Creative Writing Exercises for Junior Cycle English

Derbhile Dromey

Benefits of Creative Writing – Personal Writing

Take Advantage of Generous Marking Scheme

Ability to Write Creatively Significantly Improves Grade

Create Memorable Exam Essays

Benefits of Teaching Creative Writing - GeneralGives Structure to Their Thoughts

Helps Them Engage with Set Texts

Insights Into Techniques Used by Writers

Quick Fix for Fridays

Outline of PresentationOverview of Exercises

Aim, Method, Relevance to PaperTiming and Visual Aids

Sample the Merchandise – Practise of Exercises

Discussion: Value of Teaching Creative Writing

Personal Writing ExercisesThese exercises will show students how to

Get Material for Stories from their Own Lives

Hold the Interest of Readers

Character SketchAim

To show how authors create characters

Timing : 15-20 Minutes

Visual Aids: Photographs in Newspapers

Relevance: Questions about people of significance in students’ lives, eg. Grandparents, inspiring people

Character SketchMethodCut photograph out of paper and use asbasis to create character.

Create profile in 3 sections1.Basic details – name, age, appearance2.Personal details – family, hobbies3.Secrets – a secret from their past no-one knows

Selling a Destination Aim

To make stories more atmospheric

To identify ingredients that make places unique

Visual Aids: List of placenames or map of local area

Timing: 10-15 Minutes

Relevance: Questions about their local area or holidays

Selling a DestinationMethod

Give Your students a choice of two placenames to

choose from, familiar or foreign

Write a paragraph about one of the places in the style of a travel brochure

Describe scenery, local customs, people and activities

Run X-Factor style competition to vote for most popular holiday destination

Napoleon’s BedroomAim

Helps Students Be Inspired by the Ordinary

Show Effect of Time Period on Descriptions of Place

Timing: 10-15 minutes

Relevance: Questions about favourite rooms, or asking them to imagine the lives of celebrities

Napoleon’s BedroomMethodImagine the bedroom of a historical figure or celebrityDescribe bedroom in 3 sections1.Physical Details, what it looks like2.Sensory Details, sounds, smells, feel3.Emotional Details, feelings about room, atmosphere

Alternative: Describe Their Own Bedroom and Views of It

The 24 SheepAim

Show students how to use both action and atmosphere to create a compelling story

Timing: 20 minutes

Relevance: Questions asking students to describe an event or continue a story

The 24 SheepMethod

Write two-paragraph story based on following scenario:

They are in their garden sunbathing when 24

sheep burst in and start eating washing off the line

Par 1. Atmospheric, describe garden, weather

Par 2. Action, what happens when sheep get in and how they resolve problem

Functional Writing ExercisesGoal of Exercises

Give Students Practise in Structuring Pieces

Apply Imagination to Formal Structure Formats

Behind the HeadlinesAim

Give practise in writing in a journalistic style

Identify ingredients that make story newsworthy

Timing: 10-15 minutes

Visual Aids: Headlines from Newspapers

Relevance: Insight into skills used by journalists for media sections

Behind the HeadlinesMethod

Give Each Student a Headline

They Write Story Behind Headline

Stories Cover 5 Ws of News

What

Who

When

Where

Why

100-Word DiaryAim

Pick Out Most Important Elements of Story

How to Use Everyday Activities as Material for Stories

Timing: 15 Minutes

Relevance: Practise in Diary Structure

Useful for both Personal and Functional Writing Section

100-Word DiaryMethodWrite a Diary of Your Day in 100 Words

Greetings, Dates and Sign-Offs Not Included

Make Notes First About What to Include

Write Out Entry Summarising Events

Alternative: Write Diary Entry for Character in Text They’re Studying

Book ReviewAim

Gives Insight into How Fiction Works

Shows books have life beyond classroom

Timing: 20-30 Minutes

Relevance: If they know how fiction works, they’ll write more compelling reviews

Book ReviewMethodImagine You’re a Bookseller Write a Pitch Selling Your Current Book to Teacher

Title and PlotGenre

Who Would Read it Why You Should Buy It

Alternative: Write a review of the worst book you have ever read.

Adam’s Excuse NoteAimTo encourage students to take a more creativeapproach to letter writing.

Gives students practise in laying out letters

Timing: 10-15 minutes

Relevance: Useful for all exercises based on letters

Adam’s Excuse NoteImagine you are Adam in Garden of Eden (revise story

if necessary)

Write an excuse note to God, apologising for eating the apple and giving reason

Letter to be laid out with address, date, greeting and sign-off

Alternative: Any situation where well-known person apologises for misdeed, eg. Politician, celebrity

Poetry ExercisesGoals of Exercises

Demonstrate how poets use imagery, language and the senses to create poems

Supporting Material for Lessons Dealing with Similes and Metaphor

Helps Students to Analyse and Decipher Meaning of Set Poems

If the Hat FitsAim

Gives Practise in Creating Similes and Metaphors and Avoiding Cliches

Sharpens Descriptive Abilities

Timing: 10-15 Minutes

Relevance: Helps students identify inventive imagery and comparison in set poems

If the Hat FitsMethod

Bring Unusual Hat Into Class, Students Pass it Around

Examine Hat and Write Sentence About it

Sentence Begins with This Hat Is/This Hat Is Like

Add to Challenge With List of Forbidden Words

Alphabet SoupAim

Encourages Students to Play with Words and Reduce

Inhibitions Around Language

Timing: 20 Minutes

Relevance: Helps them identify wordplay and its impact in set poems

Alphabet SoupMethod

Come Up with 26 Words to Match 26 Consecutive Letters of Alphabet

Form Words Into Sentences, eg, A Black Cat Drifted

Carry on Until Alphabet Finished

Alternative: Write 26 Random Words, Choose 3 and Work them into One-Paragraph Story

Guess WhatAim

Demonstrates ‘show don’t tell’ – subtle descriptions have greater impact

Help Identify the Extraordinary Within the Ordinary

Visual Aids: Bring in 5-6 Interesting Objects if Classroom Bare

Timing: 10-15 Minutes

Relevance: Ability to Decode Hidden Messages in Set Poems

Guess WhatMethod

Pick an Object in the Classroom and Describe it

Without Saying What It is

Describe it Using Senses – What it Looks, Feels, Smells, Tastes and Sounds Like

Read out Description, Other Students Guess Object

Extension: Create Life Story for Object

Emotion PoemAim

Demonstrates Power of Emotions to Inspire

Shows How to Use Five Senses to Describe Emotions – Not Just Sight

Timing: 10-15 Minutes

Relevance: Helps Students Identify Emotions in Text Poems, Discover Emotions Are Universal

Emotion PoemMethod

Students Write a Poem Describing Emotion eg: Love

Line 1: Metaphor for Emotion

Line 2: Describe What Emotion Looks Like

Line 3: Sound Emotion Makes

Line 4: What Emotion Tastes Like

Line 5: What Emotion Feels Like

Line 6: Smell of Emotion

Line 7: Repeat of 1st Line

Fiction ExercisesAim

Helps Students See Relevance of Set Novels

Practise Techniques Used by Author of Novel

Become More Familiar with Novel’s Characters, Theme, Setting and Style

20 QuestionsAim

Gives Insight into How Authors Make their Characters Believable and Interesting

Timing: 10-15 Minutes

Relevance: Helps Students Become More Familiar with Characters

20 QuestionsMethod

Pick Character From Novel and Write Character Sketch of them

Other Students Ask Questions to Guess Character

When They Have Guessed, Continue to Ask Questions to Learn More About Character

Not Allowed to Ask Questions with Yes or No Answers

Rough JusticeAim

Highlights Theme of Novel, Demonstrates that Themes are Universal

Timing: One class period

Visual Aids: To Kill a Mockingbird, Pages 21-25

Relevance: Helps them Identify Theme of Novel and Relate to Own Experience

Rough JusticeMethod

Read Passage, Identify and Discuss Theme of Fighting for Justice

Transpose to Present Day Classroom, Injustice Against Student On Racial or Class Grounds

Student Defends Other Student, Pays Price

Alternative: Version Relevant to Other Novels, Drawn from Student’s Life

Chinese WhispersAim

Shows how to structure story and maintain momentum

Shows that story ends up in very different place from where it began

Timing: One class period

Relevance: Pinpoint Storytelling Techniques Use by Author in Set Text

Chinese WhispersMethod

Based on game Chinese Whispers, check familiarity with rules

Give set period of time to write first paragraph of story

Pass copy to person three seats away.

Student receives another copy and continues story in that copy

Pass on again, bring story to an end

Story SoupAim

Creates awareness of ingredients in story and shows how to combine them

Timing: 10-15 minutes

Relevance: Encourages students to think about how ingredients are combined in set novels

Story SoupMethod

Write name of animal, place and verb on sheet of paper, eg. Hyena, supermarket, skipping

Hand up paper, papers passed around choose one

Write story which includes the three words on paper

Drama ExercisesGoal of Exercises

Give Insight into Techniques Specific to Drama:

Dialogue Creation

How Characters Behave in Conflict

Scene Setting

You’ll Never GuessAim

Shows how dialogue is used to get to heart of story and maintain momentum

Gives insight into how language used in dialogue differs from that of narrative

Timing: 15-20 minutes

Relevance: Insight into structure of dialogue in set play

You’ll Never GuessMethod

Create Dialogue in Pairs Based on Following Scenario

You are in a cafe waiting for your friend. They burst in, saying ‘You’ll Never Guess!’

Continue writing dialogue from there. One describes event, one responds

Aim for natural style, bring to conclusion.

Alternative: Write Version of Scenario from set play

Superhero ScaleAim

Gives insight into how characters behave in conflict situations

Shows role of character status in determining outcome of conflict

Timing: One class period

Relevance: Gives insight into how characters in set plays relate to each other

Superhero ScaleMethod (Part 1)

Pick a Number from 1-12 to Denote Status of Character in Set Play

The Higher the Number, The More Confident a Character is

Write a Paragraph to Show How Status Manifests Itself in voice, gestures, body language and walk

Superhero ScaleHow to Determine Status - Brainstorm

High Status Low Status

Clear Voice Mutters

Confident Gestures Agitated

Good Eye Contact Looks Down

Strutting Walk Shuffling Walk

Characters with status numbers of 6-9 will fall somewhere in between

Superhero Scale – Part 2Method

Work in Pairs to Create Conflict Dialogue

Scenario: One character wants to go out and the other character won’t allow them

Characters Behave According to Status

Ends with One Character Triumphant

Extension: Have student imagine progress of a dinner party between characters

Character Describes SceneAim

Shows how setting of play adds to dramatic tension

Demonstrates importance of position of character within scene

Timing: 15-20 Minutes

Relevance: Encourages Students to Pay Attention to Backdrop and Character Positioning in Set Plays

Character Describes SceneMethod

Student Becomes Character in Play

They describe what they see around them

Give Sensual and Emotional Details About Setting

Also Outline Their Own Position in the Scene and How it Affects them

Alternative: Imagine you are transported into world of play. What would you see?

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