Because of Mr. Terupt Book Summary Activity

Activity Overview

Creating a plot diagram not only helps students learn the parts of the plot, but it reinforces major events and help students develop greater understanding of literary structures. Students can create a storyboard capturing the narrative arc in a work with a six-cell storyboard containing the major parts of the plot diagram. In this activity, students will create a visual plot diagram of major events in Because of Mr. Terupt. Students should identify major turning points in the novel such as the Exposition, Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action, and Resolution.

Plot Diagram Example

Exposition: It’s the beginning of fifth grade, and Mr. Terupt is their new teacher. Seven different personalities, seven different challenges, and one teacher who changes their lives forever.

Rising Action: Mr. Terupt gives the students engaging projects that encourage teamwork and collaboration. The students have trouble getting along sometimes, but are given more freedom and responsibility.

Climax: The class earns a reward for positive behavior and they choose to have an outdoor day in the snow. Mr. Terupt is hit with an icy snowball and is rushed to the hospital. He is in a coma.

Falling Action: Students visit Mr. Terupt in the hospital, and their relationships with one another and themselves change for the better.

Resolution: Mr. Terupt recovers from brain surgery and surprises the class on the last day of school. They rejoice as they learn he will be their teacher next year as well.

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Template and Class Instructions

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Due Date:

Objective: Create a visual plot diagram of Because of Mr. Terupt.

Student Instructions:

Click "Start Assignment".
Separate the story into the Title, Exposition, Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action, and Resolution.
Create an image that represents an important moment or set of events for each of the story components using appropriate scenes, characters, and items.
Write a short description of each of the examples in the plot diagram.
Save and exit when you're done.

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Lesson Plan Reference

Grade Level 4-6

Difficulty Level 2 (Reinforcing / Developing)

Type of Assignment Individual

Type of Activity: Plot Diagrams and Narrative Arcs

Common Core Standards

[ELA-Literacy/RL/6/3] Describe how a particular story’s or drama’s plot unfolds in a series of episodes as well as how the characters respond or change as the plot moves toward a resolution
[ELA-Literacy/RL/4/2] Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text; summarize the text.
[ELA-Literacy/RL/5/2] Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text, including how characters in a story or drama respond to challenges or how the speaker in a poem reflects upon a topic; summarize the text.

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Rubric

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Plot Diagram Rubric

Create a visual Plot Diagram that summarizes the story. The storyboard should have six cells: Title, Exposition, Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action, and Resolution. Below each cell, type in a description of that part of the story.

	Proficient	Emerging	Beginning
Design	Cells include images that help to tell the story and do not get in the way of understanding. Descriptions match the images.	Descriptions do not always match the images.	Descriptions are missing or do not match the images.
Plot	Each of the six cells represents a different part of the story. The cells are in order from beginning to end.	Two cells or fewer are out of order, or the storyboard is missing important information.	Important information is missing and/or three or more cells are out of order.
Spelling and Grammar	Spelling and grammar is mostly accurate. Mistakes do not get in the way of understanding.	Spelling is very inaccurate and hinders full understanding.	Text is difficult to understand.