What Do You Believe?

“Brie” by Henri Cartier-Bresson, June 1968, Brie, France


What do you believe in? This is as Allison ( 2006) notes, is a simple if difficult invitation: "Write a few hundred words expressing the core principles that guide your life- your personal credo." When you visit the NPRsite you can read hundreds of essays from people expressing what the believe in. Look at the links to the previous essays and note how many of the writers have made their essays personal. They have taken us into the experience that underlies the belief: they show us the moment and then tell us what they learned. Read:

• twelve year old Macklin Levine's : The Power of the Beatles
• Jake Hovenden's: Inner strength From Desperate Times
• Muhammed Ali's: I Am Still the Greatest
• Lisa Sandin: I Am Not My Body
• Terry Awal: Finding the Strength To Fight On
• Elvia Bautista: Remembering All the Boys
• Tarick McClain (kindergarten student): Thirty Things I Believe
  

You can use the This I Believe database to search by theme or by age of writer. Read as many as you can to become immersed in the style. How do they start their essay? How do they conclude? What example do they use to give life to their belief?

Look in your pack to find  Tips for Writing. Use this as guide. Also check the page Lesson 6: How Do I Support My Personal Essay? This gives some suggestions. Then read more essays noting these devices when they occur.

Your personal narrative essay will be uploaded to your electronic portfolio. We will revisit it again at the beginning of each trimester to revise, edit and add to it before we share the final, polished piece with your parents at Student-Led Conferences next May. Go back as many times as you want and adapt your writing in between these  'set' times. This will be a piece you are sure to be proud of.

Reference: http://kentbeatty.com/2008/10/12/great-photographers-henri-cartier-bresson/