2nd Grade Writing Lesson 37: Illustrate a Personal Story

Objective

I can illustrate a personal story by choosing an important moment, adding matching picture details, and writing clear sentences about it.

Materials

Pencil
Eraser
Crayons or colored pencils
Ruled paper (primary lines preferred)

Mini-lesson — Make the picture match the story

A personal story is about something that really happened to you. An illustration should help the reader see the important part of the story.

How to illustrate a story

Pick one important moment to draw.
Show the people, place, and action in the picture.
Add details that match the story, not random things.
Write a sentence or two that fits the picture.

Example

Story idea: I lost my kite at the park.
Illustration idea: Me, the windy park, and the kite in the tree.

Quick check: "Does my picture help the reader understand the story?"

Guided Practice — Plan the picture and the sentence

Choose 3 sentences from the Trace menu and copy them neatly on paper. Then use the Tracing Pad to practice words, sentences, and marks.

Tracing Pad

Lines Trace

Pen

Drag & Drop — Build story picture ideas

Drag the words into the correct order to build each sentence about illustrating a personal story.

Ichooseonebigmoment.

Idrawwhatreallyhappened.

Mypictureshowstheplace.

Iaddthepeopletoo.

Ishowthemainaction.

Iaddsmallmatchingdetails.

Mysentencematchesthedrawing.

Icanlabelonedetail.

Nowthereaderseesmystory.

Ifeelproudofit.

Quick Check — Story pictures

Choose the best answer about illustrating a personal story.

What is a personal story?

a made-up math problem a story about something that happened to you a shopping list

What should you draw first?

one important moment every moment at once random shapes

What should a story picture include?

only colors only the title people, place, and action

What should the sentence do?

talk about something different match the drawing be upside down

Why do we add details to the picture?

to help the reader understand to make it messy to hide the story

Which is the best choice for a story about losing a kite?

a cake on a table a robot in space a kite stuck in a tree

What is a label?

a long paragraph a short word or phrase that names something a new drawing paper

Which detail shows the setting?

the playground in the background the period at the end the page number

Which sentence fits a picture of a child jumping in a puddle?

My backpack is blue. I like carrots. I jumped in the puddle.

Why do writers illustrate personal stories?

to make the page heavier to help the reader picture the story to erase the words

Assessment (parent/teacher)

Chooses one important moment from a personal story Adds picture details that match the writing Shows people, place, and action clearly Writes a clear sentence that fits the illustration

Exit ticket (student)

😀 I can illustrate my personal story clearly. 🙂 I can do some parts, but I need more practice. 😅 Matching my picture and writing still feels tricky.

I will practice…

Choosing one moment Adding matching details Writing a sentence to match