Name: ________________________________
Period: _______________
Mr. Farmer
American Literature
Creation Myth Writing Assignment
This week you will be writing your own Creation Myths! This is intended to be a fun and
creative assignment, so use your imagination!
Think of a natural phenomenon that you would like to explain. Pick one natural
phenomenon and create a myth that explains how this phenomena was created or why it
acts the way it does. Remember, most myths have two functions:
1. Explain how something was created or why it is the way it is.
2. Teach us a life lesson (Have a theme).
Think back to the myth we read in class as an example of what a good myth does.
This project will be graded not only on how creative your writing is, but on how
accurately your myth portrays those of the Native American oral tradition.
Your final draft must be at least two pages long and contain little or no
grammatical/spelling errors. It must also include an image that corresponds to your myth
and colors that are appropriate and fun to look at.
Here are some guidelines to follow:
• You must have at least two characters
• You must use as much descriptive AND detailed language as possible.
Try not to use dead verbs (am, are, be, is, was were, have, had, has) but
instead use action verbs.
• Your myth must have a plot (exposition, rising action, climax, falling
action, and resolution).
• It must contain two recognizable examples of cultural detail
(references to important values, objects, animals, or practices that signal
how people of a culture live, think, or worship).
Name: ________________________________
Period: _______________
Mr. Farmer
American Literature
Creation Myth Project- Scoring Rubric
Format (20 pts):
_____ Properly headed in upper right hand corner with Name, Date, Course Name,
Assignment Title (5 pts)
_____ Written legibly in blue or black ink (5pts)
____ Written with correct mechanics (spelling, punctuation, grammar) (10pts)
Idea development/Content (30 pts):
____You fully explain how your natural phenomena of choice came to be. (10pts)
____You include several characteristics of a Native American creation story (10pts)
____Your story contains two recognizable examples of cultural detail. (10pts)
Organization (30 pts):
You have a beginning (with a catchy lead sentence), a body (where you show your
main idea), and a conclusion. (12 pts)
You use paragraphs to move from one idea to the next (five sentences, indent,
topic sentences, and detail sentences) (12 pts)
____You write in complete sentences. (6 pts)
Creativity (20 pts):
___ You provide vivid, detailed imagery (10 pts)
____You include description that appeals to the senses (10 pts)
TOTAL _____ / 100