Narrative Writing and Literacy Annotations – Comprehensive Study Notes

Narrative Writing and Literacy Annotations – Study Notes

Narrative Paper Overview

• The first major paper is a narrative paper: a story about your life or a meaningful object with emotional resonance.
• Narrative writing has a place in academic writing, even though college often emphasizes other genres.
• Purpose: to tell a story that communicates effectively to an audience (the teacher and peers) and evokes emotion (laughter, tears, anger, etc.).
• Choices for the narrative:
  • An event/memory with strong emotional content (a memory with emotion).
  • An object with emotional significance (gift, heirloom, or item tied to a life period).
• Required form and constraints:
  • Audience: teacher plus class peers (peer reviews will occur).
  • Length: $500-800$ words.
  • Formatting: double-spaced, font $12 ext{ pt}$, font family $ext{Times New Roman}$.
  • Clear beginning, middle, and end; well-written and engaging.
• Audience and content considerations:
  • If a topic is deeply personal, students may choose a different story to protect privacy.
  • The story should evoke a strong reader response (humor, sadness, empathy, etc.).
• Context of professional writing:
  • Storytelling is central to many professions (psychology, social work, marketing, etc.) because stories convey experience and meaning.
  • Reference example: McDonald’s “Little Sister” commercial series illustrates how a narrative can communicate a broader aspiration or message.

Assignment Options and Audience

• You may reuse a story written previously (e.g., from Friday’s activity) or select a new one.
• Requirements:
  • A memory or an object with a lot of emotion attached.
  • The narrative should have a strong emotional through-line and be appropriate for a classroom audience.
• Audience for grading and feedback:
  • Your instructor (the grader) plus your classmates (peer reviews).
• Privacy and ethics:
  • If sharing is too personal, consider a different story to respect boundaries.
• Goal for the audience experience:
  • Make the reader feel something: laugh, cry, feel anger, etc.

Language, Tone, and Professional Communication

• Even though it’s a personal narrative, maintain academic language appropriate for a school setting.
• Language matters: keep it PG (G/PG level); avoid foul language.
  • Foul language is not indicative of intelligence and may alienate readers.
  • If you need to imply strong language, you can describe it indirectly (e.g., "I muttered under my breath…") instead of writing the actual words.
• Complete sentences, proper capitalization, and punctuation are required.
  • Text-speak like LOL should generally be avoided unless quoted from a text message in the narrative.
• Professional conduct:
  • You are representing yourself and, in class, your audience may include people with varying sensibilities.
• Real-world example from the instructor’s note:
  • Example of professional communication in the workplace (event planning manager with a potty mouth) demonstrates why professional tone matters.

Formatting and Style Guidelines

• Formatting rules you must follow:
  • Keep a consistent font and size: $Times ext{-}New ext{ Roman}, 12 ext{ pt}$.
  • Do not mix fonts; changing fonts mid-document is discouraged for readability.
• When drafting, remember the rubric will assess:
  • A clear beginning, middle, and end; organized and engaging narrative.
  • Conveyed emotion and a strong, coherent message.
  • Thorough revision and editing; grammar, spelling, and sentence structure aligned with college standards.
• Draft vs final copy:
  • In-class timed draft (45 minutes) is treated as a draft; expect minor errors.
  • With three weeks and peer reviews, the final submission should be polished and close to perfect.
• Writing center process:
  • Expect to use the writing center during revisions before final submission.

Schedule and Course Process

• Tentative in-class schedule (adjustments possible):
  • Week 1: Idea generation and drafting of the narrative.
  • Week 2: Complete first draft; begin revision; possibly start peer reviews.
  • Week 3: Revise and edit based on peer feedback; use the writing center; final submission.
• In-class activities:
  • A lot of time will be spent writing in class; the instructor will circulate to provide feedback.
• Outside-work expectations:
  • Some work will be done outside of class, but substantial in-class time will be provided for drafting and revision.
• Evaluation criteria in rubric (summary):
  • Tells a story with a beginning, middle, and end.
  • Organization and reader engagement.
  • Communicates a powerful emotion and message.
  • Thorough revision and editing; consistent grammar, spelling, and sentence structure for a college reader.

Reading for Narrative Preparation: Literacy Narrative Chapter

• Required reading: a PDF chapter on writing a literacy narrative (not purchased as a book).
• The chapter includes:
  • An introduction and several personal narratives (e.g., "Right or Wrong Identity", "Rebel Music", "Automotive Literacy").
  • After the narratives, pages 87 to the end contain notes for annotation activities.
• Annotation activity:
  • You will annotate one of the narratives and also annotate the pages 87-end.
• Annotation basics:
  • Annotation means taking notes and interacting with the text to improve memory and understanding.
  • Annotating helps slow reading, improves recall, and creates a quick reference for later.
• Annotation in-class purpose:
  • Annotation prepares you for discussion and supports you when answering questions in class.
  • You will likely discuss annotation techniques during class discussion.
• Annotation expectations:
  • Annotating is recommended for all school readings when memory and comprehension are a goal.
  • If you annotate, you’ll have talking points and questions ready for discussion.
• Annotation prototype: a short video resource (Katie Azevedo) on how to annotate effectively.

The 11 Annotation Techniques (From the Katie Azevedo Video)

• Techniques you can adapt to your system; choose what fits you best:
  1) Circle unfamiliar words; look up definitions; write definitions in your notes.
  2) Use ? marks to indicate areas of uncertainty or questions.
  3) Use * or stars to indicate important ideas (themes, symbols, foreshadowing).
  4) Use ! to flag something dramatic or a turning point to revisit.
  5) Circle or mark characters’ names when first introduced (use a consistent shape).
  6) Maintain a running list of characters and traits (inside cover or a separate page).
  7) Write notes in the margins, on sticky notes, or in a separate notebook; sticky notes are versatile.
  8) Paraphrase after each chapter; a few sentences summarize the section.
  9) Write down questions you have about the text for class discussion or future clarification.
  10) Use color-coding to organize ideas or sections (if that appeals to you).
  11) Create a title for each chapter reflecting its main idea or event.
• Annotation tools and accessibility:
  • If reading on a tablet, you can use annotation apps (e.g., PDF annotators) to circle, underline, highlight, etc.
  • Annotations should reflect your own thoughts and interactions with the text, not just display words that sound impressive.
• Practical notes on annotation:
  • Start gradually; avoid underlining or highlighting every word, which defeats the purpose.
  • Annotation is a skill that improves with practice; it should feel helpful, not laborious.
• Annotation takeaways:
  • Annotating makes recall easier during quizzes and exams; it speeds up review later.
  • It helps you articulate your own insights during class discussions.

Grammar Revolution – Lesson 1 Preview

• Access and login:
  • In your course module: Week 1 → Grammar Revolution lessons; the site link is provided and the login credentials are listed:
  • Student username: Green (example from the video, use your actual account).
  • Password: grammar123 (or the password provided by the instructor).
  • This site provides a lifetime access subscription for the class.
• Lesson focus: subjects, verbs, and sentence diagrams (i.e., sentences and their structure).
• Core concept: What is a sentence?
  • A sentence is a group of words that expresses a complete thought.
  • Every sentence must have two essential parts: a subject and a verb (predicate).
  • The subject tells us whom or what the sentence is about; the verb tells us what the subject is doing or being.
• Sentence diagram basics:
  • Diagram layout: a horizontal base line with a vertical cut through it.
  • Left side: subject; Right side: verb (the predicate).
  • This base point applies to sentences of increasing complexity.
• Simple sentence diagrams:
  • Example 1: "Dogs run."
  • Subject: Dogs; Verb: run.
  • Example 2: "Flowers grow."
  • Subject: Flowers; Verb: grow.
  • Example 3: "Students learn."
  • Subject: Students; Verb: learn.
• Practice activity:
  • You will complete five sentence diagrams and fill a chart identifying the subject and the verb for each sentence.
  • Example chart entries shown (e.g., fish swim; teachers teach) to illustrate labeling tasks.
• Diagramming fundamentals:
  • The vertical line that cuts the horizontal line identifies the boundary between subject and predicate.
  • Some words will require different placements later as you learn more about parts of speech; the base diagram remains a learning anchor.
• Additional resources and workflow:
  • Each lesson includes a PDF transcript of the lesson for open-note quizzes.
  • PDFs are useful for quick reference during tests and for building a personal grammar binder.
  • You are encouraged to print PDFs or save them as reference; they serve as a future grammar guide.
• Practice encouragement:
  • The instructor emphasizes doing the diagrams and the small practice tasks in the PDFs.
  • Completing more diagrams improves familiarity with sentence structure and prepares you for harder constructions.
• Next steps in class:
  • In the next session, you will review Lesson 2 and continue with more complex diagrams.
  • Expect discussion and class participation with the annotation work to come again.

Additional Practical Tips and Classroom Logistics

• Annotation and spelling tips:
  • Always use complete sentences in your narrative; avoid texting shorthand in the main narrative.
  • If a text message is part of the story, you may quote it exactly, but otherwise avoid texting language in the main body.
• Privacy and ethics reminders:
  • Some narratives may touch on sensitive topics; consider audience and consent for sharing personal details with peers.
• Timeline and pace:
  • The course expects you to balance in-class writing time with outside work; you will receive feedback progressively to improve the final draft.
• Final reminder on formatting:
  • Standard formatting reduces grading friction and helps the instructor read more efficiently.

Key Reminders for Exam Preparation

• Understand that narrative writing is about conveying emotion and meaning through a well-structured story with a clear arc.
• Practice annotation regularly to improve reading comprehension and prepare for class discussions.
• Be comfortable with the basics of grammar and sentence diagramming as foundational tools for writing clarity.
• Use the provided PDFs and online resources as open-note aids for quizzes and in-class exercises.
• Remember the non-negotiables: 500-800 words, double-spaced, Times New Roman 12-point, and a focus on a compelling emotional story.

$500-800$ words; $12 ext{ pt}$; $ext{Times New Roman}$; $ext{double-spaced}$; open-note quizzes; firsthand storytelling; professional tone.