What Is a Personal Narrative?

Lesson Plan - Get It!

Audio:

Telling your story is important.

• What is it called when you write a story about yourself?

A personal narrative is a nonfiction piece that recreates a specific experience from the author's perspective. In other words, the author tells the reader about a time something happened to them.

The author (you!) uses descriptive, solid words and emotions to share the experience with the reader. A good author will make the reader feel like they are watching the event.

To do this, the author must complete the following tasks while writing.

Narrow Focus

A personal narrative tells about one specific event.

If you were going to write a personal narrative about your last family vacation, you would have so many ideas to share that you would be unable to develop any event fully. Instead, narrow your focus to one event during your vacation.

Some ideas include collecting shells on the beach, riding a specific ride at an amusement park, or having lunch at an excellent restaurant.

By focusing on one specific event, you can develop it so your readers can feel they are watching it unfold right before their eyes!

Think of a watermelon as your whole vacation. You need to tell one small event, a watermelon seed. When writing a personal narrative, narrow your focus to the seed, not the watermelon!

Perspective

A personal narrative communicates the author's strong perspective.

Remember that perspectives vary based on previous experiences, ideas, and beliefs.

For example, pretend that a surprise party is thrown for you on your birthday. You walk into a darkened room, and all your friends and family jump out and yell, "SURPRISE!" You are startled, excited, and, of course, surprised. This is a typical reaction.

Pretend that you are afraid of loud noises. Imagine the following scenario: You walk into a darkened room, and all your friends and family jump out and yell, "SURPRISE!" You might feel frightened and nervous due to your fear of loud noises.

Here, your fear of loud noises would not make this surprise party a fun experience.

• Do you see how the perspective of the same situation would change based on your personal experiences, ideas, and beliefs?

Mood or Feeling

A personal narrative communicates a specific mood or feeling associated with the event.

For example, if an author wrote about his dog dying, the mood or feeling of his writing would be sad or melancholy. The author would not write about the dog's life because this focus is too broad.

If the author were to write about the dog's entire life, there would be various moods or feelings, such as when he got the dog (happy), when the dog was chased by a skunk (excitement), or when the dog came out of surgery (relief).

This might be appropriate for a book, but the focus, mood, or feelings must be specific for a short personal narrative.

Sensory Details

Sensory details are imperative to personal narratives; in other words, they are necessary!

Sensory writing involves describing what you saw, heard, tasted, touched, and felt. This fantastic writing tool will make your readers feel like they are experiencing your event with you!

Think about the last time you visited the movies and the sensory details you could include.

• Did you smell popcorn?
• Did you taste cold, bubbly soda?
• Did you see the giant screen?
• Did you hear people laughing around you?
• Did you feel the greasy popcorn butter on your hands?

Those are sensory details!

Head to the Got It? section to practice identifying these elements of a personal narrative.