My Sister, the Serial Killer

Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

“Vignette: Cleaning Up After #5”

In this activity, students will demonstrate their understanding of Braithwaite’s style, Korede’s voice, and the novel’s meaning by adding a vignette to Korede’s story.

When My Sister, the Serial Killer ends, a young man is at the door of Korede and Ayoola’s family home. The title of the novel’s final vignette, “#5,” implies that this man will be Ayoola’s next victim. In this activity, you will show that you understand Braithwaite’s vignette style, Korede’s voice as a narrator, and one of the novel’s important themes by writing a vignette about the aftermath of Ayoola’s next murder.

Investigate the Text

• Reread several vignettes to get a sense of their usual structure, focus, and content.
• Choose one to examine in depth for markers of Korede’s narrative voice:

○ What kind of language does she typically use?

○ What is her general tone?

○ How is her personality revealed through her choice of detail?

• Consider the novel as a whole: What messages does it convey about life through the use of characterization, plot detail, symbolism, motifs, and language?

Write Your Vignette

• Your vignette should take place a few weeks to a few months after “#5.”
• Its focus should be on Korede “cleaning up” after Ayoola’s next murder—this might mean literally cleaning up blood, the body, etc., or it might mean figuratively cleaning up by coaching Ayoola about what to say, lying to the police, etc.
• Your vignette should be about one page in length.
• Your vignette should mimic Braithwaite’s style and Korede’s narrative voice, and it should use language, detail, and tone to convey one of the novel’s themes.

Share and Analyze Themes

• Share your vignette with your small group.
• Read your group members’ vignettes. After reading each one, write a one-sentence theme statement that reflects your understanding of the theme from My Sister, the Serial Killer that this vignette conveys.
• When all group members have finished reading and writing down theme statements, discuss your conclusions as a group.

Teaching Suggestion: This activity allows students to expand their writing toolkits by using a variety of techniques to mimic a professional writer’s style and her narrative voice. It asks them to employ a form in which they may have not written before and to practice conveying theme. Their success will depend on a thorough understanding of Braithwaite’s writing, and they should be encouraged not to rush through the “Investigate the Text” section of this activity. In the interest of maintaining focus for peer feedback, the final section of the activity only asks students to focus on their peers’ ability to convey theme. You can hold them accountable for their attention to style and voice by collecting and reviewing their vignettes or by asking for written notes from the “Investigate the Text” part of this activity.

Differentiation Suggestion: Analyzing the text’s themes and recreating one of them in an original piece of writing is a task with which concrete thinkers may benefit from assistance.  It may be helpful to lead learners through a discussion of the text’s themes, point out how these are created using specific techniques, and model how they might use these same techniques to write a new vignette.