Grades/Level: Adult Learners
Subjects: Visual Arts, English-Language Arts, ESL
Time Required: 45–60 minutes
Author: Getty Museum Education Staff

Featured Getty Artwork: 
None

Lesson Overview: 
Students will think about a dramatic moment in their lives and imagine how to translate it into a work of art.

Learning Objectives: 
- Students write their own personal experience as a story.
- Students describe a visual image of their personal experience and/or story.
- Students practice public speaking skills with the class.

Materials:  
- Looking at Narrative Art Vocabulary. Download RTF:
http://www.getty.edu/education/for_teachers/curricula/esl/downloads/narrative_art_vocab.rtf
- Student Activity Sheet: Creating Your Own Story. Download RTF:
http://www.getty.edu/education/for_teachers/curricula/esl/downloads/create_your_own_activity_sheet.rtf

Lesson Steps:
- Ask students to think about a dramatic moment in their lives.

- Ask them to close their eyes and visualize that moment. Where were they? Who were they with? How was the weather? What time of day was it? What actions were happening around them?

- Pass out Creating Your Own Story activity sheet.

- Have students answer the questions on the sheet. Give students enough time to work on their answers.

- When they are finished, ask them to each create a story based on their answers.

- Invite students to share their stories with the class.

SUGGESTED ACTIVITY
- Give students time to draw a moment from their story. When sharing, have them explain why they chose that specific moment to depict.