Autobiographical or Personal Narrative In an autobiographical or personal narrative, you will describe a personal experience and explore its meaning. Use this form to organize your thoughts.

Introduction

Experience

Significance

Beginning

Middle

End

Conclusion

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Personal Narrative

DRaFTiNGA flow chart can help you organize the narrative’s order of events. Chronological order, or time order, is usually the clearest way to help readers understand what happened. You can also include a flashback, or an event that took place before the start of the narrative.

Directions: Use the flow chart to write down the narrative’s events in the order that they happened. (You may add more boxes if necessary.)

First event

Second event

Third event

Fourth event

Fifth event

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Personal Narrative

PLaNNiNG / PReWRiTiNGA spider map, cluster diagram, or other graphic organizer can help you gather important details about your experience.

Directions: Use the spider map to write down important details about the characters, setting, and action associated with the experience. This information will help you plan your narrative.

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Personal Narrative

RevisiNG aND eDiTiNG 1The following model is an excerpt from a draft that one student wrote about a meaningful experience in his life.

Directions: Use the following suggestions to revise and edit the excerpt. Mark your changes on this page. Then copy your corrected draft on a separate sheet of paper.

• Use transitions to make the order of events clear.• Include a variety of sentence types (statements, questions, and exclamations).• Correct run-on sentences.

a First-Class smile

Last June, several members of my family took a camping trip

together. It began with an early morning flight on a commuter

plane. I had never flown before, but I was determined to act

cool. My cousin Julio, who flies often, was in the seat next to

me. When the flight attendant walks by, I tried my best to look

unconcerned. Julio tapped her arm and said, “This plane looks

very old.” He asked if it was safe.

The attendant said yes, then asked if we had ever flown

before. I said nothing. Julio smiled and confessed that he was

really nervous about flying. I said, “Why did you tell that woman

that you were nervous? It wasn’t very cool.”

Julio replied, “I do get nervous every time I fly. Flight

attendants take really good care of people who are scared but act

nice, they want you to come back again.”

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Personal Narrative

RevisiNG aND eDiTiNG 2To measure your ability to express ideas clearly and correctly, some tests may ask you to identify errors in grammar and usage and to improve sentences and paragraphs.

Directions: Read each question and select the correct answer.

1. What change, if any, should be made in this sentence?I was all excited about the camping trip until I find out that it started with a two-hour flight in a small commuter plane.

a. Change excited to excitement B. Change started to had started C. Change find to found D. Make no change

2. What is the BEST way to revise this sentence?Strapped securely in our seats, the pilot began to taxi down the runway.

a. Once we were all strapped securely in our seats, the pilot began to taxi down the runway. B. Having fastened our seatbelts, the pilot began to taxi down the runway. C. Strapped securely in our seats, the pilot began to taxi down the runway. D. Make no change

Directions: Read the paragraph and select the correct answer to the question that follows.

3. What is the most effective way to revise sentence 3?(1) The trip to the campsite began with a flight in a small commuter plane. (2) In the seat next to me was my cousin Julio. (3) Who flies often. (4) Despite his experience, Julio gets very nervous when he flies. (5) He kept glancing out the window as if he expected a wing to fall off.

a. Combine sentence 3 with sentence 1. B. Add sentence 3 to the end of sentence 2, inserting a comma before who. C. Place sentence 3 after sentence 4, inserting a comma before who. D. Make no Change

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Writing support

WRiTe seNTeNCes WiTh TRaNsiTiONsTransitions show how things are connected. In your personal narrative, use these words to show how events are connected.

transitions: sequence

Events that happen in sequence Events that happen at the same time

then after later the day before

next before first finally

during meanwhile while when

as at the same time

a. Choose the transition words to finish these sentences.

1. ________________ the sky became very dark and we came inside.

________________ it began to rain very hard. We went back outside

________________ the storm had passed.

2. We had a fire drill ________________ we were taking the test. We finished

the test ________________ we came back to our classroom.

Use TRaNsiTiONs TO DesCRiBe eveNTs iN YOUR NaRRaTiveB. Make a list of events that occur in your narrative. The events I want to include in my narrative are

C. Use these sentence frames to show the order in which the events in your narrative take place.

1. The first event that happens is .

2. The next event that happens is .

3. After that, happens.

4. The last event that happens is .

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sCORiNG RUBRiCUse the rubric below to evaluate your Personal Narrative. Circle the score that best represents your work. Then use a separate sheet of paper to write a paragraph explaining your score and how you can improve your writing.

sCoRE COMMON CORE TRAITS

6• Development Has an engaging introduction that orients readers; develops

events with strong dialogue and description; provides a strong conclusion• Organization Establishes a natural and logical sequence of events; uses

effective pacing and transitions to convey sequence• Language Maintains a clear point of view; uses relevant descriptive details and

vivid sensory language; shows a strong command of conventions

5• Development Has an effective introduction; develops events with dialogue and

description; provides a conclusion that sums up the narrative• Organization Has a logical sequence of events; uses mostly effective pacing

and some transitions to signal shifts in time• Language Maintains a point of view; includes relevant descriptive details and

some sensory language; has a few errors in conventions

4• Development Has an introduction, but doesn’t provide context; could use more

dialogue or description to develop events; provides an adequate conclusion• Organization Has a logical sequence of events but needs more transitions• Language Mostly maintains a point of view; needs more descriptive details and

sensory language; includes a few distracting errors in conventions

3• Development Has an introduction, but needs more development; needs more

dialogue and description; lacks a strong conclusion• Organization Has a confusing sequence due to unnecessary events; has a slow

pace at times; needs more transitions to convey sequence• Language Has some lapses in point of view; lacks effective descriptive details

and sensory language; has some major errors in conventions

2• Development Lacks an effective introduction and fails to develop events• Organization Includes distracting events; has choppy pacing• Language Lacks a clear point of view; mostly lacks details and sensory

language; has many errors in conventions

1• Development Has no introduction; lacks descriptive details; ends abruptly• Organization Has no transitions and an unclear sequence of events• Language Has no clear point of view, no effective details or sensory language;

has major conventions errors

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