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KAS ELA Standard: C.5.3.c

Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, description and pacing, to develop experiences and events or show the responses of characters to situations.

Change A Story’s Genre
Change A Story’s Genre
What if we rewrote a story’s climax into a totally different genre?
A Character’s Playlist
A Character’s Playlist
What playlist of songs best goes with a character’s change over time?
Writing Sample: A Christmas Carol (Cold)
Writing Sample: A Christmas Carol (Cold)
A passage from White Fang to use as a mentor text, discussion starter, or writing prompt.
Story Starter: Out To Eat
Story Starter: Out To Eat
Students pick from 12 random phrases to create a story about an incident in a restaurant.
Story Starter: Somewhere In Space
Story Starter: Somewhere In Space
Students use 12 random phrases to create a story that takes place in space!
Do Narrators Have Too Much Power?
Do Narrators Have Too Much Power?
Imagine being a character in a story. Are you worried that your story’s narrator may inaccurately describe you? What if they reveal something you wanted to be kept secret? Do narrators have too much power!?
The Personalities of Rocks
The Personalities of Rocks
What would an igneous rock be like? Would it get along with a sedimentary rock? Could they handle the hot personality of a metamorphic rock?
Showing A Character’s Trait
Showing A Character’s Trait
We tell students to ‘show, not tell’ — but that advice is useless until they experience the difference. This lesson makes it click.
Elements of The Fantasy Genre
Elements of The Fantasy Genre
Every fantasy story has patterns hiding underneath the magic. Once your students see the elements, they’ll spot them everywhere — and use them in their own writing.
Literary Technique: Juxtaposition
Literary Technique: Juxtaposition
Put a grumpy character next to a joyful one and they make each other stand out even more. Opposites are powerful!
Better Stories Part 5: Plot Structure
Better Stories Part 5: Plot Structure
Ever read a student’s story that was just event after event after event and then a very sudden ending? They lack an understanding of a plot’s structure. With the help of Finding Nemo, I break down how to set up a well-structured plot.
Better Stories Part 2: Types of Conflict
Better Stories Part 2: Types of Conflict
If your students’ stories are packed with endless ninja fights or arguments between frenemies, it’s time to expose them to a wider range of conflicts.