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Kelsi Long

Dr. Cook

English 3580

February 26, 2017

Reflection #2

Over the course of the past couple of weeks, I have learned the nooks and crannies of

narrative writing and how to teach it. To begin the unit, I was reminded of the various different

genres of narrative writing after our class discussion resulted in a compiled list of the different

genres of narrative writing. It was a great way to introduce narrative writing, not only to our

English 3580 class, but to my future secondary English students as well. For them to see that

there are many different genres of narrative writing makes the task seem far less daunting. There

is a great likelihood that they can resonate with at least one genre of narrative writing, for they

have likely read many of them. Take, for example, fairytales. What student hasnt read, or at least

heard of, Cinderella? By making a list of genres on the board, and also having students name

specific examples of each genre, like listing Cinderella as an example of a fairytale, the students

can become comfortable with narrative writing; they are able to relate to it, and perhaps even

become excited and eager to begin learning how to write it- just as I was eager to being learning

how to teach it.

As we learned how to teach narrative writing to our students, I especially appreciated the

variety of different methods we used. From readings, to mini-lessons, to group discussions and

the annotated bibliography, each activity improved my understanding of the concept of teaching

narrative writing.
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The one activity that most resonated with me was teaching a mini lesson on narrative

writing, specifically on how to develop setting in short stories. I quickly learned the truth behind

the philosophy that the best way to know material is to teach it. Just as Gallagher says in Chapter

2 of Teaching Adolescent Writers that students must write more to become better writers, it is

imperative that aspiring teachers must practice teaching more in order to become better teachers;

and teaching a mini lesson significantly improved my concept of teaching narrative writing.

Through both peer and professor feedback, as well as my own self reflection, I was able to

identify my strengths and weaknesses- to know what to do more of, and to know what to

improve on. For instance, I now know how to more easily make a lesson flow from one topic to

the next; I know that I should give more explicit instructions when assigning activities, and based

on peer feedback I know that students appreciate working in partners because they are able to

brainstorm together and have their thoughts and opinions heard, whereas in a larger group they

might have otherwise faded into the shadows.

Listening to some of my fellow peers mini lessons was also highly beneficial. These

condensed, targeted lesson plans will be incredibly beneficial to implement in a classroom full of

high school students, where attention spans are already short. Most importantly though, I value

that the mini lessons all required student activity. Rather than listening to a 20-minute lecture,

students are able to get hands-on experience practicing what they have been taught. I am excited

to use mini lessons in my own classroom someday soon.

The readings, both in our textbooks and for the annotated bibliography, also provided

incredible instruction that helped me better understand how to teach narrative writing. In

Teaching the Neglected R, I noted the advice in the interview with Jeffrey D. Wilhelm that

[teachers] have to do what [they] teach (p. 14). Therefore, if teaching narrative writing,
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perhaps a good idea for me to implement in my future classroom is to write a narrative piece of

my own in whatever genre we will be working on and share it with my students as they learn to

write the same genre of narrative writing. This way, students wont feel the need to mutter, Im

not doing this crap The teacher wouldnt do this crap, as Wilhelm shares one student

muttered to him during one of his studies (p. 14).

Another way to get students more readily involved in learning narrative writing is to

teach it in a way that they will connect with: technology. Technology is everywhere, so why not

use it as a classroom tool? By creating our Paper Bag Shorts digital stories, I was able to

experience first-hand one way I can use technology when teaching narrative writing.

Furthermore, I noted the story in Teaching the Neglected R of the students in Maine who were

able to connect with students in California via technology and share their own personal

narratives of their lives on two opposite sides of the country. As Dave Boardman states, Giving

students a portal to the outside world seemed the change the idea that writing doesnt matter

(TNR, p. 164). One of the articles I read for the annotated bibliography discussed the same

concept. In that classroom flash fiction was compiled into an anthology to be shared with the

school, and students found that immensely more gratifying.

In the future, I envision myself teaching narrative writing using a combination of each of

these elements we have learned. Prior to this unit, I never thought I would be a teacher who used

technology often; however, I have learned that it is an excellent tool all around, as long as

teachers educate themselves on how to use it. In spite of all I have learned on teaching narrative

writing, I know there is still much more to be learned. By continuing to utilize the tools and

resources I have been exposed to, I hope to never stop learning how to be a better teacher.
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Works Cited

Gallagher, Kelly. Teaching Adolescent Writers. N.p.: Stenhouse Publishers, 2006. Print.

Kent, Richard, and Thomas Newkirk. Teaching the neglected "R": rethinking writing instruction

in secondary classrooms. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 2007. Print.