In 1985 as I was reading the December “Reader’s Digest,” I came across Pearl S. Buck’s lovely story, “Christmas Day in the Morning.” I read it and cried. It perfectly expressed the love my own father has for me, and it was a masterful illustration of 1 John 4:19, “We love because he first loved … Continue reading Featured Story Chart: “Christmas Day in the Morning” with Complete Text
Featured Story Chart: WHERE THE RED FERN GROWS
Well, I finally read it. All my life I have avoided Where the Red Fern Grows because I knew it was a sad dog story. But one of my students wanted to write about it, and I needed to make a story chart, so I finally read it. Not only is it a beautiful story … Continue reading Featured Story Chart: WHERE THE RED FERN GROWS
Planning summer reading? Check out my Story Charts!
If you are new to my website, Writing to Learn, you may not know that I have a page devoted to story charts for literary analysis! These are free to download and I am constantly adding new ones. I use the Center for Lit method of literary analysis in my writing classes, and I started making the story … Continue reading Planning summer reading? Check out my Story Charts!
Understanding the Story Charts
All stories are composed of five basic elements: Characters, Setting, Conflict, Plot, and Theme. Even though Conflict, Characters, and Setting are story elements in their own right, they also appear in the Plot. Each of my Story Charts includes these five elements of literature. Here is a Story Chart Key that you can print to … Continue reading Understanding the Story Charts
Featured Story Chart: “The Story of Joseph” with Complete Text
The story of Joseph can be found in the Bible, in the Book of Genesis, chapters 37 through 50. It is interrupted briefly in chapter 38, but resumes in chapter 39. Readers of early heroic literature, such as the Iliad, Beowulf, or the early King Arthur versions, will notice that "Joseph" is different. Although it … Continue reading Featured Story Chart: “The Story of Joseph” with Complete Text
Featured Story Chart: The Railway Children
Last summer I read The Railway Children, by Edith Nesbit. I am astonished that I had never before read it. Spending 4th through 6th grade in England, I was exposed to many such books and I devoured as many as I could get my hands on. The Railway Children is exactly the sort of book … Continue reading Featured Story Chart: The Railway Children
Featured Story Chart: Alice in Wonderland
Alice in Wonderland is the second most frequently downloaded of my story charts! This testifies to the book's enduring popularity. Lewis Carroll was the pen name of British author Charles Lutwidge Dodgson. Fortunately, he had practiced writing stories and poems all his life. Alice sprang from his prepared imagination, but curiously, she possessed a life … Continue reading Featured Story Chart: Alice in Wonderland
Most Popular Story Chart: The Witch of Blackbird Pond
The Witch of Blackbird Pond is my most frequently downloaded story chart! I read the book in 6th grade and loved it. It was a real pleasure to reread it a few years ago so I could make the story chart. My story charts are created to help students understand the elements of literature and … Continue reading Most Popular Story Chart: The Witch of Blackbird Pond
Featured Story Chart: Jekyll and Hyde
My story charts are created to help readers understand the elements of literature and to learn to analyze a story.