Gathering Information From Personal Experiences

You have lots of experiences that you can turn into great answers and ideas for writing. This lesson builds on remembering your experiences and teaches you to gather information from your experiences and put those details in order so they answer a question or support an idea.

When something happens to you, your mind holds many small facts. You might remember a sound, a feeling, or a place. If you want to answer a question like "What was your favorite part of the day?" you need to pick the details that fit that question and put them in an order that makes sense.

Organizing means putting your details in a neat plan instead of a messy pile. A good plan helps other people understand your answer and helps your writing sound clear.

Start with a clear question. It could be a question a teacher asks you, or a question you ask yourself, such as "Why do I like my dog?" or "What happened on my trip to the park?" The question tells you what kind of details to look for in your memory.

Next, think back and collect facts. Ask yourself what you saw, what you heard, what you felt, and what you did. If your question is about your dog, you might remember his soft fur, his loud bark, and how he runs to greet you at the door.

Write or say each detail as a short, simple fact. Do not worry about order yet, just collect as many true details as you can.

Once you have your details, put them in an order that makes sense. Many experiences work well in time order: what happened first, what happened next, and what happened last. Other times, you might sort details from most important to least important.

Now you can use your sorted details to build a full answer. Instead of just saying "I like my dog," you can say, "I like my dog because his soft fur feels nice, his bark makes me smile, and he makes me feel safe."

Notice how each detail supports the main idea. When you write a story or answer a question, always ask yourself, "Does this detail help explain my idea?" If it does, keep it. If it does not fit, leave it out.

Gather: To collect facts and details about something that happened to you.

Organize: To put your details in a clear order, such as first, next, and last.

Support an Idea: To use true details to explain why an idea or opinion makes sense.

Detail: A small true fact, such as a sound, a sight, or a feeling from your experience.

Personal Experience: Something that happened in your own life that you can remember and describe.

Try this with your own memory. Pick a question, such as "What was fun about my weekend?" Collect three or four details from your memory. Then put them in time order or in order from most exciting to least exciting. Finally, use those details to answer the question in full sentences.

The more you practice gathering and organizing details, the easier it becomes to answer questions clearly and support your ideas with facts that are true to you.

Related lessons

• Recalling Personal Experience Information Gathering Information From