Modified Lesson Plan

Sarah Ruff

Write A Round-Robin Story

Lesson adapted from http://www.educationworld.com/a_lesson/02/lp255-04.shtml

Author: Gary Hopkins

ESOL modifications are in RED

Grade Level: 5th grade

Estimated Lesson Time: One 90-minute session

Overview: Students learn about the elements of a story (introduction, plot,

climax, resolution, denouement). In groups of five, one student writes an
introduction and passes it to the next person, who writes the plot and passes
it to the next person, who writes the climax … and so it goes!

Content Objective: Students will:

-learn about the elements that make up a story (introduction, plot, climax,
resolution, denouement)
-write one section of a pass-around story that builds as each person adds
to it (PP/EP students will add words/phrases to a fill-in-the-blank story)
-write a story that includes the five elements (same as above)

Linguistic Objectives: Students will learn words describing the composition of a

short story and how to use their writing skills to create a story based on these
elements.
-Pre-Production (PP): The student will learn the new vocabulary words
and the order they appear in a short story

-Early Production (EP): The student will learn the new vocabulary words,
be able to identify which part of a story a given paragraph is from, and be
able to write short sentences that follow an example given by the teacher

-Speech Emergence (SE): The student will learn the new vocabulary
words and be able to create full paragraphs which represent the different
parts of a story based on the examples presented by the teacher

-Intermediate Fluency (IM): The student will learn the new vocabulary
words and will be able to participate fully in the Round-Robin activity by
writing paragraphs based on their classmates’ previous paragraphs to
complete a full story

Cultural Objectives: Students will use elements from their own culture in their own
stories; e.g., family members as characters, etc. (applies to all levels).
Sunshine State Standards:
-The student will recognize structural analysis. LA.5.1.4.2
-The student will demonstrate the ability to read grade level text. LA.5.1.5.1
-The student will use new vocabulary that is introduced and taught directly.
LA.5.1.6.1
-The student will write narratives that establish a situation and plot with
rising action, conflict, and resolution. LA.5.4.1.1

Materials:
-Notebook
-Pencil/pen
-Loose leaf paper
-English dictionary in case they need help while reading each other’s
stories

Vocabulary:
-Introduction
-Plot
-Climax
-Resolution
-Denouement

Procedures/Activities:

Introduction:
1. I will write the following list on a board or chart and ask the students
to copy the words down in their notebook:
Introduction
0 Plot
Climax
Resolution
Denouement

Presentation:
2. I will hand out a short story to each student and then read it aloud.
-For PPs, I will show pictures illustrating the plot action or act it out.
-For EPs, I will ask yes/no questions relating to the action or
questions with short answers (e.g. “Where did John get the cow?”)
-For SEs, I will ask the class to describe what just happened in the
story
-For IMs, I will stop after the climax and ask the class how they
think the story will end. After I finish, I will ask them to summarize
the story and how they felt about it.
 3. Using the context of a story, I will explain to students the meaning of
each of the above terms. I will write students' ideas on chart paper.
Some possible ideas include the following:
Introduction: Characters are introduced, setting is established,
plot might be set up.
0 Plot: Events start to happen, trouble begins to brew, a situation
is exposed.
Climax: The real excitement occurs, the reader is left hanging.
Resolution: Things begin to settle down, many loose ends are
tied up.
Denouement: Events are wrapped up, final fate of characters is
established.
0 -For PP and EP students, show the story illustrations along with
each section so they can relate the new words to what happened in the
story. Also, provide the vocabulary words in their native language if it
helps them understand the meaning.

4. In order to solidify students' understanding of the main parts of a

story, I will talk about a story the students have read together in class
in the past and ask them to identify the different parts of that story. For
PP/EP students, I will ask yes/no questions (e.g. “Was this part of the
story the climax?”). For SE students, I will ask description questions
(e.g. “Describe the main character in the story.”). For IM students, I will
ask more engaging and thoughtful questions (e.g. “What was the story
mainly about? Compare the plots of the two stories we just discussed.
Which one did you like better and why?”).

Activity:

5. Arrange students into groups of five. Provide each student in each

group with a sheet of writing paper and explain to students how the
activity will work. Then begin the activity. When you say "Start," each
person in the group has ten minutes (or another set time period) to
write a good introduction to a story. Set an oven timer to sound at the
end of ten minutes. When the timer goes off, the person who has been
writing passes the story to his or her right. That person has ten minutes
to read the introduction and to write a plot section that builds on the
introduction. Set the timer so it will sound at the end of ten minutes.
When the timer goes off, the student who worked on the plot passes
the paper to the next person, who will write the climax. Continue until
each person in the group has completed a denouement to each story.
 For PP/EP students, I will take them into a separate group with a story
already mostly written out. It will have missing words and blank spaces
for new sentences in each of the 5 paragraphs. Each paragraph will be
2-3 sentences long. Instead of creating their own paragraphs, they will
supply their choice of words and phrases to fill in the blanks and thus
still create a story unique to them (blanks will include character’s
name, where they live, etc.). I will ask them to draw a small picture in
conjunction with their story to aid the next student who gets it. At the
end of each 10 min. period they will pass their paper along and move
on to the next paragraph from another student. I will closely monitor
this process and help them with any new words/phrases, as well as
help them read their fellow students’ answers.
For SE/IM students, I will try to place them in groups with bilingual
students if possible, and if not, with students who are patient and fast
with their own work and may be able to lend a hand if the ESOL
student is struggling with their paragraph. Once my PP/EP students
are drawing their pictures, I will walk over to the other groups and help
the SE/IM students if need be. I will ask them to pay particular attention
to describing the characters and situations.

6. Close the lesson by reviewing what students learned about writing a

story, what elements make a good story, which part of the story
seemed easiest and most difficult to write, how many of the parts
overlap in longer stories as multiple plots unfold, and so on. For PPs,
be sure to ask questions like “Who enjoyed writing stories?” For EPs,
ask yes/no questions or two-word response questions like “Was it
difficult to write a plot?” and “Which section was the most difficult to
write?”. For SEs, ask “Why was the plot the most difficult to write?”,
and “Tell me about what it was like writing parts of other students’
stories.” For IMs, ask “Which section did you prefer writing and why?”
or “What would you have changed about your paragraphs?”

Follow-up: Students can….

-Ask a parent to read a favorite story with them at home and pick out the 5
elements
-Go to the library with parents and check out new story books
-Create a story about the family history with parents leading up to the
present using the 5 elements
-All of this can be done in the native language! Just ask ESOL students to
use the English words (Introduction, Plot, etc) when sharing with the class.
Evaluation:
Students write their own stories, making sure they include each of the
five elements (introduction, plot, climax, resolution, and denouement)
discussed in the lesson. They correctly label each section of their stories.
For PP/EP students, provide another fill-in-the-blank story for them to take
home and create their own answers. Have them again draw pictures to go
along with their stories. Tell them to label their “paragraphs” with the correct
Vocabulary words. Encourage EP students to add a short sentence or two to
each paragraph.
For SE/IM students, expect them to write their own stories. Tell them they
can write it in their native language first and then with the help of a friend or
parent translate it into English. Let them know they are more than welcome to
draw pictures as well, and to label their paragraphs accordingly.