We are born hungry. We are hungry for food, for warmth, for a loving touch, and for something else as well. We are hungry to understand, to make sense of the world around us. Almost as soon as we begin to talk, we ask a single question, over and over again. “Why?” And we are still asking that same question when we say, only slightly later, “Tell me a story.”
Human beings are storytelling animals. That’s what separates us from other creatures, not just having thumbs or using tools.
Stories help us to make sense of our world. They teach us what is possible. They let us know that others before us have struggled as we do. If Hansel and Gretel can escape the wicked witch, so can we. If the poor prince is rewarded for his kindness, then we might be, too.
So from an early age, we begin to shape our own world by telling stories ourselves. “I’ll be the mother and you be the father and this is our house and…
by Marion Dane Baner
So, we as writing teachers are obligated with teaching our young writers to be able to express their thoughts clearly and passionately.
Most writers I’ve met in my class think that they do not have anything to say. It is my job to teach them to “read their worlds” and to understand that each has a zillion things to write about in each writing class. They have lived years of life learning soft, hard, crumby and glorious things to put down on paper. Only they can say it their way…no one else has experienced it just like they have.
I used this form with my class for their recent speeches. It worked really well! It is ...