Bellringer Writing – 8/14/19 Brainstorm a list of words about yourself – who you are as a person, things that are important to you, words that describe you, experiences that impacted you, your beliefs and values.

Six Word Memoirs A memoir in only six words.

What is a memoir? Memoirs are a literary nonfiction genre much like an autobiography. However, unlike an autobiography, which tells a complete life story, a memoir tells a story from a life, such as one event or memory that helped shape them as a person.

FOR SALE: baby shoes, never worn. History It all started with a challenge to Hemingway. He was challenged to write a story using just six words. What do you think Hemingway was trying to show with this story? How would the meaning change if just one word was changed? FOR SALE: baby shoes, never worn. ~ Ernest Hemingway

In November of 2006, Smith Magazine challenged its readers to do the same. Now, at least 8 books have been published, along with the creation of a page-a-day calendar, a game, and countless videos. (Check Smith Mag’s website and YouTube.) http://www.smithmag.net/sixwords/

Watch some examples from one high school class: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejndNExso9M

6 Word Memoir First Day of School Today was an excitingly, frightful day. I look forward to continuing here. Why can I not go home? My school day is very boring. It is too hot for this! I was confused by my schedule. My first day was really interesting. My first day has been nerve-racking. It was good; I didn’t die. It was fun, interesting, and fast. I was nervous walking into classes. Totally hectic, but mostly worth it. I am stepping to the unknown.

ASSIGNMENT: Write a personal six-word memoir that: Describes you, Create a personal 6WM ASSIGNMENT: Write a personal six-word memoir that: Describes you, Explains your life, Encapsulates a pivotal point in your life Summarizes your life’s motto or mantra, or Inspires you (These are just ideas to get you started.)

THE ANSWER TO THE MOST POPULAR QUESTION: NO! SIX-WORD MEMOIRS CANNOT BE FIVE WORDS, THEY CANNOT BE SEVEN WORDS … THEY MUST BE SIX WORDS LONG! (YOU CAN DO IT.) Last slide for Quick Write

Present your 6WMs to the class PUBLISH & SHARE! Present your 6WMs to the class Fosters a “family” feeling in the class.

They need to include an illustration Illustration can be hand-drawn, cut and pasted pictures from magazines, downloaded from computer or your camera.

But you must produce and turn in a hard copy. Part of the grade is presenting and explaining it to the class.

YOUR TURN: Write a personal six-word memoir.

Bellringer Writing 8/15/19 Re-write the following sentence: The really big dog is scary. When you are re-writing, practice what we talked about yesterday. How can you make this sentence more clear using six different words? What are some better words you can use to show the dog is scary?

The really big dog is scary. Growling fiercely, the enormous Rottweiler advanced.

Let’s try one more… Let’s re-write (using six better, more specific words): The school year was very hard.

The school year was very hard. Senior year crushed my fighting spirit.

Take out your classwork from yesterday. Look at your six word memoirs Take out your classwork from yesterday. Look at your six word memoirs. Which one is your best one so far? Look at your word choice. Could you replace any of your words?

Creative Writing 8/16/19 No bellringer writing today. Today you need to illustrate your six-word memoir and write a paragraph explaining its significance. This is due at the end of class!

Creative Writing 8/19/19 No bellringer writing today. Today you need to illustrate your six-word memoir and write a paragraph explaining its significance. You will also need to present your six-word memoir and explain the meaning behind it to the class. The final project (fully colored with the paragraph) is due at the end of class.

Creative Writing Bellringer 8/20/19 Describe your favorite meal(s) (fast food or home cooked) using all 5 senses (smell, hear, touch, taste, see). Sketch a picture first if that will help you.

Sensory Star Activity Label the points of the star: smell, hear, touch, taste, see. Choose one of the following to describe (write it in the middle of the star): Going to the beach Getting up in the morning/ready for school Playing _______(insert sport of choice) Attending a birthday party

Creative Writing Bellringer 8/21/19 Tell me the story of how you got your first name (and middle name if you want). Also answer the following: Do you like your name? Would a different name fit you better? Do you think people judge you based on your name?

Creative Writing Bellringer 8/22/19 Write the conversation that you hear using what we learned about dialogue yesterday for either of these scenarios: Pretend you are a fly on the wall in the room when your parents (or whoever else) were discussing what you should be named. Pretend you are a fly on the wall in the waiting room of a dentist’s office.

Dialogue Group Activity Read your scenario. As a group, write dialogue that makes your scenario come to life. Use good word choices and the dialogue tags on the back. It needs to be at least a page long! Use the example!

Dialogue Group Activity Continue working in your groups. You will be graded on the effectiveness of your dialogue and the length (at least one full page). Be creative! Make as many copies as you need in order to be able to perform your dialogue in front of the class. You will need to have a narrator and at least two characters. Performances will be held the last 15 minutes of class today.

Creative Writing Bellringer 8/26/19 Narrate your most memorable school experience (positive or negative or both). What grade were you in? What did you ultimately learn from this experience?

“Indian Education” Reflection Questions 8/26/19 Answer these questions in your notebook. What’s the overall impression of reservation life? Give an example from the text. Pick two grades to re-read. What is the major conflict Junior faces? What realization does he come to by the end of that grade? Find two examples of where the author does a good job of showing rather than telling.

Notebook Expectations composition book clearly label each entry with a title and the date (example: Bellringer 9/3/19) Write the prompt for the bellringers One or more written pages for each bellringer New entries start on a fresh page Questions? Ask me now.

Bellringer 9/3/19 You have been given an unlimited budget to makeover your bedroom. Describe how you would make it over. What color would you paint the walls? What textures would you want? What size bed? What electronics? How would you like your room to sound? What type of lighting would you want? Justify your choices. Include a diagram if that helps.