Make a Splash! Using Dramatic Experience to “Explode the Moment”

This was by far and away one of the BEST introductory writing lessons I have ever done for giving kids the tools to be able to write a personal narrative. I had a parent volunteer put on a horrific halloween mask and jump out from behind my desk banging a gong and bellowing just as I was trying to explain to students the idea behind exploding the moment. For theatrics, I ran at her and she lobbed water balloons at me. The class was shocked to say the least, but they were able to write a very detailed and creative personal narrative based on what they had seen, heard, and felt. This was a launching pad to writing about "It happened to me" a personal narrative that exploded a moment in their own life outside of school. Even my non-writers did great. I teach third grade and got EXTRAORDINARY results. I highly recommend this lesson. I did opt to use a different mentor text however than the one that was sited. I used a section from a book called "Soup" by Robert Newman Peck.