Ideas Into Action

Book Rap Course

Literary Resources

Story Maps

Description: Drawing a map captures the setting/s wherein the action occurs. The maps are principally of two types, linear and circular.

Purpose:

• To develop an understanding of basic story structures.
• To transfer verbal descriptions into visual presentations.
• To aid meaningful understanding of the story.
• to sustain the internal logic of the story.
• To identify the various locales of the story and their relationships.
• To apply map-making skills to create a map from a text.
• To develop the child's sequencing abilities.
• To develop a basic understanding of plot.

Procedure:

• List all the people (characters) mentioned in the story.
• Name all the places where they went.
• Decide whether the journey finishes with the main character at a new destination.eg The three little pigs leave home and end up living together in the third pig's brich house - a linear map or whether the main character returns to where s/he set out from. e.g. a school excursion where the class leaves school and visits a spot then returns to school - a circle map. This is essential as each structure requires a different map.

Linear Story Map

• Decide how the map should be organised, ie., where places will be located.
• Label items. Use descriptive words from the text.
• Label characters at appropriate spots.
• Map out character's paths with different colours and markings if more than one.
• Child/group retells story using the map to ensure the details are correct.

Handy Hints

• Keep character and place lists separate.
• Model several times as a whole class lesson before asking children to work on their own or in groups.
• It is not an activity to teach map-making skills. (Children in the lower school can easily make story maps.) Book title should be chosen on the basis that map-maikng will help children understand or appreciate the text more.
• The process is more important than the product.
• Difficult novels could have structured task cards to enable children to accomplish the task.
• This is an ideal activity to include art to enlarge into a collage or wall mural.
• Remember it is all right for the line to "meander" when you go from one scene to another.

Variations

3-D Maps (Plasticene, clay, sand tray, etc)

• Create a 3-D model
• Label places
• Place characters
• Use it to retell the story.

Missing Map Hunt

• Provide children with a partial story map of story being read.
• Children complete the missing portions.

Real Places

• Draw a map of the location from an Atlas.
• Locate actual places mentioned. Mark and label.
• Plot journey of the characters.

Directions

• From the story map, children/teacher writes a list of instructions for someone to follow so they can get from Point A to Point B.

Tour Guides

• Create an imaginary tour to various points on the story map.

Mystery Place

• From given clues children work out the specific spot on the map.

Find the Escapee

• A criminal has escaped from jail. Be a detective and track him down from the clues provided.
• Provide clues, e.g., The crime was committed ..... First spotted..... Then .......
• After working out the clues, children track the criminal on the map and locate him.
• Children can make up their own routes, provide clues and exchange with one another to solve.

Worlds of the Imagination

• Provide blank maps from well known story maps, e.g., Narnia (C.S.Lewis), Pooh's Turf (A.A.Mine)
• Locate places mentioned in the story. Mark. Label.
• Plot journeys.

Circle Story Maps

Using a Circle

• Draw a large circle.
• Divide the circle into segmets, one for each location mentioned.
• Draw or write the events in each segment. If drawing each location, don't forget to label each segment.

Using a Circular Path

• Do the same as for a linear story map, but ensure the path is circular.
• More than one character can be plotted using a legend.

Variations

Daily Routines

• Make explicit the mundane, routine activities of a character.e.g. Cinderella's cleaning tasks
• Map in a circle to symbolise "sameness" or repetition of lifestyle.e.g., Lock,S., Hubert Hunts His Hum Inference: Where would Hubert whistle now he has learnt to whistle?

Locate Events That Happen In/Around a Particular Spot

• Draw the spot in the middle of the page.
• Plot the story by arranging events around the picture so the last event is back near the spot again.

A Circle Completes the Story - The back to front 6 shape

• This structure is used for stories where characters return to a location mentioned later in the story,e.g., The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe The children return to the wardrobe after their adventures in Narnia, although the story originally opens in London.
• List charaters. List places.
• Arrange in circular shape - but not enclosed - the first item to be slightly above the circle.
• Label with events and places.

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