The Teachers Blackboard Ó2006

By

Karen Newcomb

Story Elements  April 06 

Publisher’s note: Karen Newcomb is an award winning writing teacher. With this issue of the newsletter she starts a new column on writing, for teachers and home schoolers who want to help their students understand the writing process.

When my son was in 4^th grade he was attending our yearly adult weeklong writing camp in the Sierra Nevada.  I was amazed at what he processed the first year he attended.  He seemed to absorb as much writing knowledge from the classes he sat in on, as did the adults.  Then it occurred to me that I could take any adult course and teach at grade level, whatever grade it might be.  I started with the fourth grade. 

Over the next four years I continued in the classroom and usually with the same group of kids from the previous year.  This, in itself, was a challenge.  Knowing kids often don’t always retain what they learn and could grow bored if taught the same elements year after year I had to come up with new techniques for the same class. I learned to tell which kids learned visually, and those that learned from listening.  It worked.  I won The Partners in Education award that first year and earned some money for the school.  I was very proud.  But more than that, I was proud of the accomplishments of the children that year.  And for the years that followed.

Today, our son is working on his Masters at the University of California, Sacramento.  Because of his early experiences in writing in the classroom he does well in any writing endeavor.  The English department asked, his first year, if they could keep his papers as models for other students.  Writing and writing techniques seem to come naturally to him now, but early on it was a different story.  

The goal of this column is for the teacher to understand the elements of fiction writing so that you can use this tool to teach writing at the student grade level.  Your students will learn how to select books that they know they will like and read.  The students should also become interested in things they don’t know or understand when it comes to selecting books to read.  They will learn what elements go into creating a story and where and when to put these elements.  Also, how movies and television can improve the student reading and writing skills.  Don’t throw out any idea that might improve writing skills.

I welcome any questions and will answer them in the column.

Where to begin?  The first day I walked into the classroom I asked the students if they knew the difference between fiction and non-fiction.  No one could answer the question.  I explained that fiction is a made up story.  Non-fiction is based on fact.  I then told the class that while I would be teaching them how to write fiction and how to apply the elements they would be learning, they still had to learn English and spelling from their teacher.  At the end of the school year the kids were reading well above grade level, but their spelling failed miserably.  Don’t expect miracles…however nice that would be.

I recommend books at your current grade level, and fairly tales at all grade levels.  I even use fairy tales in teaching adults.  Basic elements are easy to understand using fairy tales.  One best selling author told me that she uses the Junior Britannica and any other juvenile research books she could get her hands on in researching.  These books are written to be understood by children, and even more so by adults.  Strange as it sounds, when time is short, this idea works beautifully. 

I also used the television series “ALF” to explain the various fiction elements that go into writing books.  This was important for all the students but especially valuable for the visual learners.  I admit, I’m visual too.  However, once you learn these basic elements you could use a movie or a current television series the kids watch to demonstrate what they are learning.  This isn’t necessary, however, it gives them an extra way to learn.  I will be giving examples of which movies I used and why as we cover these fiction elements.  Don’t be afraid to bring fairy tales into the classroom and I used the Disney version as much as I could.

LESSON 1:

There are five elements that make up a fictional story and I’ll cover these elements one by one as a lesson, with assignments for the class.

1. CHARACTER (main character)
2. SITUATION (problem for character to solve)
3. OBJECTIVE (goal for character to reach)
4. OPPONENT (conflicts that block the character and they have to overcome)
5. DISASTER (black moment which character must face to make him change)

At this point as you are explaining what goes into a story to make it a story, use the following fairy tale to show as examples of these elements.  This is not the only fairy tale I would use, but for sake of space I’ll stick with this one for now.

Cinderella (again I use the Disney version) and even though the boys will go yuck, there is something in this story for them too.

• Main character.  Cinderella
• Situation (problem).  Cinderella’s father has died and she is at the mercy of her stepmother.
• Goal.  She wants to go to the ball at the castle.
• Opponent (conflicts).  Her stepsisters and stepmother mistreat her when she is invited to the ball.  She can only go if…
• Disaster (black moment) When a stepsister trips the footman holding the glass slipper on a cushion and the shoe shatters into a million pieces.

Ah, but there is so much more to this fairy tale and I’ll be using elements to show you as I go along.

I also use Mark Twain’s books extensively, especially Tom Sawyer.  The basic elements of fiction writing are in all these famous books.

Next month I’ll talk about how to create a three-dimensional character.  This can be a class project, or an individual project.  Until next month, read, analyze and think about how you can apply this column to your teaching curriculum.