Before Reading the Book
Discuss memoirs and autobiographies with students. Explain to students
that these are books that are based on people's memories of their lives. Point
out that descriptive writing and story-crafting are just as important in this
kind of writing as they are in fiction, if the story is to have an effect
on its readers. Ask students to think about what stories from their past
they would share in such a collection.
Activity
Futurama
In When I Was Your Age, ten authors reveal stories of their past and how
these stories influenced them as writers. Ask students to imagine where
their own lives will lead them, and how they think their past will influence them in the future. To get them started ask students to complete these sentences:
A few of my happiest memories are
A few of my saddest memories are
A few of my proudest memories are
My dreams for the future are
The most important people to me are
because
When I Was That Age
Ask students to think about some of the important events in their own
lives—events that could be shaped into stories like the ones in When I Was
Your Age. Give students these autobiography-writing tips.
