Revoicing a Story: A Creative Writing Activity for Literacy Learning

~ katecoldrick

Literacy tutor Kate Coldrick shares a KS3/GCSE creative writing activity based on her poems Red Riding Hood Speaks and Morgan Speaks (OnTheSkyline.com). Explore how paired-line revoicing poems reveal bias, perspective, and voice – and why this structure especially supports autistic learners. Full resource available in her TES shop.

When I write for OnTheSkyline.com, I often explore how women in myth and history have been represented – and how their voices can be reclaimed. One example is my poem Morgan Speaks, which retells the Arthurian stories of Morgan le Fay. In this poem, each stanza is written in two lines: the first reflects the voice of medieval chroniclers, while the second revoices Morgan’s perspective, using the same key words but rearranged to convey agency, resistance, and truth.

This paired-line structure is not only a powerful literary device, but also a valuable classroom tool. It helps learners see how language can be reshaped, how perspective alters meaning, and how the same words can tell very different stories depending on who is speaking.

Starting Simple: Red Riding Hood

Revoicing a story through a re-telling of Little Red Riding Hood by Kate Coldrick

A familiar way to introduce the idea is through Red Riding Hood. Here’s the full text of a short revoicing poem written in her voice:

Red Riding Hood Speaks

1.1
She disobeyed her mother and strayed from the path.
1.2
I strayed without knowing – my steps wandered from the path.

2.1
She was foolish to speak to a wolf, careless of danger.
2.2
I spoke to the wolf with care – politeness mistaken for folly.

3.1
She was tricked, too silly to see the wolf’s disguise.
3.2
I felt the danger before I saw the disguise.

4.1
She was swallowed whole, punished for her mistakes.
4.2
I was swallowed whole, though obedience was my only mistake.

5.1
The hunter saved her, strong and brave.
5.2
The hunter saved me, but I was never weak or afraid.

Even in this short poem, students can see how the first line casts judgement, while the second line reclaims agency by shifting perspective.

A More Complex Example: Morgan le Fay

Revoicing a story through a re-telling of Morgan le Fay by Kate Coldrick

Morgan le Fay is one of the most enduring figures in Arthurian tradition. Early stories described her as a healer and ruler of Avalon, but later writers – especially Sir Thomas Malory in Le Morte d’Arthur – recast her as a jealous sorceress and recurring antagonist.

In my poem Morgan Speaks, I used the paired-line technique to retell her story.

The chronicler’s voice:
Her magic summoned deception – a wicked trap to expose the queen’s dishonour.

Morgan’s voice in reply:
My magic summoned a trap to draw out their deception.

By mirroring the vocabulary of accusation, then rearranging it, the second line turns Morgan from a villain into a truth-teller. This makes the exercise a sharp way to illustrate how bias and viewpoint shape meaning.

You can read the full text of Morgan Speaks on OnTheSkyline.com.

Why This Works for Literacy

  • Language awareness: Students must focus closely on word choice and meaning.
  • Critical thinking: They consider how narratives are framed, and how bias influences interpretation.
  • Confidence in voice: Learners experiment with adopting perspectives outside the “official” version of a story.

Why This Structure Supports Autistic Learners

The revoicing poem offers a simple, predictable formula:

  • Line 1 presents the received version.
  • Line 2 recycles some of the same words but shifts perspective.

This combination of pattern and creativity plays to the strengths of many autistic students:

  • Predictability: the repeated frame reduces cognitive load.
  • Attention to detail: recycling words highlights subtle shifts in meaning.
  • Scaffolded perspective-taking: students are not asked to “imagine freely,” but to rework given words into a new voice.
  • Justice and fairness: many autistic learners are especially attuned to bias and accuracy – revoicing offers a safe way to challenge unfair portrayals.

It is therefore a particularly inclusive strategy, one that can engage neurodivergent students while still benefiting the whole class.

Classroom Resource

If you’d like to try this activity with students, I’ve developed a complete Revoicing a Story resource pack for KS3/GCSE. It includes a teacher guide and a student worksheet, with scaffolded examples drawn from Red Riding Hood Speaks and my poem Morgan Speaks (originally published on OnTheSkyline.com).

You can find the resource in my TES shop: Revoicing a Story: Exploring Bias and Perspective (KS3 & GCSE English Language)

Read more about practical strategies that support autistic and neurodivergent students in my recent blog post, 6 Ways to Support Autistic Girls in Your Classroom, about my work on the About page, or browse my resources for teaching neurodivergent students in Kate Coldrick’s TES shop.

Written by Kate Coldrick, an educator and writer based in Woodbury near Exeter.