‘J
DEPARTMEN3’JOF EDUCATION
Creative Nonfiction
Quarter 2 — Module 3
Forms and Types of Creative Non fiction
°!
VERY MODE
Creative Nonfiction – Grade 12
Alternative Delivery Mode
Quarter 2 – Module 3: Forms and Types of Creative Nonfiction
First Edition, 2020
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Development Team of the Module:
Author:
Evaluators:
Illustrator:
Analyn L. Salvo
Ernell C. Culob
Jadilyn Rose S. Saturos
Vianna Dominique B. Gaston
Management Team:
Chairperson:
Co-Chairpersons:
Members:
Dr. Arturo B. Bayocot, CESO III
Regional Director
Dr. Victor G. De Gracia Jr., CESO V
Asst. Regional Director
Mala Epra B. Magnaong
CES, CLMD
Dr. Bienvenido U. Tagolimot, Jr.
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Dr. Angelina B. Buaron
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Creative Nonfiction
Quarter 2 – Module 3
Forms and Types of Creative
Nonfiction
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universities. We encourage teachers and other education stake
holders to email there feedback, comments, and recommendations to
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We value your feedback and recommendations.
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ii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Cover Page
Copyright Page
Module Title
Writers‟ Profile
Table of Contents
Overview
Components in Each Lesson
What I need to Know
Things to Remember To Get Through
CONTENTS
Lesson 1: Understanding Forms and Types
What I Know
What’s In
What’s New
What is It
What’s More
i
ii
iii
iv
v
1
1
2
4
5
5
7
Lesson 2: Differentiating the Types of Creative Nonfiction
What’s New
What is It
9
13
What’s More
What’s New
What’s It
What’s More
14
15
15
16
What is It
17
What’s More
What’s New
24
25
What is It
27
What’s New
What’s More
28
29
What is It
30
What’s More
What’s New
31
33
What is It
34
What’s More
34
What I Can Do
Assessment
Answer Key
35
37
39
v
References
40
OVERVIEW
Name:
Subject:
Topic:
Content
Standard:
Performance
Standards:
Date:
Score:
Creative Nonfiction
Forms and Types of Creative Non fiction
The learner understands the distinction between and among
creative nonfiction types and forms
The learner competently delivers an artistic presentation
summarizing and analysing the form, theme and techniques of a
chosen creative nonfictional text.
B. Explain the relationship of elements and ideas found in
the various forms and types of creative nonfictional
texts through a close reading.
Learning
Competencies:
(HUMSS_CNF11/12-IIa-a-15)
2. Compare and contrast the different forms and types of
creative nonfictional text. (HUMSS_CNF11/12-Iia-16)
3. Deliver an artistic presentation on one of the types of
creative nonfiction text. HUMSS_CNF11/12-Iib-c-17
Writing is perceived by many as a complex task and that is
why many students chose not to write because it involves several
processes and often viewed by many as a task that is suited only
for academic individuals. Moreover, writing is an act of indulging
yourself into the beauty and wonders of your imagination.
What is this
module all
about?
This module will serve as your motivating tool in
understanding the forms and types of creative nonfiction as you
will also be reading and writing creative nonfictional texts. In
addition, It will help you in transforming your experiences and
adventures into a wonderful and meaningful creation that could
inspire many people.
Likewise, it will provide engaging activities that will
enhance your writing skills and will provide a glimpse of your
experiences. Hence, an effective tool that will broaden your
knowledge as you go along your journey to Senior High School
life.
Module Content
Lesson 1: Understanding Various Forms and Types of Creative
Nonfiction.
Lesson 2 : Differentiating the Types of Creative Nonfiction
vi
Components in each Lesson
What I Need to Know
Learning Objectives
What I Know
Pre-Assessment
What’s In
Review Activity
What’s New
Motivational Activity
What is It
Lesson Proper
What’s More
Performance Task
What I Have Learned
Generalization
What I Can Do
Application
vii
Assessment
Post-Assessment
Answer Key
viii
WHAT I NEED TO KNOW
After studying this module you are expected to:
1. identify the various forms and types of creative nonfiction;
2. compare and contrast the types and forms of creative nonfiction ; and
3. evaluate an article using close reading.
The following are your guides for the proper use of this module:
1. Follow closely the instructions in every activity.
2. Answer the pre-test before going over the material to find out what you
already know.
3. Answer the exercises at the end of every lesson.
4. Review the lesson that you find difficult to understand.
5. Seek assistance from your teacher if a lesson seemed complicated.
6. Ask permission from your parents/guardians whenever you have to
conduct research and comply requirements outside your home.
7. Prepare your outputs for submission to your teacher.
8. Finally, write all your answers of the tests, activities, exercises, and others
on your separate activity notebook.
GOOD LUCK AS YOU BEGIN THIS MODULE!
1
WHAT I KNOW
ACTIVITY 1: PRETEST
Before you start studying this module, answer the following
questions to see what you already know about the topics that will be
discussed in it.
Read the following questions below.
activity notebook.
Write the letter of your answer in your
1. Which of the following DOES NOT describe a personal narrative?
A. It involves the personal life of the author.
B. It uses figurative language to convey the message effectively.
C. It deals with the chain of events of the life of the author.
D. It deals with the particular aspect of the life of the author.
2. Which of the following is a form of creative nonfiction?
A. Biography
C. Poem
B. Sonnet
D. Haiku
3. What type of text that tells a story?
A. Narrative
C. Persuasive
B. Descriptive
D. Exemplification
4. Who writes a story if it is an autobiography?
A. Author
C. Teacher
B. Neighbour
D. Publisher
5. How do you call a careful understanding and examination of the text
presented?
A. Skimming
C. Scanning
B. Close Reading
D. Intensive Reading
6. What do you need to do before reading a book?
A. Read a good book
C. Eat a good lunch
B. Research your topic
D. Take a test
7. What form of creative nonfiction if you are to write about the life of Juan Dela
Cruz?
A. Autobiography
C. Informational Article
B. Personal Narrative
D. Biography
8. What do you call a piece of writing that focuses on the marginalized members
of the society who are experiencing oppression?
A. Personal Essay
C. Reflective Essay
B. Testimonio
D. Autobiography
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9. Which of the following is a good topic when writing a personal narrative?
A. Graft and Corruption
C. Novel Coronavirus
B. Politics
D. Childhood experience
10. What are the two general types of nonfiction that tell a story and give
information?
A. Narrative and Informative
C. Narrative and Realistic
B. Expository and Narrative
D. Expository and Persuasive
11. What do you call this type of creative nonfiction that deals on the traveling
experiences of a person?
A. Blog
C. Travelogue
B. Website
D. Essay
12. What do you call a literary genre that deals on stories about life’s realities
and experiences with a touch of art?
A. Creative Nonfiction
C. Fiction
B. Literature
D. Art
13. Which type of creative nonfiction is closely related to magazine and
newspaper writing?
A. Travelogue
C. Biography
B. Blog
D. Autobiography
14. What is the most important thing to consider when making a blog?
A. Your knowledge about the topic
B. Your audience
C. Your opinion
D. Your internet connection
15. What is essential detail you should feature when you do a travelogue?
A. The picturesque scenery of the place
B. The dress that you are wearing
C. Your companion in your travelogue
D The camera that you are bringing
3
WHAT‟S IN
Activity 1: I am the 1
In the previous lesson, you have learned about principles, elements, and
devices used in creative nonfiction. Now, research the song and music video of
the song “ Hari ng Tondo” by Yeng Constantino, Try to critique what kind of
principles and techniques they used in the song and in the music video
Lesson
1
Learning Competency:
FORMS AND TYPES OF
CREATIVE NONFICTION
Explain the relationship of elements and ideas
found in the various forms and types of
creative nonfictional texts through
a close reading (HUMSS_CNF11/12-Iia-a-15)
Compare and contrast the different forms and
types of creative nonfictional text;
(HUMSS_CNF11/12-Iia-16)
4
WHAT‟S NEW
Activity 1. DOMINANT IMPRESSION
Look around you, what have you observed? Can you tell something that
will spark your interest? Look at the sky, building, and people. Describe what you
had observed by using your sensory imaginations (visual, tactile, gustatory,
olfactory, and audio).Write your observation on the spaces provided for.
WHAT IS IT
Types and forms of
Creative Nonfiction
Definition
It is a story written by the person himself.
Autobiography
Biography
Journal
Diary
It is a life’s story that is written by another
person.
It is a day to day account intended to purely
document life’s events.
It is a written account of the author which
involves his/ her secrets.
5
Letter
It is a communication or written message that
addresses to a certain person or organization.
Memoir
It refers to the personal account of a person
which teaches them something. It is more of a
memory that cannot be easily forgotten.
Literary Journalism or
Reportage
It refers to magazine or newspaper writing or
closely related to it. It is journalism with a
touch of an artistic value of literature in it.
Reflection Essay
It refers to the narrator’s personal view and
experiences. It Is more on thoughts and
feeling of the author
Testimonio Essay
It refers to the personal experience of an
author or the author witnesses an abuse and
oppression in a workplace.
Travelogue
It is a written account of a person during his/
her travel. It focuses on the scenery, people
and the warmness of the place and the
people.
FORMS AND TYPES OF CREATIVE NONFICTION
Understanding Various Forms
and Types of Creative
Nonfiction
The Significance of an
Audience
Creative nonfiction has many types and it
generally focuses on the experiences of an
individual. That maybe it could inspire many
individuals as you write it and share these
experiences. Moreover, creative nonfiction
comes in various ways and almost often we
are not aware that our experiences could
become good literary pieces.
Understanding the significance of your
audience plays a vital role as you write your
piece. Because they are the ones who will
read and be inspired by your stories. In a
sense, your goal is to inspire the readers to
read because they could learn something
from it.
6
Close Reading
Close Reading is a matter of understanding
the text presented by the author by
observing every detail in a text. A writer
often uses unique ways to convey their
messages to the readers. Thus, as a reader
you need to be observant always.
WHAT‟S MORE
LET US SEE HOW FAR YOU HAVE LEARNED
Answer the following on your activity notebook. Submit it to the
teacher once you are done.
ACTIVITY 1: WHAT I KNOW
B. What are some forms of creative nonfiction you have written?
2. What is the most important technique that you need to consider while writing?
3.
Differentiate the types and forms of Creative Nonfiction.
4.
Use Venn diagram to show similarities and differences of the types and
forms of creative nonfiction
Differences
Similarities
7
Differences
ACTIVITY 2. LOOK UP!
Look for a particular article about success story of a person. Read and
evaluate the story if you are inspired and touched by the author’s life. Write your
reflection of the article.
WHAT‟S IN
ACTIVITY 1: JOHARI WINDOW
Use the four sides of the Johari window to evaluate, how open you are to
others. Are you fond of expressing yourselves? Or you are a person that is very
secretive? Let us find out as you do this activity. Write your answer on your
activity notebook.
2.
1.
OPEN / FREE ARE
(Everyone are aware of it including
you)
BLIND AREA
( Other know it but you don’t)
3.
4.
HIDDEN AREA
( You are the only one who knows
about it)
UNKNOWN AREA
( No one knows it, including you)
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Lesson
2
Differentiating the Types of
Creative Nonfiction
Learning Competency:
Compare and contrast the different forms and
types of creative nonfictional text.
(HUMSS_CNF11/12-Iia-16)
Deliver an artistic presentation on one of the
types of creative nonfiction text.
(HUMSS_CNF11/12-Iib-c-17)
WHAT‟S NEW
ACTIVITY 1: PREVIEWING
Scan the text below and answer the following questions:
B.
2.
How did the narrator feel when he had to part ways with elementary
school
classmate?
What did the narrator decide to do right after graduating from
college?
ACTIVITY 2: DO YOU KNOW ME?
Read the statements below. Using context clues, give the meaning of the
underlined words. These sentences can be found in the reading selection below.
You can scan the text, for you to be guided.
1.
I do not know much about the music and movies that my high school
classmates are fond of, but I do not want to be out of place, so I
painstakingly tried to learn them.
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2.
My mother had a serious ailment, and since we relied only a small store
for our expenses, her conditioned threatened to drain our financial
resources further.
3.
In college, I would go to my school in Intramuros with just a few pesos;
inevitably, I sometimes rode the jeepney or the bus without paying the
fate.
4.
Because we were short on finances, finishing school, as expected, was an
uphill battle.
ACTIVITY 3: READING IS FUN
The reading selection below focuses on the struggles that the narrator had
experienced while growing up and attending school. Find out what are these
struggles and how, in the end, he was able to pull through.
Still Worth Living: How I Survived Life‟s Uncertainties
Atilla Roma
Because I came from working –class background, I was haunted by the
spectre of financial insecurity while growing up. The modest means of livelihood
that my parents had was a small store that sold fish and vegetables, but we had
days when the sales were not good. They were able to continue the business for
a few years, which supported the schooling of the children and satisfied most of
our basic needs.
My siblings and I attended the same public grade school which was about
one and one and a half 10avourite10 away. From 1984 to 1990, I went to
Bayanan Elementary School. Fortunately, through those years, I did not find it
hard to socialize with classmates with whom I shared the same working- class
background. It was, therefore, quite painful to part ways with them when I
graduated from elementary.
Many of my elementary classmates and friends went to a public high
school just a jeepney ride away from home. I had also thought that I would attend
the same school, so my parents’ decisions to send me in a private high school,
just a stone’s throw our house, came to me as a big surprise. In high school, the
experience of being in a bigger institution and in the company of new classmates,
many of whom had relatively comfortable lives, made me feel uneasy, and
10
insecure, and alienated. My lower class upbringing easily came into conflict with
middle- class culture of my high school classmates. Not wanting to feel out of
place, I painstakingly tried familiarize myself with the movies, music, reading
materials (mostly foreign and comic books), and fashion that my high school
classmates knew. The feelings of insecurity became more intense whenever I
went to my classmates’ well carpeted and well- furnished houses.
Money was also constant concern, I was given a partial scholarship at the
beginning after my father had personally requested the school administration. But
I was not able to keep my grades high and eventually lost the scholarship. From
then on, my schooling became an uphill battle. What made matters worse was
learning that my mother had a serious lung ailment which drained our financial
resources further. Before long, our small store went bankrupt and closed down. I
feared that, considering my mother’s condition and the state our finances, I would
not be able continue my schooling.
Fortunately, I was able to earn my high school diploma in 1994 despite
having so many absences. Our financial concerns continued, however, and I felt
the need to find immediate employment rather than attend college. But my
parents discouraged me from quitting school, and instead encouraged me to look
for a public university where the fees were relatively low. Although I enrolled in a
university, I still continued to struggle with financial limitations, writing promissory
letters in many instances to take major exams and claim my grades on time. I
also asked college teachers to allow me to photocopy books a few pages at a
time instead of buying them. That I had to take two jeepney rides to reach school
made my situation more complicated. Inevitably, I sometimes, rode the jeep or
the bus without paying the fare. At times, I would take a two – kilometre route on
foot. I also engaged in odd jobs to help support my schooling and that of my
younger siblings (although they themselves were working students). For a fee, I
would do the school projects of children in our neighbourhood or type the papers
of college classmates.
When I graduated from college in 1999, I was determined to find a job right
away in order to address my family’s financial concerns. Because I never really
wanted to teach, contented that I had survived four years of college, I applied in
at least four government offices as an ordinary clerk. But when all four applicants
got rejected, despite the relatively good score in the civil service examination I
had taken a few months before, I was left with no other choice but to try my luck
in teaching.
Since then, the career I have chosen – far from being my first love – has
not only been rewarding financially. It has also restored my sense of self- worth.
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ACTIVITY 4: THINK ABOUT IT
1.
Why did the narrator say that it was painful to part ways with his
elementary school classmates?
2.
How different was his high school experience from the one he had in
elementary school?
3.
What challenges did the narrator face in high school and college?
4.
Can you think of a similar situation where you can say that despite of
everything I can still manage life’s uncertainties? How?
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WHAT IS IT
CHART FOR COMPARISON
BASIS FOR
COMPARISON
Meaning
BIOGRAPHY
Biography refers to a life’s
story that is written by
someone.
AUTOBIOGRAPHY
Autobiography refers to
your own life story that is
written by you yourself.
Authorization
Can be written with or without
the person’s authorization.
As long as you know about
his/ her life and your story is
authentic.
No need to ask permission
from yourself.
Written in
Third person point of view
First person point of view
Purpose
To inform the readers about
someone else’s life.
To express, inspire or
entertain others.
Outlook
Based on the researches by
the author.
It is full of emotional
thoughts.
https://keydifferences.com/difference-between-biography-and-autobiography.html
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WHAT „S MORE
ACTIVITY 1: WHO AM I?
Try to recall episodes from your childhood and teenage life that are worth sharing
and which you may include in a possible autobiography. Indicate dates, places,
and other details. The incomplete table below serves as your example and guide.
DATE
PLACE
EVENT
February 1990
Valencia City, Bukidnon
Birth
2002
Concepcion Elementary
School
Graduated from
elementary
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WHAT‟S NEW
ACTIVITY 1: RECALLING MAMASAPANO
Search the web on the Mamasapano killing incident. If you were one of the
reporters that time and you miraculously survived the tragic killing, how are you
going to tell your story to others?
WHAT IS IT
LITERARY JOURNALISM
LITERARY JOURNALISM is a type of creative nonfiction that is
closely related to magazine and newspaper writing. It is journalism but it deviates
from the traditional journalism because it has touch of literature. It is journalism
with a twist.
Before a writer can compose an essay about politics, human
trafficking, poverty, unemployment or drugs, the writer needs factual information
to write. These facts must be verified first and reliable.
PLEASE REMEMBER!
Before writing a literary journalism you need to consider the following:




Select a topic of your interest
Conduct a research about your topic
Write a dramatic story that will catch the reader’s attention.
Include a lead, facts/content, and dramatic ending.
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BUT WAIT THERE IS MORE: IT SHOULD HAVE THE FOLLWING
DETAILS
 Scene must takes place at a particular time.
 Place a scene happens in a specific place
 Details a scene always include important details. These details are the
sensory details which help the reader picture out the event.
 Action it includes the information about the event.
 Dialogue it includes conversation, however, this may not always the
case but it is also considered one of the most important aspect of
journalism.
WHAT‟S MORE
ACTIVITY 1: JOURNALIST BE LIKE
Pretend that you are a journalist. Cover an interesting event in your
Barangay and report it to the class in a narrative manner. Prepare a report
for your story. Follow the proper guidelines in reporting.
WHAT„S NEW
ACTIVITY 1: IT TAKES GUTS TO ASK….
Ask randomly on persons you met on the street about the following. Try to
elicit three (3) answers from them.
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Love
1.
People
2.
3.
1.
1.
2.
LIFE
3.
2.
3.
1.
Places
Animals
2
3.
ACTIVITY 2: MEMORIES BRING BACK MEMORIES
Close your eyes and recall one particular episode in your life that you
consider memorable. Share it with others.
WHAT IS IT
PERSONAL NARRATIVE is a story about narrating your personal
experience. It contains descriptive words as you tell your story that can inspire or
motivate the readers and they could also relate as well. .
(http://www.writeawriting.com/essay/personal-narrative/)
17
In writing your personal narrative, you need to remember that setting,
characters, climax, and ending play a vital role in your narrative.
ACTIVITY 1: VOCABULARY SPINNER
In the text that you are going to read you will encounter several unfamiliar
terms. Take note of all the unfamiliar words. Use at least 10 words that are
unfamiliar to you. Follow the spinner below.
Give the definition
Give a synonym
Use in a sentence
Give an antonym
INSERT HER SILENCE HERE
Shakira Andrea Sison
“Whenever I think about my mother, there is a gap in my chest
where our relationship should be, as if I was still swimming
towards her, never reaching her and never meeting her cheers
and praise”.'
Inside my mother was the sea. I used to lie on her belly as a child and
press my ear against her soft, warm, and Chinese-white skin. When asked, I
would say that I was listening to the baby, although I was the youngest of four
and I knew there wouldn’t be any more. I was the last.
18
Mama would watch TV or read a book, and I would close my eyes to what
I thought was the sound of water in her gut, trying to make out its tiny grumbles,
imagining the passage of rice grains after the evening’s meal.
More often than not I would end up falling asleep to the sound of its waves as
her stomach churned and intestines moved, creating the borborygmi that became
my lullaby.
She was a woman of few words. Like my father, she grew up during the
war, and being a child of two survivors, one simply learned to let stories that are
untold remain so. But unlike my father, she didn’t overcompensate with stories of
Northern games and ghosts, beached whales, pretty classmates, and the right
shoes to wear to reflect their undergarments. While my father told tales of his
past, my mother said nothing. It was as if she carved out the space that created a
venue for his words.
I ached for the stories of my mother, as her life before me remained a void.
She left Samar for Manila as a young lady and never returned, or if she did she
never told me about it or about her life in that Southern town.
Mama was as stingy about her childhood as much as my father indulged in
immortalizing his. My mother never spoke of her life as a child, what it was like as
the oldest of a brood of five Chinese-Filipinos with a Spanish surname Cinco, a
name whose origin I heard from a visiting aunt. Tita Rose said that my great
grandfather’s last name was actually Tanseco but the Spaniards gathered all the
natives and named families by number, and our ancestors just happened to be
fifth in line.One of these unintentional secrets was a story I had to wait for
adolescence to hear, and still from someone else. Lolo Tanggol, my great uncle,
came home one year after retiring from his job as an architect in Guam. He
brought with him a three-panel sketch of my mother’s childhood homes. Written
on the back of each in drafting ink was a short description of each house from his
memory, including the details of Mama’s family running from the Japanese
soldiers who burned a couple of these houses down.
My mother saved her sentiments so well that it became a valued currency,
and it became foolish to offer ours in exchange. She never said whether she was
happy or sad, disappointed or mad. One just had to know. In bed with her as I
listened to her belly, my face felt like it was part of her skin.
I pretended I knew from her subtle vibe or hinted whimper how she felt about
things, guessing even harder how she actually felt about me. But I knew better
than to ask.
19
Mama grew up in a world so different from mine. Twice before my
adulthood I witnessed a revolution led by a woman who would then become
president, in a country where men still said that a woman’s purpose was in the
bedroom.
I came to age at a time when women started finding voices and leading
their homes, when a pregnancy without a husband was no longer a societal
death sentence or a financial disaster.
Mama had said that in her time, it was the parents’ duty to return their
daughter to her husband if she happened to become upset at him and leave for
whatever reason. There were many reasons to leave. My father was not a saint in
the way that coffee is not white, no matter how much her milky silence
whitewashed it. Mama was an intelligent, glamorous, and educated career
woman, but in that day it was the common expectation for women to stand by
their men no matter how much they erred, so long as they provided for the home.
“As long as he still comes home to you, its fine,” was a common sentiment
I heard among my aunts. To be a woman was to endure, and my mother was not
alone in her generation to do so without complaint. She did it so 20avourite that
to the untrained eye there was nothing peculiar above the calm, behind the
straight face, and past that mysterious smile. An intact family was everything
during that time.
I cannot speak for my mother and what life must have been like for her. I
can only say what it was for me who listened for cues through her body, waiting
for a whimper or a story of hurt she never told, and likely for my own benefit. I
must have sensed cries, or even hidden laughs, buried deep behind stomach and
liver and bile, when what she was reading or watching caught her off-guard and I
hadn’t yet fallen asleep to the wavy, musical sounds of her belly that probably
reminded me of my first home.
I wanted to be perfect for my mother. I wanted to be good and not add to
the sadness in her silence when she sat on the couch and thumbed her rosary
beads late into the night. When she
complained about my sisters borrowing her
possessions without her permission, I started
leaving her notes whenever I took a few
pumps of lotion from her nightstand. I sent
her love letters from my college dormitory. I
wrote her a poem when a lump was found in Rappler.com
her breast and she had to go in for surgery.
20
She didn’t say much, but she framed my poem and hung it in her room. I
wanted to be Mama’s hero, or at least some kind of pal. But when I wrote her a
letter that I wished she and I could be friends, she said that because she was my
mother first, she had to decline.
I learned pretty quickly that my mother’s silence had nothing to do with me,
nor could I do anything to erase the ambient noise around her that had become a
fact.
I collected her stories from other people instead. For example, I learned
from another visiting aunt that my great-grandmother was of pure Chinese
descent and arrived in Manila from the mainland with bound feet. I remember
wondering if that was the reason my mother had such small, childlike feet that I
outgrew her hand-me-down shoes as early as fifth grade. Was it with these feet
she danced gracefully as part of the dance troupe whose pictures I once
unearthed? In them she’s dressed in a traditional Maria Clara, my father holding
a bouquet of flowers at her side.
“They called her The Belle of Catbalogan,” my father said, and I first
thought she was metaphorically likened to a church bell because of her
resonating beauty. Now that was a glaring fact that Mama never needed to
verbalize. In photos, her beauty just jumped out and grabbed you in the chest,
prompting questions about who she was and what she was thinking. Her face
gripped you and wouldn’t let go until you sought her out to learn what was behind
those eyes. Except that she would never tell you.
In one of these photos she’s posing by the water, her eyes partially closed
by accident or caught in mid-thought. I assume it was taken by my father, then a
budding photographer, then also a young man and the recipient of Mama’s
affections. The wind had set a few strands of hair away from her face and formed
the shape of layered feathers, the rest draping her shoulder and framing an
expression that spoke both pleasure as it did mystery.
It haunts me whenever I choose to stare at it because that image of her is
so far from what I’ve known. It prompts my questions of what she was thinking, at
what point she was in her young life, and if she had any idea how beautiful she
was. Did she already have children, and if so, were they not around? Was it the
sole company of my father that allowed her to savor the sea breeze and let it
manifest her ecstasy ever so subtly behind those closed eyes? It’s impossible for
anyone to tell now, and it would definitely be strange if anyone were to ask.
I’ve been told I’ve inherited this, the character that never reveals
everything and keeps secrets without the intention of doing so.
21
I’ve been accused of an opacity that’s prevented others from knowing for
sure if I’m pleased or having a miserable time. I’ve taken a back seat in most of
my relationships and have even been referred to as an appendage of my lovers.
I’ve been told that I’m too forgiving of my partners, which I just shrug off without
comment. Like Mama, I always let my better half shine.
I run away from these characteristics that liken me to her, thinking myself
different, more verbal, and more emotionally competent. I make myself believe I
am stronger, more articulate, and more self-aware.
Yet I know that the truth is I’ve also taken her resilience in tragedy, her
faith and patience that in silence there is a peace in knowing that only a better
day could possibly come.
It must have been our difference in age or the necessities of marriage and
motherhood that prevented her from saying more. She must have spoken to
other people or let out her sentiments in some way. I hope, but I don’t really
know.
One thing I do know is that she spent entire days in her garden, digging up
plants and putting in new ones, caring for shrubs and talking to everything that
took root under her care. I always believed her garden gave her the satisfaction
of raising living things and seeing them flourish, singing songs to them and
watching them thrive, all in some kind of secret club of silence in our backyard.
The story I heard is that she discovered as a teenager that she had a
green thumb when she learned that she could tend to the roses in their yard. She
transplanted mature branches into new pots, sheltering each from excessive rain
and sun using empty glass jars, finding great joy in creating life where there was
once just dirt. Turning empty plots into small forests was her art.
I never could understand this obsession. Our garden was overgrown with
plants. The only ones of interest to me were the fruit trees like the casuy we
climbed for its seeds we roasted, and the Indian mango tree for which we
fashioned a crook to pull their bright green fruit from their stems using a mastered
swift technique. Mama grew everything from shrubs to reeds to every imaginable
flowering crop, the half dozen fir trees along our sidewalk that turned the sky
flame red in the summer, to the bougainvillea vines she trained to crawl an arch
that draped our gateway with their papery crimson petals.
In the middle of the green was always my mother, squatting on the ground
with garden gloves and a shovel, or sitting on a stool digging her nails into dirt
and cutting stems off plants expertly with a pair of clippers nobody else was
22
allowed to touch. She disappeared into that jungle for hours on end, never
sharing with anyone her horticulture secrets or the stories she must have told
them, not even the songs she sang. Although when I think about it now, I don’t
think anybody ever asked.
I knew behind those eyes were stories of joy and disaster. Mama always
gave my father the floor and he gladly hogged mealtime discussions with the
details of his adventures. Mama was never a storyteller, at least not to me,
although I know for certain that there are many tales that would only require a
question to bring to light.
I never ask her these questions. Our relationship has always been a
mutual respect that is often misconstrued as indifference on either end. I have no
recollection of ever asking my mother how she felt about anything, nor have I any
memory of her volunteering that fact.
Mama celebrates seventy-two years this year, and the last ten I’ve spent
far from her, in another country that has inevitably created secrets of my own. In
between us must be a garden overgrown with each other’s untold stories, and I
wouldn’t know where to begin if I’m told it’s not too late to start.
It’s been over thirty years since I spent evenings with my face pressed on
her belly. The “baby” I was listening for has grown into a busy jungle of memories
and untold stories like plants we have no luxury of choosing. Some are intricately
ornamented and fragrant, some are downright ugly and serve only as shelter for
dark, unwanted creatures.
I don’t know how to approach this bag of stories and sentiments that to me
feels like a full belly or an over-inflated balloon. So I glaze over it, dodging its
protruding presence like an overweight stranger in our very rare and already
crowded room. I do it so well that when I visit her, time passes quickly and Mama
and I part ways without much more than a photograph together.
In it, we’re both looking at the camera and we never hesitate to smile. The
unspoken sea we share is only visible upon fervent observation of our eyes.
“There was always something about your eyes,” an old lover once said to
me as an indication of how I was never completely present, my thoughts often
said to always be running away. Mama’s expression seems that way too, and I
wonder how many of our acquaintances have accused us of keeping secrets
based on the appearance of our eyes.
23
And then I wonder why I even bother with strangers or even care about
their thoughts? As years pass and the voiceless ocean grows, Mama and I
should at least tell each other our own.
I could start with one that recurs often in my mind:
When I was a child I loved to swim, and many of our summers were spent by the
ocean. In the water, Mama would stand a few feet away from me and ask me to
swim to her. Every time I’d come close she’d take a few steps back so I couldn’t
reach her. I became frustrated and exhausted
myself chasing her, trying to reach her before
she was able to step back.
As years passed, I learned to swim so well
that there wouldn’t be a place for her to move fast enough without the water
becoming too deep. Mama didn’t know how to swim, but she watched over me
until the day that I learned. Soon after that, the chase ended and there would be
no more swimming drills. I went on to swim in bigger and deeper oceans, ones
Mama never even dreamed of visiting, nor probably imagined I would ever reach.
I don’t know if she knows I’ve found happiness, or that I’ve discovered my voice. I
don’t know if she knows that I’ve finally found love.
Whenever I think about my mother, there is a gap in my chest where our
relationship should be, as if I was still swimming towards her, never reaching her
and never meeting her cheers and praise. I knew she looked over me from a
distance and never let anything happen to me, but somehow I still feel she
remains unreached, a choppy ocean forever between us. What I would like is to
find her back there as the blurry water stings my eyes. Stirring with the current,
her feet on shifting sandy ground, I’ll kick furiously until I touch her. I would ask
her how she’s feeling, or even something simple, like, “What’s your favourite
color, Mama?”
She’ll stand there with open arms that will say to me, “Come and put your
head on my belly, baby. I want to tell you that even in my silence, you have
always,
always
been
loved.”
–
Rappler.com
(https://www.rappler.com/views/imho/68079-insert-silence-here)
24
WHAT‟S MORE
ACTIVITY 2: DIGGING DEEPER
Explain the following statement. Write your answer on your
activity notebook.
1. Explain the love of the mother to her daughter?
2. Who narrated the story? What do you think is the relationship
between the mother and the daughter?
3 What is the moral lesson of the story?
4. Do you believe in the statement “Action speaks louder than words” Why
or Why not?
WHAT‟S NEW
ACTIVITY 1: LET‟S TRAVEL
Think of a place that you currently visited. Try to describe the place,
the people and most importantly the scenery .Are you going to recommend that
place to your friend or loved ones? State your reason.
ACTIVITY 2: ENJOY TAGAYTAY
Imagine that you want to travel to Tagaytay and come across with this kind of
selection. Are you excited to travel? Why or Why not?
STUDENT TRAVELOGUE: MY WONDERS OF TAGAYTAY
Cassandra June Ortega
25
I’ve been to so many places, but I never thought that Tagaytay is one of
the most beautiful places I’ve been to. When I was in Grade 3, 2 first experienced
riding in a bus, where my classmates are with me. My first Field Trip was in
Tagaytay. I was so happy that my parents allowed me to go there. So, that day
came and I woke up earlier than ever before I got to school at 4:00, and I found
my best friend on the bus, sitting with her mother. I was with my Mom and Dad.
Oh, my sister`s there too.
The bus was full at 5:30, as we go all of us was so excited. After an hour, I
guess, the bus stopped at a gasoline station surrounded with restaurants and
shops. We bought food at Mcdo, my 26avourite. Finally, we moved on and got to
the bus. After a while, my classmates are in the bus. All in! While the bus was on
its way to Tagaytay, I ate my fries from Mcdo.
When we arrived at our first place Leisure Park, we got into the Coffee
Farm. After, the guide showed us Flower Gardens and the Worms World. There I
first touched a worm.
Even though it`s an “eew” still, I touched it and it tickled me, especially
when it was in my palm. Anyways, when we got to the Butterfly Garden, we first
passed through a Wishing Well. Too bad, I don`t have any wish with me.
Then, after that we got into the bus again and go in the famous castle in
Tagaytay, Fantasy World, I saw the castle painted with different colors. I also saw
a hanging bridge, It was so scary, but, I wanted to get pass through it. There, I
also saw the Taal Volcano from the castle. After, we got into the Gardenia
Factory at Batangas. We got home, safely. Even though I got so tired, I enjoyed
it. (https://sirmikko.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/wswa.jpg)
ACTIVITY 3: PICTURE IT OUT!
Do the following on your activity notebook.
B. Describe the feeling of the narrator as she travels the place?
2. Could your picture out Tagaytay even though you have not been to the
place?
26
WHAT IS IT
TRAVELOGUE
One of the types of creative nonfiction that deals with travel that presented
in narrative way. In a modern way, it is called travel blogs. It is more on sharing
the wonders of the place you have visited and igniting the spirit of audience to
visit the place also.

1.
2.
3.
4.
How to do travelogue?
Show the beauty and picturesque scene of the place.
Provide helpful information to the audience, they might use it in the future.
Boast a simple thing, enough to encourage someone to visit the place.
Show photographic scenery of the place so that the audience could picture
it out and eventually would arouse their interest to appreciate it more.
5. Point out the various picturesque view of the place.
6. Include the means and ways of transportation and on how to reach the
place.
7. Provide information on accommodations.
8. Do not forget the cultural beauty of the place.
9. Follow the Do’s and Don’ts of the place to avoid conflict.
10. Sell the beauty of the place so that many tourists will visit it.
27
WHAT‟S MORE
ACTIVITY 1: BE A TRAVEL GUIDE
Go to a local tourist destination and post your travelogue to Facebook.
Your score will be based on the likes and comments that you will get from
your Facebook friends.
WHAT‟S NEW
ACTIVITY 1: LET‟S MIGRATE!
Let us suppose that after twenty years, you are to return to your birthplace.
But by the time, the village will have transformed into highly modernized and
highly industrialized area, with just a few reminders of the quiet, laidback rural
village that it had been. Write a short first-person paragraph about that imagined
encounter.
WHAT IS IT
REFLECTIVE ESSAY
REFLECTIVE ESSAYS refers to an insight gained through your
experiences. This type of prose analyses your past event in the present. In
addition, it is more likely about what had you learned from your experiences as it
is also based on the underlying concept that experience is the best teacher.
28
This type of essay includes also the true picture of the event as you
narrate the past events. (https://owlcation.com/humanities/How-to-Write-aReflective-Essay-with-Sample-
COMMON TOPICS FOR A REFLECTIVE ESSAY








True experience
Something in your mind
A certain place or object
Something that you have read, watched, touched, ate, and many more
Places you have been
Significant events of your life
Unforgettable experience
Loved ones
WHAT‟S MORE
ACTIVITY 1:
Look on your journey as a student. Make a reflective essay on your
journey as you reach this stage of your life. Reflect on the things that can be
changed if you will be given a chance.
_
WHAT‟S NEW
ACTIVITY 1: WHAT I WANT
1.
How has technology, particularly the Internet, changed the ways in which
people communicate?
2.
What do you know about blogs? Complete the first and second columns of
the KWL chart below.
29
What I KNOW about
blogs
What I WANT to know
about blogs?
What I LEARNED about
blogs
WHAT IS IT
WHAT IS BLOG?
BLOG is an online journal and is also known as “web log”. It is a forum
where you can share information on ideas and views about a certain topic.
Hence, t is your diary that can be found on the internet.
DIFFERENT KINDS OF BLOGS










Artblogs
Photoblogs
Videoblogs
Music blogs
Podcasts
Edublogs
Personal blogs
Corporate blogs
Organizational blogs
Microblogs
Ogi Djuraskovic and FirstSiteGuide
team ( Published on: April 8th, 2018 Last
updated: December 7th, 2018)
http://firstsiteguide.com/what-is-blog
30
WHAT‟S MORE
ACTIVITY 1: PROUD TO BE PINOY
We all know that Philippines have many tourist spots that are worth visiting
more than once. Let us suppose you are writing a letter addressed to a far-off
friend who wants to visit the country. Write a short paragraph about your place
and submit it to your teacher on the next meeting.
ACTIVITY 2: DO BLOG, BE A BLOGGER
You are a freelance writer and blogger who wishes to join in an
international blogging contest. The contest requires a creative nonfiction piece on
one’s native city or town, with not less than five paragraphs. It should revolve
around the theme, “The soil of their native land is dear to all the hearts of
mankind,” a quotation from scholar and politician Cicero .
The explicit instruction is for one to give not just the positive
characteristics, but also the seamy or unpleasant side of the place (including the
writer’s painful or terrible experiences), as well as his/ her personal reflections.
Pictures may also be added. Your blog is for netizens who will choose the
winning blog among the entries on the basis of creativity, clarity, and accuracy.
31
RUBRICS FOR BLOG CONTEST
PROFICIENT
CRITERIA
( 8-10 pts.)
APPROACHING
PROFICIENT
DEVELOPING
PROFICIENCY
(4-7 pts.)
The blog is quite
ingenious and
resourceful
enough, to
captures the
reader’s attention
although some
parts are lacking.
(1-3 pts.)
The blog is
somewhat
ingenious and
resourceful but it
does not piqued
reader’s attention
Creativity
The blog is
ingenious and
resourceful, to
captures the
reader’s attention
immediately.
Accuracy
The blog is free
from conceptual,
mechanical and
grammatical
errors.
The blog has few
conceptual,
mechanical and
grammatical
errors.
The blog has
several
conceptual,
mechanical and
grammatical
errors.
Clarity
The message
conveyed is
understandable to
the reader.
The message
conveyed is quite
understandable to
the reader.
Vividness
The descriptions
are colourful.
The descriptions
are quite
colourful.
The message
conveyed is quite
vague and needs
thorough reading
to be understood.
The descriptions
are somewhat
colourful
32
ACTIVITY 3: DO I KNOW IT
Now go back to the KWL CHART you were asked to accomplish at the
beginning of the topic, and complete the last column.
What I KNOW about
blogs
What I WANT to know
about blogs?
What I LEARNED about
blogs
WHAT‟S NEW
ACTIVITY 1: DEFINE IT
1. What is the meaning of the term “testimony?”
2. In your opinion, what is the general condition of workers in the Philippines?
Is their condition improving? Why or why not?
33
WHAT IS IT
What is TESTIMONIO?
Testimonio or often called as testimonial narrative is a new type of literary
genre. It has the same characteristics with autobiography because it is written in
the first person point of view. But unlike autobiography, which primarily revolves
around the personal development or accomplishments of the author. The
testimonio recounts personal experience of an author being oppressed or has
experienced and witness the lives of the people belongs in the socially
impoverished state became victim of human rights violation.
Testimonio is different from academic papers since its main purpose is to call the
attention of the different leaders to hear their plea.
WHAT‟S MORE
ACTIVITY 1: EAGLE EYE
Look for an article that reports cases of abuses against workers. Share
this article as well as your reflections to other.
ACTIVITY 2: LOVE THY WORKERS
Look for a song entitled “Manggagawa” by folk singer Gary Granada.
Check the lyrics of this song on the Internet and reflect on its meaning. Write your
reflections of the song below.
34
WHAT HAVE I LEARNED
 Creative nonfiction deals with stories that are happening in real life.
 Close reading is very important to understand the deeper meaning of the
text.
 Autobiography is about your life stories from your personal information to
your achievement as a person.
 Biography is written by someone through thorough research because it
needs to be factual.
 Literary Journalism is an event happened in a single instances of a
person, It is factual but with a touch of journalism
 Personal narrative is a light story about a person it can be funny or part of
an experiences of a person.
 Travelogue is about traveling. Its main goal is to promote the beauty of the
place in order to invites several local and foreign tourists.
 Blog is an online diary of person, it can be any topic which interest the
author.
 Testimonio is a story about those who witness the injustice of life
particularly those who belong in the marginalized sector of our community.
WHAT I CAN DO
ACTIVITY 1: ON MY OWN
Think of your personal experience. Create a speech based on the types
and forms of creative nonfiction. Memorize your speech and deliver it to the class
the following meeting.
35
CATEGORY
EXCELLENT
GREAT
GOOD
( 10 POINTS)
( 7 POINTS)
(4 POINTS)
SPEECH
CONSTRUCTION
The speech
construction is
excellent and has
great meaning,
the audience
could relate well.
The speech
construction is
good and the
meaning is
somewhat vague,
the audience
could not relate
well
The speech
construction is not
organized and the
audience could
hardly pick the
meaning of the
speech.
DELIVERY
The learner
delivers the
speech well. With
eye contact. No
mispronounce
words.
The learner
delivers the
speech with
minimal eye
contact and has a
few mispronounce
words.
The learner
delivers the
speech with no
eye contact and
has several
mispronounce
words.
POISE AND
CONFIDENCE
The learner
delivers the
speech with poise
and confidence.
The learner
delivers the
speech stuttering
losing his / her
poise and
confidence.
The leaner needs
to improve his
/her self –
confidence.
36
ASSESSMENT
ACTIVITY 1: WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED?
Test I. Multiple Choice. Direction: Choose the letter of the correct
answer.
B. Who wrote a story if it is an autobiography?
A. Author
C. Teacher
B. Neighbour
D. Publisher
2. Which of the following types of text tells a story?
A. Narrative
C. Persuasive
B. Descriptive
D. Exemplification
3. Which of the following DOES NOT describe a personal narrative?
A. It involves the personal life of the author.
B. It uses figurative language to convey the message effectively.
C. It deals with the chain of events of the life of the author.
D. It deals with the particular aspect of the life of the author.
4. Which of the following is a form of creative nonfiction?
A. Biography
C. Poem
B. Sonnet
D. Haiku
5. What do you call the literary genre deals with stories that depict the reality
life and experiences of the people with a touch of art?
A. Creative Nonfiction
C. Fiction
B. Literature
D. Art
6. Which of the following is a good topic when writing a personal narrative?
A. Graft and Corruption
C. Novel Coronavirus
B. Politics
D. Childhood experience
7. What are the two general types of nonfiction that functions as telling story
and giving information?
A. Narrative and informative
C. Narrative and realistic
B. Expository and Narrative
D. Expository and persuasive
8. What is the most important thing that you should feature when you do a
travelogue?
A. The picturesque scenery of the place
B The dress that you are wearing
C. Your companion in your travelogue
D The camera that you are bringing
37
9. How do you call the careful understanding and examination of the text
presented?
A. Skimming
C. Scanning
B. Close Reading
D. Intensive Reading
10. What do you need to do before reading a book?
A. Read a good book
C. Eat a good lunch
B. Research your topic
D. Take a test
11. What do you call a piece of writing that focuses on the marginalized members
of the society who are experiencing oppression?
A. Personal Essay
C. Reflective Essay
B. Testimonio
D. Autobiography
12. What form of creative nonfiction if you are to write about the life of Juan
Dela Cruz?
A. Autobiography
C. Informational Article
B. Personal Narrative
D. Biography
13. What is the most important thing to consider when making a blog?
A. Your knowledge about the topic
B. Your audience
C. Your opinion
D. Your internet connection
14. Which type of creative nonfiction that is closely related to magazine and
newspaper writing?
A. Travelogue
C. Biography
B. Blog
D. Autobiography
15. What do you call this type of creative nonfiction that deals on the traveling
experiences of a person?
A. Blog
C. Travelogue
B. Website
D. Essay
38
1.
A
1.
C
2.
D
2.
A
3.
C
3.
D
4.
A
4.
A
5.
A
5.
B
6.
D
6.
B
7.
A
7.
D
8.
A
8.
B
9.
B
9.
D
10.
B
10.
A
11.
B
11.
C
12.
D
12.
A
13.
A
13.
B
14.
B
14.
A
15.
C
15.
A
REFERENCE
Baronda, A. 2 Creative Nonfiction. Pasay City: JFS Publishing Services.
2017
Gallo, H. & Oliveros, A. Grammar Essentials Creative Nonfiction.
Quezon City: Sibs Publishing House, Inc. 2017
Kuipers, R. (2018). Film Review: BuyBust. Retrieved January 18, 2019,
from
https://variety.com/2018/film/reviews/buybust-review-1202874011/
Moratilla, N. & Teodoro, J. Claiming Spaces: Understanding, Reading, and
Writing Creative Nonfiction. Quezon City: Phoenix Publishing House, Inc. 2016
SyGaco, S. Writing Techniques in Creative Nonfiction. Quezon City: Great
Books Trading. 2017
Internet Sources
Insert her Silence here accessed on January 28,
https://www.rappler.com/views/imho/68079-insert-silence-here
2020
from
Sample
Essays
accessed
on
January
28,
2020
from
https://owlcation.com/humanities/How-to-Write-a-Reflective-Essay- with-SampleEssays
True
narratives
accessed
on
January
29,
http://www.brunswick.k12.me.us/hdwyer/true-narrative-essay/
2020
from
Blog accessed on January 29, 2020 from http://firstsiteguide.com/what-is-blog/
Comparison between autobiographies accessed on January 29, 2020 from
https://keydifferences.com/difference-between-biography-and autobiography.html
Reportage accessed on January 29,
award.org/about/Art_of_Reportage.html)
2020
from
Personal
narratives
accessed
on
January
iterary.writeawriting.com/essay/personal-narrative/)
(//www.lettre-ulysses-
29,
2020(http://www
Journalistic
essays
accessed
on
January
29,
https://davehood59.wordpress.com/2010/03/29/how-to-write-a-l
- journalistic-essay/
My
travelogue
accessed
on
January
https://sirmikko.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/wswa.jpg
40
2020
29,
:
2020
For inquiries or feedback, please write or call:
Department of Education - Bureau of learning Resources
Zone 1, DepEd Building Masterson Avenue, Upper Balulang,
Cagayan de Oro City, 9000
Telefax: (088) 880 7072
E-mail address: region10@deped.gov.ph
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