The purpose of this unit is to introduce students to story elements. Students will obtain a clear understanding of setting, plot, conflict, and plot. Each day the teacher will rea-aloud a different story and guide the classroom discussions relative to the story element for each lesson. Students will work collaboratively and independently completing activities such as graphic organizers, writing activities, and charts. Activities can be differentiated to fit the needs of the students in the class.
Students at the 3rd grade level are moving past the foundational stage and beginning to read independently for pleasure (NORC at the University of Chicago, 2013). They should be exposed to several different types of literature to help them explore their interests. Learning story elements will aid in reading comprehension and help students to increase text complexity. The International Reading Association and National Education of Young Children (1998) believe that children in the primary grades benefit from instruction that is meaningful and builds upon prior knowledge. Two of the lessons require the students to think about personal experiences while three lesson require the students to recall knowledge from previous lessons. Just remembering the basic knowledge of the story elements will not solidify the student’s ability to comprehend the text. The students must understand the thinking process that is used to identify the elements and their purpose (International Reading Association & National Association of Education for Young Children, 1998).
Dr. Jeanne Chall believed that at the 2nd and 3rd grade level children are increasing fluency and confirming previous knowledge (Chall, 1983). Chall (1983) hypothesized that students at this level typically have mastered stage 1, which is mastery of decoding and are beginning to internalize meaning from the words. Also students begin to gain courage and skill in using context clues to decode and comprehend unknown texts.
Content Area or Developmental Focus: Reading/Literature
Age/Grade of Children: 3rd grade
Length of Lesson: 1-2 days
Goal / Students will identify the story elements within a nonfiction storyObjective / Students will read and comprehend age/reading level story
Identify story elements of (plot, setting, problems, point of view, imagery, style
Apply what they learned to create a story map
Standards Included / LAFS.3.RI.1.2 Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea.
Materials / Paper, crayons, popsicle sticks
Introduction / Discuss the beginning, middle, and end of a popular movie (Minions, Monster’s Inc, Finding Nemo), and have students talk about the events. Show students a completed version of the story element graphic organizer using the movie, as an example. Before reading the story show the students a short clip titled Story Elements on Flocabulary.com. Inform them that the class will be learning about these elements over the course of the week.
Introduce the elements of a story and define each element, using thegraphic organizer.
- Characters:What characters are in the story? (beginning)
- Setting/Place:Where does the story happen? (beginning)
- Time:When does the story take place? (beginning)
- Problem:What does one or more of the characters want to do or happen by the end? (middle)
- Events:What happened before the problem was solved? (middle)
- Solution:How was the problem solved? (end)
Lesson Development / Ask the students if they have been to a museum before? For the ones who have, ask them what their favorite part was. You may want to show pictures of museums for the students who haven’t been.
Read the story,Danny and the Dinosaurby Syd Hoff. As you read the story stop and ask questions about the story. Who do you think the characters will be in this story?
- Where does the story happened?
- What did Danny like about the museum? If you were in the museum with Danny, what areas would you visit? Why?
- What event do you think will happen next?
- Why did the dinosaur think that the buildings were rocks?
- What did the other animals say when Danny and the Dinosaur visited the zoo?
- What are some of the places Danny and the Dinosaurvisited?
- Why did the children pretend that they couldn't find the dinosaur?
- What was the solution of the story? Where did the dinosaur go at the end of the day?
Once the basic events of the story are organized, introduce the Story Map 1 graphic organizerand discuss the elements of the story. Use the following questions to guide the students through the process of filling in the graphic organizer as you discuss the story.
- Who are the characters?
- What is the problem?
- What is the setting?
- What are main events?
- How do the characters solve the problem?
Once the story has been discussed, assign students to groups of five and have each student in each group draw a picture of one story element. For example, one student in each group can draw the characters and another student can draw the problem in the story. Circulate around the room to give suggestions and guide students who are struggling. When each student has completed his or drawing, cut them out, attached to popsicle sticks, and then have each group summarize the story using the mounted story elements to give a puppet show.
Differentiation /
- When reading the story you may draw quick illustrations to help students keep track of the story. Emphasize that the drawings are meant to help organize the story’s events. (The students may draw illustrations themselves)
- Students who are having difficulties with filling out the story map graphic organizer can be given a graphic organizer that is partially filled out.
Assessment
(Practice/ Checking for
Understanding) / Provide each student with a blank simple story map graphic organizer. Have them complete it for a story they have read recently, using pictures and/or words. Once finished student will then create the complex story map graphic organizer for the same story.
Provide short stories in books and tapes that the students are familiar with to provide students who are having difficulties remembering their favorite story
Closing / The students will present their story maps to the class and post them around the room.
Content Area or Developmental Focus: Reading/Literature
Age/Grade of Children: 3rd grade
Length of Lesson: 1-2 days
Goal / Students will identify the definition of setting and its purpose.Students will use a predetermined setting to create their own story.
Objective / Students will identify the setting of a story.
Students will use a predetermined setting to create their own story.
Standards Included / LAFS.3.RI.1.1 Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
LAFS.3.RI.1.2 Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea.
Materials / Old magazines, paper, glue, one copy of Roxaboxen by Barbara Cooney
Introduction / Begin by asking introduction questions. For example, How many of you like to read and write? What are the parts of a story? What do you know about setting? Make a short list on the board of the student’s answers.
Lesson Development / Once the students have shared their answers ask them to close their eyes while you read a story. Begin reading the story Roxaboxen by Barbara Cooney. Make sure to leave out all parts of the setting. (this will require some preplanning, you may have to print out the story beforehand to exclude the setting) After you have read the story ask the following discussion questions.
- Describe Roxaboxen
- Where can it be found?
- What do the houses and shops look like?
- Who lives there?
- Can you describe the cars and horses that people were using?
- Can you describe the war?
Have the students pick out 2 descriptions from the worksheet and use the magazines to clip out scenes that match the setting. Ask them to paste the clipping in the middle of a sheet of paper. Then ask the students to write a story around that picture using the setting in the picture.
Differentiation /
- Students who are having difficulties identifying the setting have them draw a picture of the setting of the story Roxaboxen.
- You may have an audio recording of the story Roxaboxen with and without the setting available for the students to hear. Also you may have to read the story to them more than once.
Assessment
(Practice/ Checking for
Understanding) / The assessment is done through the questioning after the second reading and the answers provided on the Describing the Setting worksheet. Also have the students exchange stories and highlight the parts of the story in each other’s story.
Closing / The students will present their story to the class and ask the students to close their eyes during the reading.
Content Area or Developmental Focus: Reading/Literature
Age/Grade of Children: 3rd grade
Length of Lesson: 1-2 days
Goal / Students will identify the definition of plot and its purpose.Students will sequence the events of the story
Objective / Students will identify the plot of a story.
Students will outline the plot of the story.
Standards Included / LAFS.3.RI.1.1 Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
LAFS.3.RI.1.2 Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea.
Materials / Chart paper
Introduction / Teacher will point out the previous day they identified the setting of the story and its importance to the story. Have the student recall examples of what a setting can be. Teacher will then lead the direction of the discussion towards the plot.
Lesson Development / Teacher will explain that the plot of the story is the action or the sequence of events in the story and that good reader use the plot to help them understand what is happening in the story. Then use chart paper to draw a plot line introducing the parts of a plot.
- Exposition – introduce the characters and setting, the conflict is beginning to take shape
- Rising action – the events that lead through the problem.
- Climax – the “Boom” moment/turning point
- Falling action – the events that lead to the solution of the problem
- Resolution – How the problem was solved and how the story
Differentiation /
- When reading the story How My Parents learned to Eat write each part of the plot on the corresponding part of the plot line visual.
Assessment
(Practice/ Checking for
Understanding) / Have the students pick out their own story and fill out their won plot line identifying the parts of the plot in the story.
Closing / Students will share their plots with a shoulder partner explaining why they chose each event as a part of the plot.
Content Area or Developmental Focus: Reading/Literature
Age/Grade of Children: 3rd grade
Length of Lesson: 1-2 days
Goal / Students will identify conflict within a storyObjective / Student will identify and describe how the conflict in a story causes a conflict between the characters
Standards Included / LAFS.3.RI.1.1 Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
LAFS.3.RL.3.7 Explain how specific aspects of a text’s illustrations contribute to what is conveyed by the words in a story (e.g., create mood, emphasize aspects of a character or setting).
Materials / Graphic organizer, worksheets, Ruby’s Wish by ShirinYim Bridges, The Story of Noodles by Yin Chang Compestine, chart paper, markers
Introduction / Ask the students to discuss times when they have experienced conflict with family and friends. Students can write their experience or tell how the experience affected their relationship.
Lesson Development / Explain to the class that they will be reading a story where the character has a problem and to pay attention to how that problem (conflict) affects the character’s relationships. Then explain that in the plot of a story, a problem causes a conflict between characters. The teacher will read the story Ruby’s Wish to the class. After reading the story have the class discuss the problem (conflict) between the characters. Teacher may draw a table similar to the following graphic to organize student ideas and guide the discussion.
As you are filling out the class graphic organizer, explain to the students that this is how you identify the conflict in the story and determine how it affected the characters.
Next, read the story The Story of Noodles by Yin Chang out loud. Be sure to stop and check that the students understand while reading the story. Once finished explain to the students to think about how the brothers and their parents feel about the problem and keep in mind those feelings as they are completing their own graphic organizer about the conflict in the story.
Differentiation / Students who have a difficult time with writing will benefit from working with a partner or having a graphic organizer that is partially filled out.
Assessment
(Practice/ Checking for
Understanding) / Students can pick out their own favorite story or a story that they have been reading and use the graphic organizer to identify the conflict in the story.
Closing / Listen to the audio version of Chicken Sunday by Patricia Polacco and have the students verbally identify the conflict in the story and how it affected the characters.
Content Area or Developmental Focus: Reading/Literature
Age/Grade of Children: 3rd grade
Length of Lesson: 1-2 days
Goal / Students will identify character traits and provide evidence to support their conclusions.Objective / Students will draw conclusions about a person’s character traits based on information in a reading passage.
Standards Included / LAFS.3.RL.1.3
Describe characters in a story (e.g., their traits, motivations, or feelings) and explain how their actions contribute to the sequence of events.
Materials / Chart paper,
Introduction / Explain to the class that a character traits help the reader understand the character better. A character trait describes the behavior or attitude of a person. Provide an example from one of the previous stories in the unit. Also provide a non-example, for example brown hair is not a character trait. Because it only describes physical appearance.
Lesson Development / Explain to the student that the lesson will focus on describing a character form the story You Can Do It! by Tony Dungy. Begin reading the story out loud to the class. When you have reached the halfway point stop and display the character trait graphic organizer.
Have the class began filling out the top-left section. Examples you can use to guide the examples are thoughtful-because Linden thinks a lot about his future. For textual evidence for the bottom-left students can include "I don't know myit". This evidence is relevant because it shows the students that Linden has been thinking about his what his special talent is.
Finish reading the second half of the story. Once finished ask the students to fill out a description of what they believe Linden may look like based on the texts. Once they have filled it out select one of the student answers and add it to the large graphic organizer. Ask for another volunteer to fill out the final section of the character graphic organizer.
Differentiation / Students who have a difficult time with writing will benefit from working with a partner or having a graphic organizer that is partially filled out.
Assessment
(Practice/ Checking for
Understanding) / Give the students a blank character organizer and have them fill it out one of their choice, Tony, Mom, or Dad.
Closing / Students will work together in pairs to fill out an organizer for a character that they haven’t done yet.
Each objective is designed to focus on each story element in isolation. For each lesson students will have ample opportunity to practice the thinking process and gain a better understanding of the story elements. Each story that is used is considered fiction short stories. The use of fiction books allow for deeper character development and ease of reading. The length of the story allows for more practice time of the concepts. Ruby’s Wish by ShirinYim Bridges and Chicken Way by Patricia Polacco are both considered Multicultural books. These books were chosen to help engage students with different subjects and characters that they may identify with.