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One assignment that I have done with a workshop class is a modified version of image writing that I learned at a play-writing workshop in Columbus. In the activity, students start by picking a place they are incredibly familiar with, such as a room of their house, their bus, parent's car, etc. Then, students close their eyes and write what they "see" in this place. The goal is to not let the pencil stop moving, so if they get stuck, they should just draw circles on the page. After a couple minutes of listing things they see, smell, hear, etc. they should start putting the writing together as the opening to a narrative and use the images to simply describe the place. If they find an image that sticks out to them, they should follow that thread and write about the memory they associate with the object. This free-form writing can last a a while, as students find they have so many stories just sitting around a room they are familiar with. I then ask students to choose one of these "stories" and compose it into a narrative. My experience is that this can often lead to deeply personal stories and students discovering that they have a lot more to say than they thought.

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The colleague who helped me create the content for the Senior Adv Comp class had Crovitz as a professor, and quite a few of our assignments have influence from that. We have used the 6 word memoir as a brainstorming activity for sharing a personal  story from students' life experience- "a ___________ piece." For example, my "loss piece" is about my grandfather: "That empty bench makes me cry." Those 6 words make you wonder why a bench could make a girl cry. We then have a detailed prewrite paired session for students to develop three different 6 word memoirs so they can choose the best story to include the who, what, when, where, why. We also require that it has the following qualities: it is about one moment, it is reflective, and it leaves a takeaway for the reader.
After they write their memoir moment, they have to share with the class (usually in small groups), and they write a reflection about their own writing and the others' essays.

*I notice Megan mentioned Laws of Life. We've done this and This I Believe essays. We also sometimes allow them to replace some of these assignments with scholarship or application essays for college that have personal narrative prompts. I love all of these authentic, personal essays!

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Elizabeth Carpenter Paccione
When I have taught Frankenstein, we have focused mostly on the concepts of “the Other,” alienation, and isolation. These are themes that students can recognize and explore within our society.  The monster does not feel like he has a place, he does not belong. He is shot at, rocks are thrown at him, and he is screamed at, just because of how he looks. An authentic assessment to use could be regarding students recognizing one of these themes  in themselves. I think, for high school students, it is really hard to be vulnerable, so I would need to read a narrative piece when I felt like the Creature. I think this prompt demonstrates to the kids that no one has a perfect life and there are always insecurities experienced, regardless of if a person seems to have lots of friends, or seems happy, even posts lots of great photos.

Prompt: Write about a specific experience when you felt like “the Other.” First, you need to brainstorm ways you do not feel like you belong. Then, you will think about specific incidents when you felt this way. Jot these down before you begin writing!
It could be something like not making a team when all of your friends did, or not being invited to an event where everyone else was invited. It could be when you were in elementary school on the bus and everyone called you names due to your new haircut. It could be a time when you felt alone and that no one else understood you, but you had to put on a good front. This is  a narrative that should give a personal glimpse into how you felt, where you were, and how the experience happened. Be honest. Be authentic.

Then, I will read my personal narrative.

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One of my favorite assignments that I do with my students is a Narrative Essay called The Laws of Life Essay. This was originally an essay contest my school participated in, but as of last year, we stopped. Not sure of the reason?? Anyways, the students start by finding a quote that they connect with. We usually give them a long list of quotes and they brainstorm by reading through the quotes, writing down any that they can relate to, and jotting down memories they have associated with the quote. Once they have narrowed their list of quotes down, they pick one that they want to write about. They base their personal narrative off of this quote, writing about the time/moment in their life they connect the quote to. The narrative can be about anything, but they center around a memory that they learned a lesson from or a "law of life". I have read many that are sad, happy, and some that are hysterical. For example, one student wrote about the time he learned not to order food from a specific restaurant because of what came after. It was hilarious. What's great about this assignment is that you learn about each student's past a little bit more. I usually have them feather circle this assignment, so every student can hear at least a part of the writing.

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One of my favorite writing tasks I give my students in the first few days of them entering my classroom is called "If you really knew me..."

Before students begin writing, we have a discussion on the images we all have. For my eighth graders, maybe that is "jock" "nerd" or "trouble-maker." For adults, maybe its "teacher" "nurse" or "accountant." We discuss how images are not necessarily a problem, but the problem lies in the ways many of us pretend that our image is ALL that we are, leaving the rest of us hidden.

I challenge my students to take the risk to share more of who they really are, beyond just their single image. What would I know about them as an individual if I really knew them? They begin their essay by completing the following sentence: "If you really knew me, you would know.."

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Monica Ellis

I would use this opportunity to work with my Spanish 3 students.  Although they are more advanced than my Spanish 2 students, they are still not as advanced as they are in English.  (However, Spanish grammatical rules are not the same as English)
I would give this class the following writing prompt:
What was the most exciting part of your summer vacation? Was this a new experience or something that has happened before? (or winter vacation depending on if it's semester 1 or 2)

This would be a particularly effective assignment for this class.  Not only would I learn more about my students, but I will be able to assess their grammatical ability.  They will have to work with two verb tenses-the preterit and the imperfect.  Will they know how to use them correctly?  How well do the students know their vocabulary?  It is a good first assessment of their skills.

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I usually have the students write a narrative essay after we finish reading the novel Speak.

The students respond to one (1) of the following prompts in a well- organized narrative essay. I use graphic organizers to help them brainstorm ideas during the writing process. It becomes a great experience for students to share their writing with one another.

Select one:

1. The lessons we take from failure can be fundamental to later success. Recount an incident or time when you experienced failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?

2. Reflect on a time when you challenged a belief or idea. What prompted you to act? Would you make the same decision again?

3. Describe a problem you’ve solved. It could be an intellectual challenge, a research query, an ethical dilemma--anything that is of personal importance, no matter the scale. Explain its significance to you and what steps you took to solve the problem.

4. Discuss an accomplishment or event, formal or informal that marked your transition from childhood to adulthood within your culture, community, or family.

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Post your rough idea for a writing assignment that incorporates narrative writing (using "I" to tell a story). Make sure you are asking students to complete an authentic task.