kernel essay, quicklists, and truisms

8/10/2019 Kernel Essay, Quicklists, And Truisms

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Narrative Writing

Show me. Don’t tell me. Based on Gretchen Bernabei’s Reviving the Essay



Step I: Mining for Essay Topics

Moment writing not era writing

Era: My high school years.

Moments: The Fourth of July I went to see my

grandmother. Prom night. The day I got myfirst car. The moment the doctor told me I

needed more tests.



Moments:

Daily we all have countless “moments” but

only a few stand out as important enough to

remember.

What are your important moments? What stands out for you?



Twenty Life Moments:

List a moment when you were proud of someone else

List a moment when you were proud of yourself

List a glorious moment

List three tough moments List three moments worth rewatching on video

List a money moment

List a sabotage moment

List a bad romance moment



More Life Moments

List the moment you knew love

List the moment you felt grace

List the moment you learned/gave/receivedforgiveness

List the moment you learned your most valued lesson

List an animal moment

List the moment your pet died

List the moment you stopped trusting someone close

to you List a moment when you fought and won

List a moment when you fought and lost



Narrating Life’s Moments

Circle the three moments that stand out the

most to you.



Kernel Essay: Five Questions

Pick one idea from your list and answer the

next five questions in five complete sentences

after reviewing the sample kernel essay that

follows. Where were you?

What was the first thing that happened?

What was the next thing that happened?

What was the last thing that happened?

What did you think at that moment?



Sample kernal essay: Question One

Where were you?

Inside my grandmother’s antiseptic nursing

room, I stepped behind a flimsy pale curtain

that divided her bed from Mrs. Landers’.



Question two:

What do you see?

My grandmother’s pale blue eyes peered

through her skull; her translucent, crinkled skin

draped her bones.



Question three:


I slipped out of my scuffed leather boots and

crawled in the bed next to her.



Question four:

What’s the last thing that happened?

My eyes filled with tears.



Question 5:


I knew I was home, at least for a moment.

Blessings come in fleeting moments. Life’s

preciousness exists even while waiting fordeath.



Now you try it:

Where were you?







Pick two more essay ideas and

complete two more kernel essays:

Where were you?







Elaborate on the kernel essay:

The kernel essay still lacks all the details.

Now we’re going to add the butter and salt.

Add one to three more sentences to each of

your five sentences. Before starting look at the example that

follows.



Expanding the kernel essay:

Question One

Where were you?

Inside my grandmother’s antiseptic nursing

room, I stepped behind a flimsy pale curtain

that divided her bed from Mrs. Landers’. Fromthe ill-fitted window, I felt a draft.



Question two:

What did you see?

My grandmother’s pale blue eyes peered

through her skull; her translucent, crinkled skin

draped her bones.



Question three:


I slipped out of my scuffed leather boots,crawled in next to her, and tucked the blanketaround both of us. For about three years,grandmother hasn’t had the strength to sit upor even lift her head or roll on her side. Shesuffers from dementia and Alzheimer. Monthshave gone by since she last knew my name or

told me she loved me. Her failing eyesight andhearing makes communication impossibleunless my lips are a couple inches from herear.



Question four:

What happened next?

Her eyes looked at me, and for the first time in

years she knew me. “Are you still teaching?”

she asked. I couldn’t believe the words shespoke. Only a few months before had I begun

teaching. Day after day I had lain next to her

telling her about my new job, never once

considering that she might respond.



Question four:

What’s the last thing that happened?

My eyes filled with tears. No gift could have

been sweeter than to have my grandmother

know me, even for just a moment.



Question 5:


I knew I was home, at least for a moment.

Blessings come in fleeting moments. Life’s

preciousness exists even while waiting fordeath. Minutes later grandmother’s eyes went

blank, but the memory lived on.



Now you try it:

Add the needed sentences to complete one

of your essays.



Next:

Circle each noun and add at least one

descriptive word to every three nouns.



The Ending:

The ending is just as important as thebeginning.

Place your hand on your kernal essay and

close your eyes. In nearly two decades ofliving, this one experience stands out aboveall others. Why? What deeper meaning doesit have for you? What universal life meaningdoes it hold?

For this particular assignment we’re going toend with a truism.



Truisms:

Examples:

In life’s struggles, perseverance is the key.

Treat others with the same respect youexpect.

The actions of the past become the hands thatmold the future.

People create their own punishments.

We learn more when we fail than succeed. Life is a never-ending series of changes.

Embrace the new.



If you haven’t already, write five

truisms you believe or live by:

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

What truism fits your personal narrativeessay? Add that truism to the end.



Editing:

Mark this paper as “First Draft.”

Re-read your essay at least three times.

Make needed changes to improve sentence

and paragraph flow.



Grammar Check:

Highlight words that need spelling verification. Look

up at least 10 words in your essay.

Make sure the correct version of except/accept (I

accept the job position; I like all flavors of ice cream

except lemon.); it’s/its (it’s = it is; Its = possessive);

your/you’re (your = possessive; you’re = you are);

their/there/they’re.

Check for run-on sentences and fragments.

For more grammar help, click on Mrs. Stewart’swebpage titled One-Stop Grammar.

kernel essay, quicklists, and truisms

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