TEKS ELA Standard: 6.7.B

Summarize In Haiku: Power

Can your students fit a whole story into seventeen syllables? Now do it from inside a character’s head. Then once more, following the power.

absolutely thrilling suspense

Comparing Characters

Your young students will compare how two characters have changed in a story.

Characters’ Faults Can Also Be Strengths

Strength and weakness are often two sides of the same coin. Students will explore how a character’s flaw can be a benefit.

Emoji Stories 🛥️

Five emoji. One story. Where will your imagination take you?

Writing Sample: A Christmas Carol (Cold)

A passage from White Fang to use as a mentor text, discussion starter, or writing prompt.

Analyze Character Change with Depth and Complexity

Anyone can say a character changed. Your students will prove it: four details from the beginning, four from the end, and the two traits those details point to.

Literary Technique: Juxtaposition

Put a grumpy character next to a joyful one and they make each other stand out even more. Opposites are powerful!

Motivation and Moral Development

Can someone do the right thing, but for the wrong reason?

“Much Ado About Nothing” Summary

Shakespeare’s Much Ado summarized in just five minutes!

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.

Better Stories Part 4: Character Archetypes

Are students’ characters a bit flat? Archetypes give them a strong foundation on which to build their own characters as well as a tool to analyze existing stories.