Teaching the Short Story

Many ELA teachers begin with the short story. In fact, many of the state-adopted textbooks feature the short story as the first unit in the books.

To help you get a running start, I have several resources in my TPT store that will either help you teach the elements of the short story, teach story analysis, or teach your students how to write original short stories. 

Pick and choose from the lessons that would be most helpful to you and start your new school year stress-free with no-prep lessons. Just print and distribute. Some are digital and can be accessed in Google Drive or used in TPT Easel.

All are on sale today, August 29th, and tomorrow, August 30th at 20% off. Plus, if you enter the code BTSBONUS23 at checkout, TPT will take off another 5%, which means every resource in my store will be on sale for 25% off.

To save you time, I have included all the links to these products below so you can read the descriptions and see if any of these would be helpful to you.


Writing About Literature Bundle (12 activities)
All the resources below and more are included in this money-saving bundle.

Comparing and Contrasting Two Short Stories
 
Short Story with Comprehension Questions

Short Story Analysis with Study Questions

Three Ways Authors Reveal Characters

Create a Story Plan Creative Writing Activity

Point of View in Fiction Creative Writing Activity
 
Analyzing a Fictional Character Writing Activity

Here's a free activity for you. Using 3x5 Cards to Set Up Scenes Creative Writing Activity

I hope you have a great school year!

Thanks for reading,
Charlene

Make an Old Story New Again

Some say there are only three types of plots:

The happy ending, the unhappy ending, and the classical Greek tragic ending in which events are controlled by fate.

There are many variations on these three plots, of course, and plots are always controlled by the conflict between the characters. 

Remember the conflicts taught in high school literature classes?

• character vs character
• character vs nature
• character vs the environment
• character vs machine
• character vs the supernatural
• character vs self
• character vs religion

The point? It is not necessary to reinvent the wheel. Coming up with a new plot that has never been written is improbable. So, take a cue from many modern writers and rework a plot from a story you've read or a movie you've seen.

There are many examples of revised plots. For example, Romeo and Juliet was adapted as the musical, West Side Story, and the typical spaghetti western novel was transformed into Star Wars. The same classic plots, but oh so different in every other way.

So, if you have trouble coming up with an idea, just work with a classic plot and start changing all the other elements to make it your own story.

• Change the setting.

• Change the point-of-view. Tell the story through the mind of a different character than in the original story. 

• Choose a classic plot and bring it into the modern age. Choose a fairy tale, an epic poem, a classic novel, a Bible story, or a myth. 

• Keep the conflict from a novel or play or movie and change everything else. (Change characters, point-of-view, plot, setting, etc.)
• Change the protagonist from male to female or child to adult.

In my creative writing classes, I had my students watch both True Grit and Shane. Then they had to outline two original stories using the same plots as the movies but the settings would be in the present day. They had to invent their own characters and settings, but the basic plot and the themes were to remain the same as in the movies they saw. My students wrote some great stories and told me they loved doing the assignment.

Remember, if you base your writing on a plot and then make it your own by using your own words, you will not be plagiarizing. An idea cannot be copyrighted.

So, don't take too much time reinventing the wheel. Just think of books and movies that you really enjoyed. If you liked the plot or the theme, use it, but change all the other elements.

You will find many creative writing ideas and resources in my TpT store. Take a look. You will save 20% if you purchase the resources in a bundle. 

Thanks for reading,

Charlene

Before you go, take a look below at some of the helpful blog posts from my teacher friends from The Best of Teacher Entrepreneurs Marketing Cooperative. 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

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Simple Steps to Create a Story Plan

A story plan is the first step in writing fiction.

A story plan will be a sketch of the story you plan to write and is to be used for planning purposes. One way to get started is to think of a real incident that you or someone you know has experienced. Base your story plan on that incident, but change anything you wish if it makes your story more interesting or exciting.

You can also base a story on real events that you read about online or hear on the news. Just change the names, the location, and embellish the sequence of events to make them your own creation. For example, West Side Story is a retelling of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.

Consider the following elements when you begin your story plan. You can skip around if you wish, but be sure to complete all the steps below.

Decide on the characters. Name the characters and describe their role in the story and their relationship to one another. For example: Marie Martin, heroine, secretary to the president of the bank. (If you are not ready to use names, just use descriptions: librarian, doctor, etc.)

Choose a setting. Decide when and where the events will take place. Be as specific as you can because that will help you when you begin your research. (For example: the South in the 60’s vs. Birmingham, Alabama in 1965.)

Decide on the main conflict in the story. What is the problem that your main character faces when the story begins? (For example: Marie Martin has been accused of stealing money from the bank.)

Decide on a series of events in the plot. Briefly describe what happens in a few sentences. (You can add to these, subtract from these, and rearrange these later.) What happens? What happens next?

Determine the climax of the story. Describe the moment after which nothing will be the same. If a car is dangling over a cliff throughout the story, and then the driver is rescued moments before the car plunges down the embankment, that's the climax.

Determine the resolution of the story. What happens at the end when the loose ends are tied up? (Some writers determine the ending first and work backwards from there.)

Visit my store for an exercise your students can do to create a story plan.

This activity is part of a creative writing bundle with 9 activities 

and saves you 20%. 

Here's hoping the 2021-22 school year is off to a great start!

Take a look at some of the interesting blog posts below from my teacher friends at The Best of Teacher Entrepreneurs Marking Cooperative. If you are a teacher-author, joining this organization will help you market your materials.

Thanks for reading,

Charlene

The Best of Teacher Entrepreneurs Marking Cooperative

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter