Writing a Narrative About Optimism: Crafting Three Diary Entries
Grade
Grade 6
UNIT
1
•
Optimism
In Unit 1, Lesson 3, “Writing a Narrative About Optimism: Crafting Three Diary Entries,” students will draw inspiration from the two diaries they read earlier in this unit: The Diary of A Young Girl by Anne Frank and The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani. Students will compose three entries in narrative format that include the day’s happenings in their own lives, a newsworthy event or issue from that day, and their thoughts on those events—both personal and political. Students will consider how they can be optimistic about the personal and political events they share, along with considering how they can improve their self-awareness and self-management skills.
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SUGGESTED TIME:
30 minutes per diary entry, assigned either as 3 in-class writings or as 3 separate homework assignments
RELATED SUBJECT:
English Language Arts
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
- Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences.
- Establish a context and introduce a narrator and/or characters.
- Organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally and logically.
- Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, and description.
- Use a variety of transition words, phrases, and clauses.
- Use precise words and phrases, relevant descriptive details, and sensory language to convey experiences and events.
- Provide a conclusion that follows from the experiences or events.
REQUIRED MATERIALS:
- Prohuman Grade 6 Unit 1 Worksheet 3: Writing a Narrative About Optimism: Crafting Three Diary Entries
ELA COMMON CORE STANDARDS MET
CHARACTER AND SOCIAL EMOTIONAL (CSED) NATIONAL STANDARDS MET
LESSON PROCEDURE
- Have students write 3 diary entries, either as 3 in-class writings or as homework assignments, spending at least 30 minutes per entry.
- Have students select three days in which something noteworthy happened, either personally, politically, or ideally both.
- Tell students that these diary entries will be shared with three other students for peer review, and also with the teacher.
GRADE 6 UNIT 1 WORKSHEET 3: WRITING A NARRATIVE ABOUT OPTIMISM: CRAFTING THREE DIARY ENTRIES
Instructions:
You will be writing three diary entries. Identify three days this month in which there was a noteworthy personal event, a political event, or both. Spend at least 30 minutes writing each entry.
Your diary entries will be shared with 3 classmates for peer review and with the teacher.
Step 1: Before you begin each diary entry identify:
- A story from your own life on that day that you would like to share.
- Something that happened in the news that day or recently, and your feelings and reflections about this event.
- In your diary entries, do one or more of the following:
- Describe how different thoughts, situations, and behaviors affect your feelings and emotions
- Recognize your “stress moments” and why you feel anxious in these situations
- Recognize the different physical cues that emerge during your reaction to negative emotions and stress (e.g., voice volume, tonal quality, shallow/rapid breathing, crossed arms, facial distortions, sweating)
- Describe the techniques you use to challenge or refute your negative thoughts and feelings
- Recognize the times when you exaggerate the severity or consequences of mistakes, embarrassing moments, failures, rejections and other negative events (e.g., “I can never face them again.” “Everyone thinks I’m stupid.”)
- List and explain the different external supports you have used when feeling stressed or anxious (e.g., family, friends, teachers, neighbors)
- Recognize situations that impair your judgment, make you unhappy, or lead you to engage in self-defeating, unhealthy, unethical or illegal conduct
- Explain one technique you use to stay confident in stressful or challenging situations (e.g. positive self-talk)
- Explain how you practice “self-care” (e.g., meditation, listening to music, hobby)
- Explain a time when you overcame a negative thought and developed a growth mindset: the understanding that we can develop our abilities and intelligence. A growth mindset leads to a focus on learning, increased effort, and a willingness to learn from mistakes.
Each diary entry should:
- Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective techniques, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences.
- Engage and orient the reader by establishing a context and introducing a narrator and/or characters.
- Organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally and logically.
- Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, and description, to develop experiences, events, and/or characters.
- Use a variety of transition words, phrases, and clauses to convey sequence and signal shifts from one time frame or setting to another.
- Use precise words and phrases, relevant descriptive details, and sensory language to convey experiences and events.
- Provide a conclusion that follows from the narrated experiences or events.
Prohuman K-12 Curriculum © 2025 by Prohuman Foundation is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0.
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