When it comes to teaching plot, picture books are a must! I am a huge fan of using picture books with upper grade and middle school students. These books can cover complex issues and can lead to some pretty thought-provoking discussions. I also love that they are short, which makes them the perfect medium for teaching some difficult concepts when time is limited (which it always is). With my students, I always explicitly taught the elements of plot or story structure using picture books.
My favorite plot lesson used the book Henry’s Freedom Box (written by Ellen Levine, illustrated by Kadir Nelson). My ultimate goal for these types of lessons was to have students complete a story map on their own for any story they have read. But before this was possible, I modeled the process with a few shared reading lessons similar to what I am about to describe.
Before any writing takes place, a lot of time is just spent on identifying the various components of plot (inciting force, rising action events, climax, etc.). I have found the best way to do this is with post-its or flags. Students can reposition the post-its as they decided just where in the story these elements of plot take place. Not every event can be placed on the story map, so students need to be decisive and evaluate which ones are the most important to include and which ones can be left out. During my shared reading lessons, the students and I would discuss the positioning and reposition of these post-its as we evaluated which events were the most critical to the story’s plot.
The Butterfly by Patricia Polacco
