Out of This World! Class Summary 3/21/16

with Michelle Cameron

Tales of Time

We shared our stories about the power of time today. There were some compelling stories – some funny, some extremely gritty and dark. A great many of them were not finished – which is something I want to address below. (Don’t worry - it’s not a problem…)

The Use of Emotion in Stories

We then talked about the fact that different characters in a story will feel differently about a certain event. We used the example of being imprisoned in a dungeon – how the prisoner might feel vs. the emotions of the person who imprisoned them.

I also asked if anyone kept a diary. Some do. We discussed the fact that you’ll share your thoughts and emotions in a diary more readily than anywhere else.

Then I said – we’re going to write in sprints today – short, concentrated writing in 5-10 minute segments. And I revealed our plot:

Oh no! The King has been turned into a dragon!

I then revealed the first set of characters that the children wrote diary entries for – the Queen and the Prince. They got to pick which of the two they wanted to write about:

They wrote for 10 minutes and shared a couple of the stories. Then we introduced the next two characters – the Evil Magician and the Potion Maker:

And then the final pair – the brave knight and the court jester:

They didn’t finish the diary entries before I made them move on, but they should have a good enough start to keep going. I’d like all three finished by the time we meet again.

Finish and Revise and Piece of Writing

In addition, I’d like them to finish a piece of writing that they feel is their best work so far. Please have them type them up and bring them in after the break. This is the start of our revision process before we decide what they are going to publish and/or read at our last meeting. I’m going to start working with them on these pieces in the coming few weeks. Do let them know that they may still opt for something they write later in the class as well!