Sunday, February 19, 2023

Choosing the Point of View in Fiction

CHOOSING THE POINT OF VIEW IN FICTION MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE


When your students first learn to write fiction, it’s important they think through the goals they have set for their story plan. One of the first decisions a writer must make when planning a new story is to choose from which point of view the story will be told. The point of view is the vantage point from which the reader views a story.


Although classic fiction and experimental fiction are often written in other points of view, such as the second-person, third-person objective, and third-person omniscient, your students will be more successful if they limit their choices to first person and third-person limited when first learning to write fiction. 


Most writers of modern fiction choose to write in first-person POV or third-person limited POV, so we will discuss these two. (Limited means entering the thoughts of only one character per scene, chapter, or novel.) Sometimes, we see the story through the eyes and thoughts of only one main character, but it is possible to include the points of view of several different characters.


•  First person POV uses the pronouns (I, me, my, mine, we, us, our, ours)
       *We can only read the thoughts of the first-person narrator. If the story is written in first person, a character cannot describe himself/herself. Sometimes writers use the “looking in the mirror” trick, or they will have another character describe the narrator. 


•  Third person POV uses the pronouns (he, him, his, himself, she, her, hers, herself, it, its, itself, they, them, their, theirs, and themselves)


Note the difference between these two examples of the same scene written in two different points of view.


Brief Incident for Scene 1
Mandy and Jane, roommates, are planning to paint the living room in the apartment they share. It was Mandy’s idea to paint the room, but it was Jane’s idea that the two of them could do it without any professional help. It’s Monday morning, and the two are ready to paint.

Scene 1
Viewpoint 1 – First Person, Mandy
   I examined the room and began to feel doubts. It was bigger than I thought, with lots of windows to paint around. “This looks like a pretty big job for just the two of us,” I told Jane.
   I was hoping she would agree, so we could hire a professional painter. But Jane is nothing like me. She has always been the do-it-yourself type.
   “Oh, this is easy,” Jane said as she picked up a clean paint roller. “Hand me that paint can. Let’s get this project started.”


Viewpoint 2 – First Person, Jane
   I saw Mandy sizing up the room, and I knew she was having doubts. She’s always been one to look for trouble and take the easy way out. Spending money on a painter is not in my budget. Somehow, I need to make her see that we can do this job by ourselves. Besides, we already bought all the paint and supplies.

   “It’s not too late to call a painter,” Mandy said. “Painting this room looks like a big job to me.”

   “Oh, this is easy,” I said and picked up a clean paint roller. “Hand me that paint can. Let’s get this project started.”



Viewpoint 3– Third Person, Mandy


   Mandy examined the room and began to feel doubtful. It was bigger than she thought, with lots of windows to paint around. “This looks like a pretty big job for just the two of us,” she told Jane. 
   She was hoping Jane would agree, so they could hire a professional painter. But Jane was nothing like her. Jane had always been the do-it-yourself type.
   “Oh, this is easy,” Jane said as she picked up a clean paint roller. “Hand me that paint can. Let’s get this project started.”



Viewpoint 4 – Third Person, Jane


   Jane saw Mandy sizing up the room and knew her roommate was having doubts. Mandy had always been one to look for trouble and take the easy way out. 
    Spending money on a painter is not in my budget, Jane thought. Somehow, she needed to make Mandy see that they could do this job by themselves. 
   “It’s not too late to call a painter,” Mandy said. “Painting this room looks like a big job to me.”
   “Oh, this is easy,” Jane said, ”and besides, we already bought all the paint and supplies.” She picked up a clean paint roller. “Hand me that paint can. Let’s get this project started.” 



After discussing the examples above, you can present your students with several other passages. Let them decide the point of view and from which character’s viewpoint it is told. You can write your own examples or take excerpts from the fiction they have read in class.


Here’s an example:


She stood at the door of the conference room as all eyes turned toward her and wondered if she was dressed appropriately for the occasion. Earlier that day, she had chosen a black jacket, a red pencil skirt, and her favorite heels to wear to the interview. As quickly as she could, she took the chair farthest from the man who was staring at her with a cold look in his eyes.


Name the Point of View. (First Person or Third-Person Limited) 


From which character’s POV is the scene written? 

Another exercise is to have students write scenes of their own and choose the POV and which character’s viewpoint they will use.

Here’s another example: 


Instructions: Write a brief scene of your own with two characters. (One wishes to get takeout for dinner. One wishes to cook at home.) Choose the point-of-view and the character from whose POV you will tell the story.


Knowing how to identify the point of view in the fiction that they read and write will enrich your students' experiences with literature.


If you would like to teach this concept with a no-prep resource that I used with my own students, you will find it here. It is available as a print, Google Drive™, or Easel™ activity.





If you would like to read more blog posts by my teacher friends at The Best of Teacher Entrepreneurs Marketing Cooperative, you will find their posts below.


Thanks for reading,

Charlene




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Sunday, January 15, 2023

Valentine's Day Letters Are Special

pink hearts

One of the early February projects in my English classes was to discuss how meaningful a handwritten letter can be. Students were encouraged to choose someone who had made a difference in their lives and write a letter to them expressing their gratitude.


Writing notes and letters will give your students the opportunity to express their gratitude to parents, teachers, and friends. To help students narrow their focus, we discussed how even one kind or helpful act can often make a big difference in someone’s life. I asked for examples, and students were happy to describe them.


“My mom goes to every one of my softball games, and she gives team members rides to practice.”


“My friend, Pat, sat up with me all night when my cat was sick, and went with me to the vet the next morning.”


“My dad left work and drove all the way home to get the science project that I forgot to take to school.”


After the students had decided who their audience would be and what they would say, we reviewed the best practices for capitalization and punctuation when composing a friendly letter. I gave them a template to follow.


Next, they wrote a first draft on notebook paper. After proofreading their letters and making any necessary corrections, they chose a sheet of Valentine's Day stationery on which to write their final draft. I provided printed sheets of decorated paper. 


Click here for a free packet of stationery your students can use for their final draft.


It was their choice if they wished to deliver the letter to its intended recipient, or mail it to them.


I usually bought envelopes at the dollar store and showed them how to fold the letter into thirds and insert the letter. If they planned to mail it, I put an example of a properly addressed envelope on the whiteboard. Mailing the letter was not a requirement, and they had to provide their own stamp.


My students felt good about this assignment, and participated eagerly.


Here’s another assignment your students will enjoy.


Valentine's Day candy  sentence patterns


Teach your students to rewrite sentences without changing their meaning to achieve sentence variety. At the same time, they will be reminded of things that are associated with Valentine's Day. Click here.


I hope your Valentine’s Day is special, and you spend it with people you love.  


Thanks for reading,


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Here are some interesting blog posts from my teacher friends at The Best of Teacher Entrepreneurs Marketing Cooperate. I hope you enjoy them.







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