This paper discusses the rationale and teaching methods for a six-week unit, for a high school freshman English Class, on perception, semantics, and writing, which places special focus on developing tension in student writing. The first four objectives of the course focus on perception and the next two focus on semantics. The seventh objective--developing a point of view in an extended definition--is the first writing assignment. The eight objective concerns the revision of the definition paper; the ninth objective asks the student to write a personal narrative that shifts in point in view and evokes within the reader a sense of tension, and the tenth objective requires the student to pass a proficiency test on punctuation. The major portion of the paper discusses the personal narrative assignment, includes a description of preliminary teaching activities designed to motivate the students for writing, and discusses the results of the assignment. A number of the student narratives and a bibliography are included. (DI)