I really like using the "Story Star" model with my ELL students.
It helps reinforce the story elements for the students and even the youngest children can follow it.
Who? asks he children to identify the important characters.
Where and when? identifies the setting and the mood
What? asks the children to give key plot details
How does it end? wraps up the ending of the story
Why? delves into why the author wrote the story, what the theme is
The story chosen must have a clear structure and it is important to model for all of the students before setting them on their own to complete Story Star. They Story Star provides them with a visual.
The children will not be overwhelmed by all of the information in the story if the important details are mapped out for them.
Comments (3)
I have not seen this strategy and it sounds like something that would help my students. Many of my kids have difficulty answering the W questions. This would be something I would be willing to try.
Posted by Lori Vestal | March 25, 2010 6:42 AM
Posted on March 25, 2010 06:42
Caroline, This sounds like an extremely valuable strategy for students who have difficulty with questions. The visual sounds like it really helps the students to see the information and learn to organize it in a way that makes sense.
Posted by Ashley Funderburk | March 25, 2010 1:52 PM
Posted on March 25, 2010 13:52
I like using this strategy! In my inclusion Language Arts class, we have used a strategy similar to this, but we have changed it to a way to analyze poetry. Students will use the star and in the center they will write the name of the poem and the author. On the five points of the star, they will write the theme, literary elements, main idea, narrator, and author's tone. Sometimes we will change up what the five points are because it just kind of depends on what we are trying to accomplish for that day's lesson!
Posted by Katy Dellinger | March 28, 2010 6:18 PM
Posted on March 28, 2010 18:18