How to Teach Personal Essay Writing

Widely thought to have begun with the French writer and philosopher, Montaigne, in the 1500s, the essay form has evolved greatly over time and has come to be an essential genre of critical and creative expression. Of course, for most high school kids the history of the essay is not all that important, what matters is what the essay can get them or what it can express. Today, any admissions counselor will tell prospective students that one of the most important parts of any college application is the personal essay. Even if they don’t plan to attend college, the essay can be a great format that will give kids the freedom to explore difficult issues in their lives. Read on to learn how to teach personal essay writing.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Things You’ll Need:

• Photocopies or books of essay examples
• Notebooks or journals for students
• Pencils or pens

1. Understand that the most important part of teaching any writing form is making it fun. Before tackling the essay head on, warm the kids up with a few writing exercises that get them thinking about personal experiences and opinions in a more casual way. For example, have them write for five minutes about what it would be like if they were an alien landing on the planet for the first time. Emphasize emotional details through description not declaration (show don’t tell mantra). You can use materials from these exercises for larger essays.
2. In order to introduce the kids to the personal essay form, provide entertaining examples that not only showcase good writing but stretch kid’s conceptions of what an essay can accomplish or look like. Assign a few essays from a “Best American Essays” collection. Some classic examples are James Baldwin’s “Notes of a Native Son,” Joan Didion’s “The White Album” or Donald Hall’s “A Hundred Thousand Straightened Nails.” A more experimental, contemporary essay choice might be John McPhee’s “In Search of Marvin Gardens.” Make sure to pick examples that do a good job tying a specific personal event, memory, or issue to a larger cultural or historical context. Use group discussion to draw out major themes, tensions and formal aspects of the essay.
3. Start with small essays that address a specific moment or feeling. You will probably find that most students haven’t ever used writing as a form of personal expression, and some will struggle with really opening themselves up. There will be plenty of essays about playing sports and siblings and the life lessons they have learned from their parents. All of this can be good, but push them to move outside of their comfort zone. Encourage them to really ask why these specific moments or relationships are important and how they have effected the direction of their lives.
4. Allow time for significant revisions. Express to your students that much of the hard work in writing comes with the editing process, for this is when a piece becomes truly coherent and polished. The initial writing is the easy part. Make sure the kids keep previous drafts with your comments to use as guidance for revisions.
5. When they are ready, provide some sample essay prompts from college applications. There are always the standard-issue type from the common application, but try to use some more eccentric questions like University of Chicago’s “How do you feel about Wednesday?”
6. Have the kids bring extra copies to class to facilitate peer review and discussion. Encourage some brave souls to read their essays aloud. If it is later in the quarter and the students are more comfortable with each other, leave a day aside where you can project all the essays on the wall for group discussion. It is good for the students to experience this level of attention, care and scrutiny. This will also help them build that internal, imagined audience that guides most professional essay writers.