Ideas for Teaching Story Elements

In the olden days, we read a story, were told what it was about, and that was pretty much it. Now, we are requiring students to go a step further and analyze what they read. One way that teachers do this, is to teach story elements. What are story elements, and what are some creative ways that we can teach them?

Story elements consist of several aspects. First of all, are the characters of the story, both people and objects. The second element of the story is the setting, which not only covers where it occurs but the time of day and the season if applicable. The next component of story setting is the theme. The theme usually covers some type of moral issue such as right and wrong, or prejudice. Then there is the plot which is the outline or plan in the story. Some people also include point of view in the story elements. This refers to whose angle the story is told from. Is the story told from the first person, the second person, or the third person.

While there is a lot to cover in story elements, there are some unique and interesting ways to study the topic with your students. Some of those suggestions are listed here.

1) Round Robin writing. I divide students into groups of four students. I give them an index card with their role. One student will be responsible for coming up with the characters in the story. The second person will invent the setting. The third person will create the theme. The fourth person will come up with the basic plot. As a group, they have to come together and write a story. After they have decided on the four basic parts of story elements, they each will write one paragraph. They go around and write as many paragraphs as the timer allows. I usually give them fifteen minutes to come up with their four elements, and write. They love to share their completed stories with the class.

2) We read a play that students are interested in. We spend a class period in the library and research plays. The class then votes on their favorite play. If the play is appropriate and the right reading level, I then make copies of the play. I give out roles or parts for the play. and the class acts the play out . After performing the play, the students work in groups to fill out a story element chart listing the characters, setting, theme and plot. We them come back together as a class and discuss the elements.

3) There are some wonderful movies out there that are great to use when teaching story elements. One of the best is Rob Reiner's movie, The Princess Bride. It is a very appropriate movie to show to a group of students, no matter what their grade level, but it works especially well with middle school as the boy in the movie, who is being read to, is about middle school age. We then discuss all of the four elements. However, I have discovered that if you do not make students take notes during a movie, they will either zone out or fall asleep. So it might be a good idea to give them some sort of story element work sheet to fill out during the movie.

Good luck using these lesson plan ideas. You will find your students gain more from their education when they are actively involved, rather than being lectured to on a daily basis.