MATERIALS/EQUIPMENT:

        Ask students write these introductory stories to answer the above questions. Adjust the writing assignment according to class level. For example, beginning students may be able to write their name, address, and where they're from. An intermediate student can write out this basic information and include further details. (See example.) Students read their story aloud to a partner, and ask/answer questions about each other's stories.

        Then, collect the writing. Select a sampling of stories for in-class reading. (Note: Tell students you plan to type up some of the stories and share them with the class the next day, so any student who doesn't want to share their story can notify you.)

        Recommendation: Select approximately 4 stories for the class to read together. Choose both well-written stories as well as ones that need more work but have interesting facts. Depending on the class population, you may want to choose a sampling of stories from students who are from different countries, or type up two stories from males and two from females.

        After you type up stories, make copies and give them to students to read. This will ideally occur the following day in class. Give them time to read the stories silently, and then ask authors to read their writing aloud. Encourage students to ask the authors questions. You can also ask students to make grammar, spelling and punctuation corrections to the written document.