One of the ways in which Benjamin Franklin mastered English was to “translate” a text by first paraphrasing it, writing it again as a poem, and then moving it back to prose. By this method, he made sure that he understood everything a text was saying by saying it in his own words. Imitate Benjamin Franklin by selecting a news story on a current event. Translate it into a brief short story (add characters, suspense, etc. ) or a poem. Then reflect on and write about how form influences the outcome of your text. The news is Oscar Pistorius Indicted For Murder In Killing Of Reeva Steenkamp

In a dark room sits alone a man woken by the sounds of an unknown intruder, Scared and nervous he got out of bed, without attaching his artificial legs Slowing approaching the bathroom door where surely stood the persecutor 3 shots fired from his 9mm gun as he yelled to his wife to dial 911, but he should have realized sooner His wife did not answer, she did not run to his aid, she never said a word, she never even murmured The man shaking by what he had done opens the door to see this evildoer Petrified by the site he collapsed on the floor, for there laid his wife cover in blood, he was the wrongdoer He was the shooter he was to blame for his wife’s death nothing could be truer The police arrived and took the man away as he was in a state of stupor “I only wanted to protect my wife, I am no murderer” he told the interviewer But the sin had been committed, oh what lays in this poor man’s future.