What’s the Point?
Set
Think about the narrator. Can you see him/her/it? Touch? Hear?
Objectives (purpose)
Students will be able to define the three types of narrators most commonly found in literature.
Students will be able to write and describe the feelings, emotions and thoughts based on a different point of view.
T1 (Input)
- Prezi Presentation
- Provide definitions and examples for the 3 types of narrators
1st Person Perspective:
Meaning: We generally tell stories from this perspective in everyday life, because we know ourselves better than anyone else. Ex. “I went to the store and bought…” or “I was about to get on the roller coaster when…”
3rd Person Perspective:
Meaning: We also tell stories regularly from a third-person perspective. Think about it, we talk about other people all the time. Ex. “Suzie and Johnny were sitting on the bus and holding hands. Katie was sooo jealous…” or “Joey asked Sammy to go to prom with him, but Sammy shut him down because she’s going with Billy…”
Omniscient Narrator:
Meaning: We don’t necessarily use this narration as much daily, but it still occurs. It is difficult to know exactly what others are thinking, however, we still theoretically use this perspective. Ex. Sometimes we know information that two people don’t. For example, “we, as a student, know mom is irate because she caught us putting dents in the garage with the hockey puck. Dad just got home and is in a good mood because he said he’d come out and play goalie in a few minutes. We know dad is happy and mom is mad. We know what they are thinking…we know everything and the story of their conversation when dad gets inside the front door is going to be along the lines of…”
Think, Pair, Share: Ask students what they think the strengths and weaknesses are for each perspective
Unreliable Narrators:
Use the story of me slipping on the ice as an introduction into an unreliable narrator
Meaning: we all know unreliable narrators. They exaggerate the truth or leave out certain information that could alter opinions of them.
For example, when you tell that you were late to class because your mom wasn‘t ready to drive you in. You are an unreliable narrator because you left out the piece of information about how you usually catch the bus, but slept in unexpectedly and your mom was forced to drive you to school.
T2: Watch a clip from the movie “Miracle”. The scene is in the locker room before the USA-Russia hockey game and coach Herb Brookes speech. What different perspectives are there in clip?
Group work: Students are to get in groups of three. Assign each group member a number 1, 2, or 3. Number 1’s will write from a third-person perspective (what’s a third-person narrator again?). Number 2’s will write from a first-person perspective (what’s a first-person narrator again?). And number 3’s will write as an omniscient narrator (what’s an omniscient narrator again?).
Students will be given 4-5 minutes to write their thoughts, feelings or emotions related to the video clip depending on their perspective. After they are finished, number 1’s will share with their group what they wrote and why they wrote it. The other two students need to pay particular attention because they could be asked to explain number 1’s writing and the perspective they wrote from. Number 2’s will do the same, as well as number 3’s.
Closure: Identify and define the three points of view once more. Brief statement on how we are all narrators. And we practice using all three types regularly in our regular interactions with people.
Independent Practice (T3): Students will write an alternative ending to any fairy tale they choose. However, they must write from an alternative perspective then the one the author writes from. In their writing students will indicate what perspective the author was writing from and what perspective they wrote from.