Trish's Lesson Plan

BEFORE CLASS

Students should read Ch 7, plus “Do He have Your Number, Mr. Jeffry?” by Gayle Pemberton (232) and “The Female Body” by Margaret Atwood with instructions to consider the similarities and differences between the essays.

IN CLASS

Free write based on this prompt: “What I remember most about _____'s hands.” (7 minutes)

Group Discussion: (12 minutes)

Creative Nonfiction can be a lot of different things. Let's break it down.

At board, I'd write two columns:

WHAT IT IS WHAT IT MAY BE

We'd list qualities that CNF must have; qualities it may have.

Under column one, I anticipate that students will say that CNF is always

• Based on actual events
• First person
• Assumes a conversant, more casual tone
• intimate
• other

Under column two, What it May Be, we might have

• Memoir -- A story, complete with a narrative arch (discuss what that is)
• A meditation (discuss what that is)
• Lyrical (define)
• Montage (define)
• Confessional
• Reflective
• Contemplative
• Scholarly to a point, complete with research and reflection
• May include scenes, dialogue, imagery, character – other craft features associated with fiction
• May include actual fiction – or supposition – usually accompanied by cues like “I imagine” or “if any one were there to witness, they might have seen…” etc.
• other

We were asked to read to examples of CNF – Pemberton and Atwood. These are very different in style, almost different in genre.

Talk briefly about basic differences between the essays.

IN GROUPS: (ten minutes)

Break into groups of three. Take one craft feature – imagery, setting, character, scene, narrative distance, etc. – as a way into the essays. Compare and contrast Pemberton to Atwood. How do the authors handle the craft feature? (15 minutes)

DISCUSS FINDINGS. (ten minutes)

If there is time, finish with another free write. The first prompt invited a memoir-esque response. This time, let's try for a more meditative free write by limiting the prompt simply to “hands,” or, maybe “what they touch.” (five minutes).

If there is still time, students may discuss what is different between the two writing exercises. The take home assignment is to develop one of the two free writes into a larger meditative or memoir-style essay, 2-3 pages.