Friday, October 30, 2015
Wednesday, October 28, 2015
Autobiographical Narrative Example
Autobiographical Narrative
Definition: An autobiographical
narrative tells the story of an experience that took place in the
author’s life. It usually focuses on the details associate with the experience,
but it also lets the author express his or her thoughts and feelings about what
happened.
Using the following example as a model, write your own
autobiographical narrative. Be sure to stay focused on one event/moment/day.
The essay will be 600-700+ words, but no more than 800. Type your essay and double-space or print it
in black ink, skipping lines. Use a creative title. Use descriptive words and
dialogue. Use the active voice. Rough draft due _______________________.
Writer’s Model
|
Introduction
Attention-grabbing opener
Hint at meaning
Background information; main character
Background information; main event
Description
BODY BEGINS
Event one (chronological order)
Dialogue
Description
Event two
Thoughts and feelings
Event three
Description; action details
Dialogue; thoughts and feelings
Event four
Conclusion
Meaning of experience; thoughts and feelings
Final thought
|
An Actor is Born
I wish I could
say that I was planning my debut on Broadway the next season – or even that
the experience was mildly successful. But I can’t. I don’t even know how I
became involved in the first place. I’ve always known all the techniques for
avoiding attention. I’m never late for class. I always sit in the back row. I
keep my head down at the right times. But last year my family got involved,
and life hasn’t been the same since.
The yearly
drama production is always a big event around school. Last year, posters with
strange objects that were supposed to be windmills, but looked more like
clock hands run amok, went up everywhere. They decorated every available
space and featured only two words: Don Quixote.
Not long after
these decorations appeared, my parents began one of those dinner table
conversations about “Susan’s Shyness and What Can Be Done About It.”
“Why don’t you
sign up?” my father urged. “There are lots of things you can do offstage
–lights, costumes, prompting. And it’ll be good for you. You’ll meet people
and get out of yourself a little.”
Silence from
me.
For some
reason, this particular play really caught on at school. Maybe it was just
the nuttiness—the strange, wonderful man who thought he was a knight and went
off fighting windmills and showed People what it was like to have a dream. We
has seen pictures of him in our world literature books, dressed up in his
great-grandfather’s old, rusty armor. Anyway, my one true friend signed up
and, in a moment of misguided fervor; so did I.
After that, it
was all a chain of circumstances. Halfway through rehearsal, the actress
playing Teresa got sick. I was leaning to work the lights, enjoying my place
in the half-darkness of the theater, when Mr. Jacobs called my name. I don’t
know why he ever chose me as an understudy in the first place—probably
because it was a minor role and he had to have somebody, after all. It
certainly wasn’t my stage presence. Anyway, no one thought for a moment that
Everything
happened awfully fast that night. I was rushed into
Later, they
told me that I seemed to be saying my lines but that nobody could hear them.
It didn’t get easier as the longest play in history went on. I remember
stumbling onto the stage each time in a kind of merciful daze. I discovered
that if I didn’t look at the audience, I could retrieve most of my lines from
my dim memory. No one mentioned afterward that Teresa seemed fixated on the
empty space above the stage.
I didn’t
suddenly blossom into Katharine Hepburn, but the world didn’t come to an end
either. You still won’t find me leaping up to answer questions in class. But
it was fun to go to the party with the rest of the cast, to laugh at some of
the funny bloopers, and to feel good because everyone like the play so much.
For once in my life, I’d been in the limelight a little. And it didn’t feel
so bad, after all.
|
The following is another example, but please use the previous model
as your guide.
On this morning in August when I was 13, my mother sent us
out to pick tomatoes. Back in April I’d have killed for a fresh tomato, but in
August they were no more rare or wonderful than rocks. So I picked one and
threw it at a crab apple tree where it made a good splat, and then threw a tomato at my brother. He whipped one back
at me. We ducked down by the vines, heaving tomatoes at each other. My sister,
who was a good person, said, “you’re going to get it.” She bent over and kept
on picking.
What a target! She was 17, a girl with big hips, and bending
over, she looked like the side of a barn.
I picked up a tomato so big it sat on the ground. It looked
like it had sat there a week. The underside was brown, small white worms lived
in it, and it was very juicy. I stood up and took aim, and went into the
windup, when my mother called my name in a sharp voice. I had to decide
quickly. I decided.
A rotten Big Boy hitting the target is a memorable sound,
like a fat man doing a belly-flop. With a whoop and a yell the tomatoee—came
after me faster than I knew she could run, and grabbed my shirt and was about
to brain me when Mother called her name in a sharp voice. And my sister, who
was a good person, obeyed and let go—and burst into tears. I guess she knew
that the pleasure of obedience is pretty thin compared with the pleasure of
hearing a rotten tomato hit someone in the rear end.
~ From Lake Wobegon
Disney Dreamers Academy
USE THE URL BELOW FOR MORE INFORMATION:
https://www.disneydreamersacademy.com/
Tuesday, October 27, 2015
Latino Youth Leadership Conference
LATINO YOUTH LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE
| WHAT: | 16th Annual Latino Youth Leadership Conference, hosted by Georgia State University. This year’s theme is Lights, Camera, Action: Your Personal Production for Higher Education. |
| WHO: | Latino middle school and high school students from all over Georgia, plus parents, teachers, school staff and volunteers |
| WHEN: | Saturday, November 7, 2015, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. |
| WHERE: | Georgia State University, 33 Gilmer Street SE, Atlanta, Ga. 30302 |
| COST: | FREE. Breakfast and lunch provided at no cost. REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED. |
Registration
All students, teachers, school staff and mentor-guides interested in participating in the conference must register online beforehand. Parents do not need to register.
REGISTRATION FOR THE 2015 CONFERENCE IS NOW CLOSED.
StudentsFor students, there are two steps in the registration process.
Step 1: Register online at one of the two links below:
* High School Students
* Middle School Students
Step 2: Download, print and fill out the permission form (in English or Spanish) below:
Students coming with their school must turn the form in to their teachers. Students registering individually must bring the form with them on the day of the conference.
Teachers and School Staff
Volunteer Mentor-Guides
16th Annual Latino Youth Leadership Conference
For the past 16 years, we have been inspiring Latino students to pursue higher education and follow their dreams. Our annual Latino Youth Leadership Conference is an exciting day full of high energy, inspiration, motivational speakers, practical tips for college, workshops and a College and Career Fair for Latino middle school and high school students from all across Georgia. Parents, teachers, school staff and volunteers also participate in the conference. Now in its 16th year, the Latino Youth Leadership Conference attracts nearly 1,800 students, parents, teachers and volunteers. The conference’s objectives are to:
- Motivate and inspire Latino students to finish high school and pursue college
- Provide students with the tools and resources they need to access a college education
- Develop leadership skills
- Promote career exploration
Keynote Speaker
Roy Juarez
Roy Juarez is a motivational speaker who has reached more than 100,000 people with his personal message of hope, perseverance and the power of a higher education. Juarez serves as a role model for thousands of individuals through his work as an advocate for youth and higher education. His life experience inspires them to forgive, chase their dreams, and be the change they wish to see.
Born and raised on the south side of San Antonio, Texas, Juarez faced obstacles that could have turned him into a statistic. At the age of 14, Juarez dropped out of high school and became homeless. He carried with him only a duffle bag of personal items that he called home. Juarez moved from house to house to survive. Despite all that was working against him, he knew there was more to life, which is why he never lost sight of his dreams. Juarez fought the battle to leave the streets only to return to them after graduating from Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas.
Juarez recently completed his second national tour, the Impact Tour. His first tour, the Homeless by Choice Tour, was a huge success. He embarked on his second tour with the goal of inspiring more than 200,000 individuals.
For more information on Roy Juarez, visit http://www.homelessbychoice.com/
http://thelaa.org/events/latino-youth-leadership-conference/
Thursday, October 22, 2015
Tuesday, October 20, 2015
Monday, October 19, 2015
Wednesday, October 7, 2015
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