Need your students to write a digital narrative? Easel by TpT makes writing a digital narrative easy. The digital writing tools enable students to respond to a visual prompt by planning, annotating, and typing their responses digitally via an online learning management system like Google Classroom.
Writing on a Digital Narrative Prompt
Just like traditional pencil and paper writing, when given a digital narrative prompt via Easel, pre-writing or brainstorming requires students to type in ideas that come to mind. Here, they have the flexibility to rearrange, add or delete text as they see fit. A positive is that it doesn’t look messy as is often the case with the paper version.
Once students have jotted down all their pre-writing big ideas, they narrow down on a specific one to further expand on. This is the idea around which their personal narrative will evolve.
Using the pen tool, students can choose how they will begin the narrative and keep a track of writing devices needed to write an effective narrative. Most students are motivated to write using these digital tools due to the flexibility and ease with which they can make corrections, annotate, highlight and even change colors/colours of the annotations.
Digital Narrative Writing Tools for Students In Easel
The next step in the writing process after students have pinpointed the specific event to write on is framing their story ideas around the elements of a plot. Once again the digital template prepared in Easel by TpT makes this very easy.
Students can type up their ideas (bullet-point) style on the hook, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. Typing makes this process easy and fun – no fuss – no mess.
Other than typing on a digital pdf, students can also use the highlighting tool on a mentor text to mark up the hook, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. The document can be further annotated with personal comments, questions, and general responses. All these hands-on writing activities further solidify content knowledge of the form and structure of the narrative writing genre.
Digital Narrative Editing & Publishing Tools in Easel
Self-editing and peer-editing checklists can also be assigned digitally in Easel via an online learning management system like google classroom. With the pen tool, students can put a tick or a cross against the specific criteria. This is an at-a-glance visual progress tool for both students and teachers alike.
Digital Narrative Writing Grading Tools
Once students have written out their narrative, the teacher can also use the digital pen tool in Easel to annotate the digital narrative writing rubric. For each criterion against which the writing piece is assessed, the teacher is able to insert a tick or give a score.
Besides, feedback comments for students can also be typed on the pdf document as well.
Assign Digital Narrative Writing in Easel
Digital writing via Easel by TpT stands the chance of getting those reluctant writers started – so give it a try with the digital personal narrative writing prompt activity.
Best of all, in addition to the Easel digital pdf activity, there is a version of the pdf that can be printed and distributed to your students if you prefer not to assign this activity digitally. The resource scaffolds the elements of a personal narrative on an open-ended prompt. Checklists and marking rubrics are also included.
The pdf file has already been prepared to be compatible with Easel, so all the teacher needs to do is assign it to their students. This can be done via Google Classroom and students can turn in their work when completed.
If you’re looking for more writing activities to support narrative writing, you will find them in the Mega Growing Bundle.
Looking for a resource that requires students to write persuasively on a topic in google slides? This Opinion Writing Earth Day Theme post will inform you of the process.
