Mentor Text: Memoirs of a Goldfish

You're teaching how to write a memoir in the Writer's Workshop...you need a mentor text.

If you've never used Memoirs of a Goldfish, by Devin Scillian, now's the time to check this book out! What can I say?  It's precious! 

Told from a goldfish's point-of-view, Memoirs of a Goldfish is a sweet romp through the aquarium, complete with the addition of new fish, a bottom feeder, and a disturbing new friend that may or may not be a part of the scenery.  

There's a great little bonus to this book...an interactive app with the same name is available for purchase on iTunes.  It's a pricey little app ($4.99), but it allows you to extend the experience for your writers.  

Memoirs of a Goldfish is a book that would work equally well as a mentor text in a first grade and a fourth grade classroom.  It has appeal that spans many grade levels.

Other books that follow a similar vein would be Diary of a Worm, Diary of a Spider, and Diary of a Fly by Doreen Cronin.    

If you haven't tried using these mentor texts with your students, I'd highly encourage it as they are very engaging!

Have fun and write on!

Nikki