Sequencing and Narrative Elements

Learning Context

Purpose

The purpose of this Learning Experience is for the students to use information gained from the illustrations and words in a print to demonstrate understanding of its characters, setting, and plot by sequencing the events and characters in the story.  This lesson allows the students to demonstrate and display what sequencing is and the importance of sequencing while reading a story. Upon beginning this lesson, the students also are given a parent letter to take home so to reinforce the newly learned skills while doing their nightly homework.

Goals

  • Students identify and name the characters, setting, and plot with 100% accuracy.
  • Students independently sequence the events of the plot with 95% accuracy.

Enduring Understanding

  • In order to fully understand a story, the characters, setting and plot need to be sequenced from the beginning to the end.

Essential Questions

  • How might correctly sequencing a story affect a person’s understanding of a story?

Guiding Questions

  • What does it mean to sequence?
  • How does correctly sequencing characters affect the story?
  • How does correctly sequencing the plot affect the story?

Class Background

This Learning Experience takes place in a second grade classroom in the Buffalo Public School District.  The focus of this lesson is in the area of English Language Arts. The class consists of eighteen benchmark students, eight being boys and ten being girls.  Of the eighteen students, two of the students have Individualized Education Plans (IEP’S) and Behavior Intervention Plans (BIP’S).  Also, two additional students receive speech services, and are pulled out during this English Language Arts time two days out of a six day cycle.

Overview of What Students Need to Know

Prior to the Learning Experience:

  • Students need to know the classroom rules and classroom procedures
  • Students need to know the meaning of characters

During the implementation of the Learning Experience:

  • Students know the meaning of setting
  • Students know the meaning of plot
  • Students know the meaning of sequence
  • Students demonstrate sequencing through a story map and sequencing project

After the implementation of the Learning Experience:

  • Students can correctly sequence a story from its beginning to end
  • Students can describe the importance of correctly sequencing a story
  • Students can use a rubric to guide and check their work