Snapshot Autobiography
Think about an important event in your life. If you had pictures of the event, how would you describe each picture? What happened? Who was involved? Where did it happen? Why did it happen? When did it happen? How did it end? With these answers in mind, create a small booklet that includes the following elements:
- Plot (exposition, rising action, conflict, climax, falling action, and resolution)
- Setting (where and when the event took place)
- Main characters (who was involved in the event - include yourself)
- Genre - think about the content of the event
- Theme - what did you learn from the event
Directions: Using the Snapshot Autobiography worksheet, fill in the following information. When you have written down the information and edited for corrections (spelling, capitalization, punctuation) recopy it onto the final Snapshot Autobiography booklet. Include the following information needed for each of the four pages.
Page 1Create a title for your autobiography.
Include your first and last name.
Illustrate the cover with your photo and/or the “theme” of your event
Page 2Plot: After brainstorming ideas for your brief, autobiographical event, write a narrative (story or account) from your point of view using first person (I, we, us.) Include details of the events leading up to the conflict, the climax, and resolution.
Theme:Write a brief statement explaining what you learned from your experience.
Page 3List main characters involved in the event and add a brief description of each, include a character trait.
Describe the setting: where and when the event took place
Genre: Decide which genre bests describes your life event. Use one from the list below:
- Comedy
- Fantasy
- Adventure Fiction
- Paranormal
- Science fiction
- Mystery
- Horror
- Historical fiction
- Suspense/thriller
Page 4Include a review:Ask at least two persons to review (read and state their opinion) of your Snapshot Autobiographical event, and write down what they say. Don’t forget to use quotes!
Add: Publisher: Ms. Colet, English, Period ______
Date Published: current date
Place Published: Sierra Vista Jr. High, Santa Clarita, California
Name ______
English Period ______
Autobiography Planning Sheet
Think of an event in your life in which you learned an important lesson. It can be a fun event, a serious event, a scary event, etc. -- but you’ll need to be able to describe it and what you learned after it was over. This will determine the genre and the theme. Before answering the prompts, write down three events and decide which one will be easiest to work with to write your narrative.
Event 1 ______
Event 2 ______
Event 3 ______
Answer the prompts below to help you frame your narrative.
I can describe the event in one word ______(refer to the genre list)
Where did it happen? ______(setting, or place and date of the event)
Who was involved? (characters) ______
______
______
How did the event begin? (exposition details) ______
______
What was the problem or struggle about? (conflict)______
______
What happened? (details) ______
______
How did it end? (resolution)______
______
What did you learn from the event? (theme)______
______
Fictional (made up) Narrative (story) Elements (parts)
What is exposition? / Exposition is the:- setting (time and place)
- characters
- situation or story background
What is rising action? / Rising action is:
- conflict
- events leading to the climax
What is the climax? / The climax is the point of greatest interest or suspense (before you know how the story ends)
What is falling action? / Falling action is the events after the climax
What is the resolution or denouement? / The resolution or denouement is how the story ends.
Summary
A story is made up of many elements, or parts. The story begins with the exposition and introduces the characters, place and time of the story, and some background knowledge. The rising action is the part that tells the reader what the conflict, or problem of the story is and leads to the point of greatest interest or suspense called the climax. This is the part where we’re still wondering what will happen. There may be many small conflicts in a story, but there is always a main conflict. The falling action is what happens after the climax, and the resolution, or denouement is how the story ends.