Unit Plan 4 (Grade 8 ELA): Personal Narrative – Turning Points
Grade 8 ELA unit: students write personal narratives that orient readers, build purposeful pacing, and reflect on meaning. They craft vivid scenes with dialogue and description, use punctuation for effect, and conclude with insight that gives closure and emotional resonance.
Focus: Orienting the reader; pacing/sequence; reflection; closure
Grade Level: 8
Subject Area: English Language Arts (Writing—Narrative Craft; Language—Conventions)
Total Unit Duration: 5 sessions (one week), 50–60 minutes per session
I. Introduction
Students craft a personal narrative about a meaningful turning point. They’ll learn to engage and orient the reader, sequence events with purposeful pacing, use dialogue/description/reflection to deepen meaning, and write a closure that resonates. The week culminates in a polished 1–1.5 page small-moment narrative.
II. Objectives and Standards
Learning Objectives — Students will be able to…
- Engage and orient readers by establishing context/POV, introducing narrator/characters, and organizing a logical event sequence (W.8.3a).
- Use narrative techniques—dialogue, pacing, description, reflection—to develop experiences and characters (W.8.3b, W.8.3d).
- Apply cohesive devices (transition words/phrases/clauses) to signal sequence and shifts in time or setting (W.8.3c).
- Provide a conclusion/closure that follows from and reflects on the narrated experience (W.8.3e).
- Strengthen writing through planning, revising, editing; apply conventions with attention to commas, ellipses, dashes, and correct spelling (W.8.5; L.8.2a–c).
Standards Alignment — CCSS Grade 8
- W.8.3a–e: Write narratives to develop real experiences using effective technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences (a–e specify orienting reader, techniques, transitions, precise language, and conclusion).
- W.8.5: Develop and strengthen writing by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach.
- L.8.2a–c: Demonstrate command of conventions (a: use punctuation—comma, ellipsis, dash—to indicate a pause or break; b: use an ellipsis to indicate an omission; c: spell correctly).
Success Criteria — student language
- My opening orients readers (who/where/when/POV) and hints at the tension.
- My scene uses dialogue, sensory detail, and reflection to show why the moment matters.
- My pacing and transitions make time shifts clear.
- My ending reflects on the meaning of the turning point.
- My edits show accurate commas/ellipses/dashes and clean spelling.