Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Write a Short Story

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Students compare two paintings, depicting urban life in America in the 1940's, answering a series of questions, then create a short story about the paintings' characters. They compare 'Nighthawks' and 'Nightlife.'
Lesson Plan
Film English

The Man Who Planted Trees

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Grow an understanding of short story with a well-sequenced plan built around an Academy Award-winning short film. Class members explore the elements of an effective short story, and practice writing their own. They also watch the short...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Paul Chan: 1st Light and 5th Light

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Paul Chan's latest exhibit includes seven manifestations of light. Today, kids analyze the pieces 1st Light  and 5th Light. They consider the concept of opposed or dualistic realities found in literature, society, and Chan's work....
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Story Development through Japanese art

For Teachers 7th
A classic Japanese print is attached to this lesson and its up to your class to write a story about it. Pretending the image is an illustration, they use what they know about Japanese mythology to compose a short story describing the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Bringing Back the Sun: The Story of Jaguar Inspiring Student Stories

For Teachers K - 5th
What on earth is that jar for? It was an ancient incense burner used by the Maya, that was inspired by the myth of the sun god. Young analysts hear the story of the Mayan sun god, analyze the story through the artistry in the jar, and...
Lesson Plan
Film English

My Shoes

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Engage your pupils in short story and short film. Using a still from the film as inspiration, pairs compose short stories, which they later share and compare with other members of the class. They then watch the film and respond to a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Struggle and Transformation: Jaguar & Adolescence

For Teachers 5th - 12th
To break down complex themes, discuss a sense of self, and learn a bit about Mayan culture, learners start through art analysis. They analyze a Mayan incense burner, discuss themes, and then write a short story that includes themes from...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Who Are You Supposed to Be?

For Teachers 6th - 12th
A new way to connect visual art and creative writing is on the horizon. Kids first identify the characters in the painting Rabbit Hunt, then write narrative from the perspective of one of the characters in the painting. They combine...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Understanding Short Stories and Their Elements

For Teachers 11th - Higher Ed
Students identify short story elements. For this story elements lesson, students review vocabulary about the elements of a story and then practice finding the elements in the short story links.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Short Story Inspiration

For Teachers 10th
Tenth graders write an original story using a picture of a scene inspiration. In this short story lesson, 10th graders write short stories using a picture.
Lesson Plan
Denver Art Museum

Putting Images into Words

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Engage your class in art analysis of Indian Look-Alike by Melanie Yazzie. Using this work of art as inspiration, writers compose a poem or short story. After a peer review session, the teacher conveys information about the work of art as...
Lesson Plan
Film English

Theo’s Story

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Encourage your class to consider a beautiful short film about a boy named Theo who happens to be visually impaired. Over the course of the lesson, pupils work in pairs, discuss their ideas and the film as a class, view the film,...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Adventures in Toyland

For Teachers K - 5th
There are many ways to tell a story; Richard Patterson's three-dimensional painting If serves as the inspiration for some creative storytelling for elementary school writers. They watch a clip from Toy Story (you'll need to...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: All in the Family

For Teachers 1st - 5th
Who was the Radcliffe family? Young learners find out about the life and times of a family from long ago. They analyze the family portrait, write a story about the family, and then use their story to create thought or word bubbles which...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: While You Were Sleeping....

For Teachers K - 5th
Imagine you are a bug living on a leaf in the painting, Bouquet of Flowers in a Vase by Maria van Oosterwyck. This is what you'll tell your class as they analyze the lovely image. They list details in the painting, find two insects...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Possible Perspectives

For Teachers K - 5th
Visual art is the inspiration for a creative writing activity focused on having learners write from different perspectives. They analyze the image Yellow Rain Jacket, picking out details to help their storytelling. They use the details...
Unit Plan
National Center for Families Learning

The Summer Fun Summer Learning Dramatic and Story Reading Unit

For Teachers 1st - 8th Standards
What's the difference between story reading and story telling? Participants in a summer enrichment program learn all about the difference as they listen to famous speeches, engage in dramatic readings, and craft their own short stories...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Greek Story Vases

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
There are so many ways to tell a story! Develop visual storytelling skills while facilitating an understanding of Greek art and culture. Learners design Greek style images to tell a story through art. They add their designs to Styrofoam...
Lesson Plan
Maine Content Literacy Project

Exploring Text with the iMovie Application

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Get your class going on one of the final assessments for a unit on short stories by introducing iMovie and its main features. In this tenth instructional activity in a series of fourteen, pupils take some time to explore iMovie before...
Worksheet
Curated OER

The Too Small House: Story and Craft Activity

For Students 3rd - 5th
Engage students in setting and character with this story and craft activity set. To begin the activity, learners read the short story "The Too Small House." They then cut out and color a picture of the house and paper figures of the...
Lesson Plan
Hawaiʻi State Department of Education

Making Dances From Stories

For Teachers 4th
After reading a short story, learners will create dances that show homophones and verbs. Their dance sequences involve three verbs and transition movements in between each verb. Tip: Have the class dance out the sequence of events from...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Story Retelling

For Teachers K
Students explore storytelling by participating in an image analysis activity. In this story structure lesson, students read the book Cookie's Week by Tomie dePaola and retell the story to their teacher in sequential order. Students...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Frame Story "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County"

For Teachers 5th - 7th
Mark Twain's frame story, "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" provides an opportunity for a study of this story-within-a-story pattern. Using an illustrated template, class members record a plot summary of the frame story...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Bringing Stories to Life

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students perform short stories with sound effects and music they've created.  In this stories activity, create effects of record from a file to complete a presented story.

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