I. Curricular Framework

Concept:

Connections

Essential Question:

How can concept mapping help you write a story?

Bridge:

Picture Mapping

Content:

Concept Mapping for Creative Writing

Outcomes:

II. Standards Aligned

III. Instruction and Assessment

1. Connect: Connecting to the Concept Experientially

Objective: To help students truly believe that reading is fun. To help students feel empathy for the age old turkey's problem of being served for Thanksgiving dinner.

Activity: Teach students the song, "Gobble, Gobble." Identify the turkey's problem in the song.

Assessment: Listening, enjoying, being engaged.

2. Attend: Attending to the Connection

Objective: To encourage brainstorming for solutions to the turkey's problem.

Activity: To help the students share their feelings about their problem solutions. Brainstorm solutions to the turkey's problem write these solutions on the chalkboard. Discuss the solutions.

Assessment: Teacher observation of depth of thinking in brainstorming and discussion.

Assessment, Phase One, Level of Engagement, Fascination:

3. Image: Creating a Mental Picture

Objective: To connect the problem solutions to a story mapping concept taught in previous lesson.

Activity: Divide the classroom into groups. Put story map signs on one group of children. Label them who, what, when, where, and how. The other group is given the story solutions and answers to the who, what, when, where, and how elements. The two groups are to move to their match.

Assessment: Teacher observes students making the connection between the turkey problem solutions and the story map elements (who, what, when, where, how).

Assessment, Phase Two, Seeing the Big Picture:

4. Inform: Receiving Facts & Knowledge

Objective: To begin a serious study of story mapping by involving students in a classroom model of a story map.

Activity: The teacher will elicit responses from the class for a story map involving the turkey's problem and solution. The mapping can be done on the chalkboard or on an overhead.

Assessment: Teacher observes quality of work and participation.

Assessment, Phase Three, Success with Acquiring Knowledge:

5. Practice: Developing Skills

Objective: To give practice in writing their own story map.

Activity: The students will choose their solution to the turkey's problem and create a story map for that solution. The students will write in sentence form the solution on pre-cut multicolored turkey tails.

Assessment: Teacher checks for appropriate responses to the story map elements (who, what, when, where, how). Teacher checks for proper sentence structure on paper tail.

Assessment, Phase Four, Success with Acquiring Skills:

6. Extend: Extending Learning to the Outside World

Objective: To provide students an opportunity to create original story.

Activity: Using the student's story map (created in 36 sections), the student will write a fiction story about a turkey at Thanksgiving time.

Assessment: Teacher checks for sentence structure and appropriate solution to turkey problems. Teacher also checks for paragraph structure.

7. Refine: Refining the Extension

Objective: To have students edit and refine written stories.

Activity: Working in shared-pairs, the students will read their stories to each other and check for correct grammar. The pairs will tape record their finished product.

Assessment: Listening to the tape, teacher will check for oral expression and check grammar.

8. Perform: Creative Manifestation of Material Learned

Objective: To celebrate the sharing of the story mapping experience.

Activity:
1) Videotape students reading their solution tail and story to the class. Tail is then attached to the huge classroom bulletin board turkey.
2) Tape recordings and written stories are made available in the school library.

Assessment: Teacher observes students reaction to classmates' solutions and stories.

Assessment, Phase Five,Performance, Creative Use of Material Learned: