Step A: read the following two passages.

Passage 1 When I was in elementary school the principal told my dad that I’d be lucky to graduate high school. My dad didn’t tell me that at the time. Now he says he was really angry. At every graduation party since he has told that story with great pride to our friends and family. Sometimes he talks about calling that principal up just to say how wrong he was.

Passage 2 Hey everybody, raise your hand for me if you have children. Okay, hands down, raise your hand for me if you think you might have children someday. So that is just about everyone here, right? Imagine with me for a moment going to parent teacher conferences and being surprised to find the school’s principal there waiting for you along with the teacher. The teacher starts the conversation as usual but finally the principal speaks up and says ‘your child will be lucky to graduate high school.’ How would that make you feel? How dare someone say such a thing! … So, on graduation day how big of a party are you going to throw?

Describe, in your own words, what the difference between the 1st passage and the 2nd passage is: (Hint: there is no wrong answer.)

Step B: read, again the following passage.

I learned to ride a bike when I was ten. I’ll never forget how much fun that summer was. I spent most of it starting off on the curb or step. Couldn’t quite get started out without that help up but by the end of the summer I figured it out. Well, I guess riding a bike can be forgotten after all because I had to learn it over from scratch the following summer. At first I felt pretty silly but in the end I was a better cyclist for the extra effort I had to put in.

Re-write the passage, in your own words, but personalize it for your audience. Again, no wrong answer, use your imagination:

Step C: tell your audience about the best meal you’ve ever had: