend revising as a group in person, again to make sure everyone is on the
same page with how the assignment fits together. Finally, I would recommend
setting up a uniform format to follow for all segments to ensure a professional
looking final product without having to edit every detail after the fact.