Student Worksheet

Safety advice

Thinking about organ donation and end-of-life can make some people feel uncomfortable or worried. If any of this content makes you feel uncomfortable or upset, make sure to reach out to people who can help such as your teachers, school counsellor, family member or other trusted adult.

Creative Writing

Step 1.

Read or watch one or several of the below stories:

Organ donation saves sick toddler's life, dad sees him laugh for the first time
Donation stories (select one or a few from this site)
The Project Liver Transplant July 29 2021 - Joe Klocek (https://youtu.be/U9KEW2RefPw)
Sunrise 2020 - Thomas - toddler liver recipient Qld (https://youtu.be/QWFU5k_fRTg)
Jordan and Makayla (pre and post transplant) Nathan (heart recipient) Phoebe (kidney recipient) (https://youtu.be/JutViSDM3kU)
Julie - lung recipient Qld (https://youtu.be/DvnhDgz-dGU)
Jordan and Makalya pre vs post transplant (https://youtu.be/bRYvVeZDt9c)

Step 2.

Think: Which story stood out to you most and why?

Step 3.

It’s your turn to write a story about organ donation. You could use the below ideas generator to help you come up with an idea, or write about something you’ve already thought of. If you want to use the ideas generator, choose a feature of your story from each column:

Point of view	Organ/tissue donated	Conflict or point of tension
Donation Specialist Nurse Coordinator	Kidney	The decision to donate
Organ donor	Heart	The wait for a donation
Organ recipient	Liver	The process of transplantation
Transplant surgeon	Cornea	Life before and after transplantation
A family member of a tissue recipient	Skin	Having a conversation about a decision to donate
A family member of an organ donor	Bone	The decision to donate a kidney to a loved one (as a living donor)
Pilot who flies the organ retrieval plane	Lung	A feeling of guilt from the recipient that they have lived and the donor has died

Step 4.

Remember that a story normally follows the below structure (although yours might be different)

Stage	Ask yourself
Orientation + conflict	Who are your main characters? What problem do they face?
Rising action	How do they try to solve this problem?
Climax	What is the most exciting or tense part of your story? How is the problem finally addressed?
Falling action	What happens afterwards?
Resolution	How has the character been changed by the events of your story? How has their problem changed or been solved?

Once you’ve written this story, use the checklist below to edit and revise:

Criteria	Yes/no
Does your story start in an interesting or exciting way?
Is your main character compelling? Is there a reason we should care about them?
Is the main character’s problem clear?
Is the ending satisfying? Do we feel a sense of closure or like something has changed since the start?
Have you helped us to understand the character’s emotions and experiences?

Taking it Further

Step 1.

Share your story with a parent, peer or teacher. Ask them for feedback on:

What parts of the story were engaging?
Did the characters feel believable?
Was the ending appropriate? How did it make them feel?

Step 2.

Once you’ve edited and revised your story, consider places where you could publish it.

You could consider:

Your school’s magazine or newsletter
An online blog
Websites for teen writing such as Teen Ink.

Optional

You might like to register your intention to be a donor and/or talk to your family about what you have learned about organ and tissue donation.

DonateLife - Writing For Life (home learning)

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