Lesson 9 | Making Change: Speeches, Essays, and Articles (2020) | 8th Grade English

Objective

Structure personal narratives that clearly communicate a point of view.

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Lesson Guidance

Explain that students will be writing a short personal narrative in which they “zoom in” on a specific moment in their lives that connects them to the issue they are focused on. This could be anything—a conversation they had, an article they read, a movie they watched, an experience they had—so long as it allows them an opportunity to describe their emotional and intellectual experience.
Have students brainstorm all of the specific and sensory details they can remember: where they were, who they were with, what they saw, what they were thinking, how they felt, etc.
After zooming in on the moment, students should then reflect on the impact of this moment: how did it change their understanding of a specific issue?

Homework

Complete the narrative section of the essay.

Common Core Standards

W.8.1 — Write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence.

Writing Standards

W.8.1 — Write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence.
W.8.2 — Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts, and information through the selection, organization, and analysis of relevant content

Writing Standards

W.8.2 — Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts, and information through the selection, organization, and analysis of relevant content
W.8.3 — Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences.

Writing Standards

W.8.3 — Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences.
W.8.3.a — Engage and orient the reader by establishing a context and point of view and introducing a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally and logically.

Writing Standards

W.8.3.a — Engage and orient the reader by establishing a context and point of view and introducing a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally and logically.
W.8.3.d — Use precise words and phrases, relevant descriptive details, and sensory language to capture the action and convey experiences and events.

Writing Standards

W.8.3.d — Use precise words and phrases, relevant descriptive details, and sensory language to capture the action and convey experiences and events.