Personal Narratives:

Analyzing Personal Adaptation to Tell Your Own Story

Meg Strauss
Coherent Assignment Sequence
April 4th, 2017
Eighth Grade English Class
Introduction:

This lesson plan is meant for an eighth grade English class. Since I am considering

returning to my hometown after graduation, I have written this lesson plan specifically for

Holyoke Jr. High School, located in Holyoke, Colorado. According to Holyoke Jr. High Schools

website, the Holyoke School District RE-1J is incredibly diverse, with 46% of the school

population identifying as Hispanic and 53% identifying as Caucasian. One quarter of the

schools population directly use English Language Learning services (Holyoke School District).

Holyoke Jr. High School has a student/teacher ratio of 14:1 (city-data.com). Based on this

data, I am assuming that my class will have roughly fourteen students. Out of these fourteen

students, eight will most likely be Caucasian and six will most likely be Hispanic. There will also

be at least three students who are English Language Learners.

This classroom will be very mixed in students abilities, as this is a core and required

class for all eighth grade students. While the Holyoke School District does use a quarter system,

Eighth Grade English is a yearlong class. Holyoke Jr. High has school five days a week, with

each day consisting of eight 48 minute class periods.

Being from Holyoke, I know that while the student body ranges widely in regards to

personal interests, most students are extremely driven. With the low teacher/student ratio,

students tend to be respectful towards teachers and are not afraid to step out of their comfort

zones.

As I think about this class, I feel that the personal narratives unit would mostly likely fall

after fictional stories, since both units are not confined to the standards found in research,

argumentative, and compare/contrast essays. In an ideal setting, however, students will have
already been taught research, argumentative, and compare/contrast essays. I feel that by having

this prior experience, students will already feel comfortable writing essays. Thus, my unit will

focus solely on the aspects of personal narrative writing, rather than writing as a whole. That

being said, I will still incorporate mini-lessons of grammar into this unit, as I have chosen not to

isolate grammar, but rather involve grammar in every unit of writing.

The reason I chose to plan a lesson revolving around personal narratives is because

personal writing was never taught to me throughout my schooling in Holyoke. It was not until

college that I began to keep a journal, and I still wish I would have writing as a form of therapy

sooner in life. By writing personal narratives, I feel as though students can explore meaningful

events in their life in a healthy manner. Personal writing has the ability to allow students to truly

understand that their story is important, which is why I feel that a personal writing unit should be

added in Holyokes eighth grade English curriculum.

Rationale:

In a 2010 study conducted by St. John Fisher College graduate student Samantha J.

Martin, Martin found that including personal narratives within unit plans increase students

success as writers. Martin, who focused on a class of twenty-two ten-year-olds, states that she

found that,

Organization, the proper use of mechanics, word choice, and the ability to edit/revise are

the four main skills taught through the use of the personal narrative genre. Similarly,

these four skills are also four of the major skills needed to produce well-written pieces in

other genres as well, although students find transferring these skills between the genres to

be a difficult task (Martin, 2010).

In other words, the personal narrative genre is instrumental in producing the skills

students need to write well-written pieces.

In my personal narrative lesson plan, I will be focusing on the Colorado Academic

Standard 2.1.a.ii, which states that students should be able to, Determine a theme or central idea

of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including its relationship to the

characters, setting, and plot; provide an objective summary of the text. The readings and textual

materials I have included in this unit have strong themes of personal adaptation. Students will

asked to analyze these texts, paying special attention to the central themes and plot.

By writing their own personal narrative, students will, as standard 3.1.a.ii states, use

narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, description, and reflection, to develop

experiences, events, and/or characters. Students will be asked to use narrative techniques to
portray an instance in which they had to personally adapt to fit into their surroundings. Students

will develop this theme through proper reflection and an in-depth view of this specific event.

While personal narrative writing does serve purpose in terms of making students great

writers, I also want my students to enjoy writing. In their essay titled Improving the Persuasive

Essay Writing of High School Students with ADHD, authors Laura Thompson Jacobson and

Robert Reid state that, Unlike in elementary school, writing demands in middle school and high

school generally center on expository or persuasive writing (Jacobson and Reid, 2010). This

quote directly reflects my own experience at Holyoke Jr./Sr. High School, as I was never given

the opportunity to write in a creative way.

By teaching students to write a personal narrative, teachers are allowing students to

reflect on an event that played a significant role in their lives. In the book What a Writer Needs,

author Ralph Fletcher articulates that, A writer becomes vulnerable by revealing part of [their]

inner life (Fletcher, 1993). In this unit, I want to highlight and celebrate that vulnerability

In this unit plan, I provide a way for students to write out part of their personal journey in

a healthy and reflective manner. Most importantly, I teach my students that their own story does

matterthat they all have a personal story worth telling.

 Works Cited

Jacobson, L. T., & Reid, R. (2010). Improving the persuasive essay writing of high school

students with ADHD. Exceptional Children, 76(2), 157-174.

Fletcher, Ralph J. What a Writer Needs. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2013. Print.

Martin, Samantha J. "Skills Acquired Through Personal Narrative Writing Instruction." St. John

Fisher College Fisher Digital Publications, Dec. 2010. Web.

<http://fisherpub.sjfc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1007&context=education_ETD_masters>
Length of Unit: January 30th- February 21st, 16 school days

Colorado Academic Standards addressed in the unit:

Reading:

2.1.a.ii: Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course

of the text, including its relationship to the characters, setting, and plot; provide an objective

summary of the text.

Writing:

3.1.a.ii: Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, description, and reflection, to

develop experiences, events, and/or characters.

3.1.a.x: Provide a conclusion that follows from and reflects on the narrated experiences or

events.

Grammar:

3.3.a.vii: Use subject-verb agreement with intervening phrases and clauses

Ongoing Assignments:

Writers Notebook:

Students will start every Tuesday and Thursday class with a writers notebook prompt. This will

take approximately fifteen minutes of Tuesday and Thursday class time. In this unit, students

will write on prompts that are personal and reflective.

Writers Circles:

Inspired by Jim Vopat Writing Cicles, students will be put into writing circles at the start of the

year. This group will serve as a consistent peer-editing group. Writing group enhances
differentiation in the classroom, as writing circles are grouped by writing level. Writing circles

also provides a sense of comfort and security within the classroom.

Week One: Telling a Story

Day 1:

Students will be introduced to the concept of personal stories

Students will learn what aspects make up a personal story

Students will be given assignment sheet #1 as a reference

Students will do a Think, Pair, Share

In this Think, Pair, Share, students will discussion in pairs a personal story that

intrigued them and why.

For an exit slip, students will reflect on their discussion with their partner. Students will

write about why they remember a certain personal story told to them (i.e. what was it

about that story that made you remember it?)

o Example: This could be a reflection on a story that a students mother told them

about a childhood memory

Day Two:

Writers notebook prompt: Describe your earliest memory. Why do you think this

memory has stuck with you?

Find the theme

Students will read The Moment of the Sixties by Joseph Duffy (assignment 2)

Students will work in pairs to determine the meaning of the story

Day Three:

Students will work in pairs and will read The Polka Dotted Scarf by Geetanjali Jha

(assignment 3)

Students will make a graphic organizer that displays the storys plot

Students will discuss if this story was organized in an effective manner

Day Four:

Writers notebook prompt: In a narrative format, describe your first day of middle school.

Students will learn about the Moth Podcast and how they can listen to examples to help

them write their own personal memoir.

Students will listen to 8th grade student Dante Jackson perform at a Moth Story Slam

Jackson performs a story titled, The Prom.

This story can be found on the Moth Podcast website.

We will have a class discussion regarding the following questions:

o What did you think of the story?

o Was it relatable? If so, did that engage you in the story more?

o What was the theme of this story?

o Why do you think Jackson chose to tell this story?

o How was this story organized?

o Was this story organized effectively? Was it easy to follow? How did he

transition the different parts of the story?

Day Five:

Students will read I Laid my Head in my Mothers Lap (assignment 4)

 Students will free write for fifteen minutes on an intimate moment they can recall with a

close family member or friend

At the end of the free write session, students will reflect on why this story was

meaningful to them and will determine the theme of their own story

Day Six:

For this day, students will be working on writing conclusions

This directly appeases to Colorado Academic Standard 3.1.a.x

Standard 3.1.a.x states that students must be able to provide a conclusion that follows

from and reflects on the narrated experiences or events.

Students will listen and will be given lyrics to The Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas

Priest (assignment 5)

Students will work in groups of four to determine the meaning of the song.

Each group will turn in a conclusion for the song.

Active and passive voice mini-lesson

Conclusions must be written using active voice

Day Seven:

Writers notebook prompt: Write an introduction to a story of your choice.

Mini Lesson #1

Students will be given an introductions work sheet (assignment 6)

Students will be grouped into groups of three and will write an introduction to each set of

introductions given
Day Eight:

Students will be introduced to their theme of their personal memoir, which is personal

adaptation

Students will be handed the assignment sheet for that memoir

Students will watch excerpts of the films Elf and Tarzan (I will bring in my own copies)

In both films, the main characters undergo some sort of personal adaptation.

Students will write a RAFT in which take on the character of either Buddy the Elf of

Tarzan.

Students must pretend that their character is writing in a journal and explaining how hard

their personal adaptation was

Assignment 7

Day Nine:

When students first walk into class, they will each be asked to write a silly rule on the

board. (Example: You cannot sit in chairs.)

Once each student has written a silly rule, there will be around 15 rules on the board.

Students must follow these rules. This will obviously be very hard.

In this activity students will understand how hard it is to adapt to new rules

This will provide them with background when we tackle adaptation through immigration

Students will read excerpts of Enriques Journey by Sonia Nazario (Assignment 8)

Students will write a five sentence paragraph explain how hard it is to adapt to a new

situation

Day Ten:
 Students will listen to NPRs Weekend Edition Sunday- A Memoir of Childhood,

Immigration, and a Mothers Love

Students will do a Think, Pair, Share and reflect on their thoughts about the story of

immigration and adaptation

Students will then work on a topic proposal. This topic will be short paragraph explaining

what story of personal adaptation they want to write about and why this story is important

to share.

Day Eleven:

Students will work on rough draft of their personal narrative

Day Twelve:

Students will work on a rough draft of their personal narrative.

Day Thirteen:

First rough draft is due

Students will peer edit one anothers drafts in their writing circle

Students will fill out a peer review form about their peers draft (Assignment 9)

Day Fourteen:

Students will analyze the feedback given by their peers and will work on their second

draft

This is also an optional teacher conference day

Day Fifteen:
 Draft two is due

Students will get back into their writing circles and will again edit two other peers work.

Students will not need a peer review sheet as they are editing strictly for grammar and

spelling errors. Students will pay special attention to subject and verb agreement.

Day Sixteen:

Students will work on their final draft

This will be the last day to conference with the teacher

Day Seventeen:

Final draft of personal narrative is due

Calendar:

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

Jan. 29 Jan. 30 Jan. 31 Feb. 1 Feb. 2 Feb. 3 Feb. 4

-Introduction -Find themes -Personal -Moth -

on personal narrative podcast Incorporating

memoirs plot -Voice your voice

-Memoirs into personal

through memoirs

different

mediums -

Feb. 5 Feb. 6 Feb. 7 Feb. 8 Feb. 9 Feb. 10 Feb. 11

-Personal -Personal -Intro to -Raft due -Guest

memoir memoir adaptation -Follow speaker

introductions conclusions -Watch the rules -Reflection

excerpts of -Excerpts

Elf and of

Tarzan Enriques

-RAFT Journey

-Topic

proposal

due
Feb. 12 Feb. 13 Feb. 14 Feb. 15 Feb. 16 Feb. 17 Feb. 18

-Work day -Work day -Draft one -Work day -Draft two

- Plan - analyzing due - Optional due

outline due theme and -Writing teacher -Writers

-Mini lesson introductions circles conference circle

on -Mini

subject/verb lesson on

agreement the object

of

preposition

Feb. 19 Feb. 20 Feb. 21 Feb. 22 Feb. 23 Feb. 24 Feb. 25

-Last work -Final draft

day of personal

-Last option memoir due

for teacher

conference
Assignment sheet #1:

Introduction to Personal Narratives

Narrative is a fancy word for story.

Personal means something that has to do with YOU

Personal Narratives= A story about yourself

Like a fictional story, personal narratives have a beginning, middle, and an end.

Introduction:

The Hook

o Catch the readers attention with this

o This statement should make them want to read more

 Set the Scene

o Who are the characters the reader should know about?

o Where and when did this story take place?

Thesis Statement

o What is the moral of this story?

o Why is it important that you write this story?

Middle

Description of Time

o Tell your story in a chronological order

o This is a great time to incorporate transition words

Show, Dont Tell

o Make the reader feel like they were with you during this story

o Use great descriptive words

Evidence

o Support your thesis

o Provide evidence that makes the understand why this story is important

End

Reflect

o Why is this story meaningful to you?

Make a Circle

o Tie the ending back to the beginning

o Restate the moral of the story

 o Leave the reader feeling satisfied with the ending

Assignment 2

The First Moment of The Sixties

By Joseph Duffy

I was sure when The Fifties would come to an end. They would end on December 31, 1959, at
the stroke of midnight. I was a young boy of eleven at that moment, and my twin brother Jim
and I were helping my Mom baby-sit for my sister Betty, who lived across tiny Agate Street
from us. It was a big deal, as the decade would be changing, something I had never
experienced, as I was too young the last time this happened. I couldnt wait to see what it felt
like; the end of The Fifties!

Midnight came, and Jim and I ran up and down Agate Street banging pots and pans together
to celebrate the new decade. I awoke the next morning, looked out my window, and...nothing
was changed. I was a bit surprised. Life just went on as if nothing had happened. I began to
suspect that decades were not real; they were an invention, and that one was just like every
other. Is that all there is to a decade? Banging Pots and Pans?

So, even though it was now 1960, The Fifties just...continued. I began High School a couple
of years later, and we had a new President, John F. Kennedy, an Irish Catholic like me,
whom I had (sort of) met when he was campaigning for President. Freshman year at
Northeast Catholic High went pretty smooth for me, and, for Sophomore year, 1963, I was
 assigned to the top section. I had Geometry, Latin II, Spanish II, Biology, World History,
Religion, English Composition, and Gym, three days a week. I also had the 11:30 lunch,
which was considered the best lunch.

After lunch came Religion class, with Father Godley (his real name). The trick in Father
Godleys class was to stay awake, especially after lunch. That went until 1:00, and then
Spanish II, with Father Cleary. 1:45 was English Comp, with Mr. Thaddeus Pianka. That
class was held in Room 114, on the corner of the first floor.

I remember a particularly warm Friday, late that Fall. It was 66 degrees and sunny;
unseasonably warm for so late in November. The windows in our classroom were open, and
we were doing a quiz, or deskwork, for Mr. Pianka. It was very quiet. I sat in the first desk,
second row. Then there was a loud voice, coming from outside our window.

Hey, thats my buddy Mike Dugan out there, I remember thinking. He was yelling to
another student, who must have been standing a hundred yards away.

Somebody just shot Kennedy.

What? said the otherkid.

I said, somebody... just... shot... Kennedy!

There was a muffled response from the other kid.

Then Mike said, They dont know yet.

I thought, Wow. What if somebody HAD just shot Kennedy? I didnt believe it. It just
didnt seem like a possibility. Why would Mike say such a thing?

A few moments later our Principal, Father Corcoran, announced over the loudspeaker, May I
have your attention, please? The President has just been shot in Dallas, Texas, while riding in
a motorcade. His condition is not yet known, but reports are that it may be very serious. We
didnt know what to think about this. It was a physical blow.

And nothing was ever the same, from that moment. Something had ended. We were
somewhere completely new and foreign to us. It took only... a moment. We were, briefly,
suspended, in mid-air, between decades; silent, breathless, and peering down into the
unknown; but only for a moment.

And, in that moment, the nation, and the world, leapt the abyss between the decades. It was
the very last moment of The Fifties. The beginning of The Sixties was not about banging pots
and pans together, after all.
Questions on the text:
What is the moral of this story?

Why did the author feel that telling this story was important?

How did the author make you feel like you were in the scene?

Assignment 3

The Polka Dotted Scarf

By Geetanjali Jha

I remember opening up his big wooden wardrobe and burying my nose into his handkerchiefs.
His clothes always had a pleasant, sweet, and mystical smell-- just his clothes, his closets, his
bed; his entire room was infused with that intoxicating smell.

Maybe it emanated from the special homemade lotion, he used. He mixed glycerin with
rosewater with a couple of other things and his magic potion was ready. He claimed it was the
purest thing one could use to keep their skin young and supple. I remember him passing on list of
contents to my mother, she never tried making it. He was very fair skinned, of which I think he
was vain. He looked his age but had good, healthy skin as a consequence of the homemade lotion
he used every night. He was a bit rotund, but somehow that went with his cheerful persona. I
wonder if he is my favorite grandparent, maybe, but I sure am his favorite grandchild, or so I
would like to believe. My brother calls him babaji; I occasionally call him nanaji, as we typically
call our mothers father nanaji and paternal grandfather babaji.

I have known babaji as a spirited person who never let his worries come to the dinner table, he
always had a joke or two ready if domestic tension aroused. Also, I have never seen anyone
eating oranges with such an extraordinary speed. He divides an orange into four and gulps it
down, though I have my doubts but if he does chew, he does it at an amazing speed, almost
invisible to the naked eye.
 In contrast with other people his age, he has real hobbies. Gardening is one of his hobbies;
people say he has what they call a green hand. He is capable of growing roses as big as
cauliflowers and we dare not touch a single petal. I remember he would come from work every
day and sit with plants with tools in his hands, unearthing the mud near the plants, adding water
and some special mixture to it. He would also try to adapt modern techniques of gardening, I
often heard of him using terms like grafting, cropping, etc. All this brought sweat to his brows
but he said this is his way to unwind.

He had another unwinding ritual; after lunch, all the adults in the house would gather to play
cards. Though, money was not involved, the competition used to be fierce. Devious methods
were used to score against each other. I dont recall the regular double dealers, except that my
father was always one of the accused. My father not being an expert in the game, did try to spice
it up. My father would always pair up with my grandmother and my mother with babaji. Long
sessions of cards during hot sultry summer months were a regular phenomena, it gave us kids a
chance to watch television to our hearts content. Sometimes, we too would try to learn cards
games and play alongside. Babajis side drawers had number of old, battered card packs, which
were passed on to us.

The game of cards was incomplete without paan. Everyone in the house, except for my father
and the kids were experts in making paan. My nani used to make countless number of perfect
triangular paans in the morning which were generally consumed by the evening. She kept laid
the paan leaves on an old newspaper and then the paan would be kept in a pandibba, a container
used exclusively to keep paan. Paan was an integral part of the household. There was a paan rack
in the house where an assortment of colourful fragrant ingredients were kept, in quaint small
containers. We, at times, used to sneak up to get some shelled cardamom from the rack.

Another thing I recall of him is that he knows how to tie a scarf around his neck very well. He
would often wear a polka dotted scarf. He used to wear that scarf so often that I begin to believe
that he probably just had one. He had a friend from college in Delhi, he would often wear that
scarf to his place. I guess it reminded him of his youthful days.

Babaji used to sit in vajrasan after meals, though he didnt have a digestion problem, nor did it
help him in any other way. He used to sit on the floor after dinner, watching news on
television, with his legs locked under him. He was quite a yoga fan; I think he had a book on
yoga which he consulted from time to time. He did yoga in the mornings, during my exams when
I would get up early to revise, I would see him in odd yoga positions. He stopped doing yoga
once his knee trouble began, I doubt if he would still be able to perform yoga.

At times, he would go out for his evening stroll and buy fresh fruits on his way back home.
Mango was his favorite fruit and buttered toast his favorite snack. He hated spicy food and Dev
Anands antics. He loved watching comedies and talking about his college days in Delhi.

I dont know much about the more important aspects of babaji life; I dont know what he wanted
in life, his problems, his experiences. I wonder if I know little about him or just little but
significant things about him.
Still when I think of him, an intoxicating smell surrounds me and I wish I could once more bury
my nose in his handkerchiefs.

Assignment:

Get into groups of four to five and create your own graphic organizer that illustrates the plot of
the story.

What happens in the beginning? The middle? The end?

After you have created this graphic organizer, get ready to present your organizer to the class!

Assignment 4

I Laid my Head in my Mothers Lap

By Susan Mickelson

She was starting to get anxious and restless, so I sat her next to me on the couch. I had the urge
to lay my head on her lap. It has been years since I did that and it brought back a flood of
memories of my childhood.

She gently smoothed my hair and ran her cool hand over my face. She spoke softly, saying "It's
nice" and other words which didn't really make sentences, yet were comforting to hear.

As a child I had many earaches and she would have a heating pad under my head as I laid my
head on my Mother's lap. When we were in church, I would sometimes get restless, as most
small children do. I laid my head in my Mother's lap, she'd smooth my hair and run her cool
hands over my face.

Even though she can't remember my name or her words don't always make sense anymore, I
cried knowing she still remembered how to be my Mother when I laid my head in my Mother's
lap.
Assignment 5

The Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest

By Bob Dylan

Well, Frankie Lee and Judas Priest

They were the best of friends
So when Frankie Lee needed money one day
Judas quickly pulled out a roll of ten
And placed them on a footstool
Just above the plotted plain,
Sayin', Take your pick, Frankie Boy
My loss will be your gain
Well, Frankie Lee, he sat right down
And put his fingers to his chin
But with the cold eyes of Judas on him
His head began to spin
Would ya please not stare at me like that, he said
It's just my foolish pride
But sometimes a man must be alone
And this is no place to hide
Well, Judas, he just winked and said
All right, I'll leave you here
But you'd better hurry up and choose
Which of those bills you want
Before they all disappear
I'm gonna start my pickin' right now
Just tell me where you'll be
Judas pointed down the road
And said, eternity
Eternity, said Frankie Lee
With a voice as cold as ice
That's right, said Judas Priest, eternity
Though you might call it 'Paradise
I don't call it anything
Said Frankie Lee with a smile
All right, said Judas Priest
I'll see you after a while
Well, Frankie Lee, he sat back down
Feelin' low and mean
When just then a passing stranger
Burst upon the scene
Saying, are you Frankie Lee, the gambler
Whose father is deceased
Well, if you are
There's a fellow callin' you down the road
And they say his name is Priest
Oh, yes, he is my friend
Said Frankie Lee in fright
I do recall him very well
In fact, he just left my sight
Yes, that's the one, said the stranger
As quiet as a mouse
Well, my message is, he's down the road
Stranded in a house

Assignment:

Many songs have stories in them. Frankie Lee and the Judas Priest is just one example. Your

assignment for today is to work in your writers circle groups and decide on the plot and
meaning of the song. Once you have done that, you and your group will write a conclusion to

this story. This conclusion should highlight the theme of this story and show reflection.

Assignment 6:

There are many different types of introductions to a story. Here are a few:

The dramatic lead:

Powerful

Grabs the reader right off the bat

Intense honesty

Example: Whenever I got into trouble, my mother always had a straight look at me. I

would start to cry then, not out loud buy in my heart.

Starting in the middle:

Might begin with a loud sound

Immediately brings the reader into a scene

 Example: Wheres Papa going with the axe? said Fern to her mother as they were

setting the table for breakfast. (Charlottes Web by E.B. White)

Leisurely leads:

Does not get straight to the point

Often times begins with a description

Example: From the overcast grey sky fell tiny white snowflakes which fluttered this way

and that until finally settling on some unfortunate leaf.

Introducing the narrator/character:

Immediately introduces the person who is telling the story or the main character

Example: Paul was a very unusual boy. One would often find Paul running barefoot

through the halls of the school.

Example: I am normally not one to boast; however, when it comes to surfing, I am

basically a professional.

The ambiguous lead:

Lacks clarity which is often intriguing to a reader

Example: In most ways I am just like other kids in age. In other ways, I am not.

Assignment:

Working with a group, write one dramatic lead, one lead that starts in the middle, one leisurely

lead, one lead that immediately introduces a character or narrator, and one ambiguous lead. You

will write these introductions based on the prompt, A boy/girl has just moved to a new town.

Write a story about this boy/girls experiences.

Mini Lesson

Context:
Holyoke Junior High 8th grade students, mixed ability classroom.
50 minute class periods
Necessary Materials:
Three small balls, two sticky notes, worksheet, access to music (e.g. phone, iPod)
Sequence:
Activity Description Time
Review Worksheet At the start of class, tell 4 minutes
students to get into groups of
three. From here, give each
group review worksheets,
which consists of five subject-
verb agreement questions and
tips to remember. Tell students
that they are to keep this review
worksheet, as it can be used as a
studying aid. After roughly five
minutes, tell the students to
 organize themselves into one
large circle.
Hot Potato Once students are in a circle, 5 minutes
give three random students each
a ball. One ball will be labeled
with a sticky-note noun, one
will be labeled with a sticky-
note verb, and one will be
blank. Start music and have
students pass around the three
balls. When music stops, have
the student with the noun ball
state a noun/plural noun and the
student with the verb ball
state a verb. The student with
the blank ball has to take the
noun and verb given and create
a sentence in which the subject
and verb agree. Repeat this until
every student has had the
chance to get a ball.
Exit Ticket At the end of class, have 4 minutes
students turn in an exit ticket in
order to see how well students
understand subject-verb
agreement, varying sentences,
and prepositional phrases. Ask
students to write a three-
sentence paragraph. In this
paragraph, they must use one
prepositional phrase, one
sentence with a singular noun,
and one sentence with a plural
noun.

Assessment: Students will turn in an exit ticket at the end of class. Students will be asked to
write a three-sentence paragraph that consists of one prepositional phrase, one sentence with a
singular noun, and one sentence with a plural noun. Students will be assessed on their knowledge
of prepositional phrases and their ability to make their subjects and verbs agree within their
sentences.
Name: ____________________________

Subject-Verb Agreement
Review Worksheet

Please circle the correct answer:

1. The dogs ( howl howls ) at the moon.

2. My sister, Julie, ( loves love) to watch television.

3. My three cats, Fluffy, Oreo and Jack, ( sleep sleeps ) on my bed.

4. John ( is are ) one of the best players on the basketball team.

5. A bouquet of roses ( sits sit ) on the table.

Tips to remember:
A noun is singular when it refers to one thing or to a group that acts as one.
Example: John, family, dog
A noun is plural when it refers to more than one thing or group:
Example: students, cats, schools
When a sentence has a singular subject, you can almost always add s to the verb to make the
subject and verb agree.
Example: The child plays in the rain.
When a sentence has a plural subject, you do not add an s to the verb.
Example: The children play in the rain.
A singular subject uses is or was.
A plural subject uses are or were.
Assignment 7

RAFT Assignment

In the movie excerpts we watched, you can tell that both characters are forced to undergo some

sort of transformation in order to adapt to their surroundings. Your assignment is to write a 1-2

page journal entry in which you take on the role of either Buddy the Elf or Tarzan. In this journal

entry, you will be describing the difficulty of personal adaptation.

This is due by the time class starts, Thursday, Feb. 9th.

Assignment 8:

Read the following excerpt from Enriques Journey by Sonia Nazario. This is a novel that

describes a young boys journey from Honduras to the United States.

Excerpt:

But Lourdres (Enriques mother) cannot face Enrique. He will remember only one thing

that she says to him: Dont forget to go to church this afternoon.

It is January 29th, 1989. His mother steps off the porch. She walks away. His mother

never returns.Enrique is bewildered. Who will take care of him now that his mother is

gone?

In this excerpt, Enriques mother leaves him in Honduras to work in the United States. Enrique

has to learn to adapt without his other being there.

Your turn! Write seven to ten sentences about a time in which you had to personally adapt. In

this paragraph, reflect on the difficulty of that personal adaptation. This will be your topic

proposal for your personal memoir. In other words, tell me what you are going to write about for

your final assessment.

Assignment 9:

Peer Review:

You are required to read and edit two peers personal memoirs. These peers will be from your

writing circle. As you edit your peers work, fill out this sheet:

Did the introduction immediately intrigue you? If not, how can it be improved?
Did the story follow the personal narrative plot, and was it easy to follow? If not, how can it be

improved?

Did the writer stick to the theme? Was it evident that their narrative was about a time of personal

adaptation?

Does the writer state the moral of the story? If so, what is the moral of the story?

Is the conclusion reflective? Does it tie the whole narrative together? If not, how can the

conclusion be improved?

Final Assessment:

Write Your Own Personal Narrative

For your final paper for this unit, you will apply everything we have learned so far and

write a 3-4 page personal narrative. Your personal narrative must be centered on a time in which

you had to personally adapt to fit into your surroundings. Some examples of this might be: your

first day of middle school, moving to a new town, fitting in with friends, etc. In this assignment,
you need to use an intriguing introduction and a reflective conclusion. It should be clear to the

reader what the purpose of telling this story is. You will also be graded on the logical

organization of your story, how easy the transitions flow, and proper grammar and spelling. I

will be paying close attention to subject/verb agreement.

Rubric:

Personal Narrative Rubric

4 3 2 1

Ideas/Content -The theme of -The theme of -The theme of -The theme of

personal personal personal personal

adaption is
 adaption is very mostly clear in adaption is adaption is no

clear in the essay the essay somewhat clear clear

-Student tells an -Student tells a -Student tells a -Student does

engaging story mostly engaging somewhat not tell an

-Reflection of story engaging story engaging story

story is -Reflection is -Reflection is -Reflection is

thoughtful mostly somewhat not thoughtful

thoughtful thoughtful

Organization -Narrative -Narrative -Narrative tends -Narrative does

follows the story mostly follows to stray away not follow the

plot the story plot from the story story plot

-Narrative is -Narrative is plot -Narrative is

easy to follow mostly easy to -Narrative is not hard to follow

-Narrative is follow easy to follow -Narrative is not

organized -Narrative is -Narrative is organized

logically organized somewhat

logically organized

logically

Introduction -Introduction -Introduction has -Introduction -The writer does

grabs the the ability to does not grab the not use an

readers grab a readers readers introduction in

attention attention attention their narrative

 -Introduces topic -Introduces topic -Introduces topic

in an engaging is somewhat is not engaging

manner engaging

Conclusion -Conclusion is -Conclusion is -Conclusion is -The writer does

reflective somewhat not reflective not use a

-Conclusion reflective -Conclusion conclusion in

identifies the -Conclusion does not address their narrative

moral of the somewhat the moral of the

story addresses the story

-Conclusion ties moral of the -Conclusion

the entire story story does not tie the

together -Conclusion entire story

somewhat ties together

the entire story

together

Grammar -Narrative is free -Narrative has a -The narrative is -The narrative is

of spelling and few spelling and hard to unreadable due

grammar errors grammar errors understand due to many spelling

-Narrative uses -Narrative uses to many spelling and grammatical

perfect subject/verb and grammatical errors

subject/verb agreement errors -Narrative does

agreements mostly correctly -Narrative not use correct

misuses
subject/verb subject/verb

agreements agreements