Website
PBS

Pbs Teachers: Story Writing With Arthur

For Teachers Pre-K - 1st Standards
This series of 12 downloadable activities teach students some basics of story writing, using books or videos from the PBS "Arthur" series as a springboard. Activities include creating story maps, asking questions about characters and...
Lesson Plan
Writing Fix

Writing Fix: Short Adventure Stories

For Teachers 3rd - 8th Standards
Inspired by the interactive plot ideas here, writers will create an original three-paragraph adventure story. First, each writer will create an original adventurer. Next, each writer will place the adventurer in a brief, organized...
Unit Plan
Texas Education Agency

Texas Gateway: Writing a Short Story With Well Developed Conflict and Resolution

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
A learning module that teaches students about writing a short story in six mini-lessons: Introduction, Understanding the Essence, Getting an Idea, Structuring Plot, Building Conflict, and Outlining Your Own Story.
Interactive
Quizlet

Quizlet: R.3 Analyze How and Why Individuals, Events, or Ideas, Develop/interact

For Students 3rd - 8th Standards
Please align to CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.3 Analyze how and why individuals, events, and ideas develop and interact over the course of a text.
Article
Caro Clarke

Caro Clarke: Pacing Anxiety, or How to Stop Padding and Plot!

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This is the seventh installment of a series giving advice to the author who is new to writing novels. This article focuses on how to take your characters and use them and their conflicts to develop the plot of your story. W.9-10.3b...
Lesson Plan
ReadWriteThink

Read Write Think: Comics in the Classroom: Introduction to Narrative Structure

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
Contains plans for four lessons that teach students about narrative plot structures by using "The Three Little Pigs" fairy tale or a similar story. In addition to objectives and standards, this instructional plan contains links to sites...
Lesson Plan
Writing Fix

Writing Fix: Rolling With the Animals

For Teachers 9th - 10th Standards
After reading Duck on a Bike by David Shannon, the writer will plan an original story where an animal (other than a duck) finds itself in a human mode of transportation (other than a bike). Three other animals will react to the unusual...
Lesson Plan
Writing Fix

Writing Fix: What Got Stolen?

For Teachers 2nd - 6th Standards
After reading Grandpa's Teeth by Rod Clement, the writer will plan a scene from a story where a character confronts another character about something that has been stolen. Descriptive details need to take precedence in this scene, as...
Lesson Plan
Other

Story Arts: Storytelling Activities & Plot Structure Scenarios

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
This collection of storytelling activities-developed by storyteller/author Heather Forest for her storytelling workshops with students, teachers, and librarians-can be expanded by educators into language arts lesson plans to support...
Article
Other

National Writing Project: Collaborating to Write Dialogue

For Teachers 3rd - 8th Standards
In this lesson, writing partners work together to develop a plot and characters. The lesson emphasizes the use of dialogue to develop the characters and plot of the story.
Article
Other

Building Characters With Adversity

For Students 6th - 8th Standards
Extensive and very interesting article advising the reader on how to develop characters through adversity.
Article
Caro Clarke

Caro Clarke: What Is Conflict?

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This is the sixth in a series of articles designed to help the new writer with their novel. This article focuses on conflict and how it effects the characters and the plot of the story. W.11-12.3a Narratives
Unit Plan
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Houghton Mifflin Books: Zathura by Chris Van Allsburg

For Teachers Pre-K - 1st Standards
This comprehensive teacher's guide for the book "Zathura" by Chris Van Allsburg provides us with an opportunity to examine how writers blend scientific information with a fictional story.