Storyboarding is an excellent way to focus on types of literary conflict. Have your students choose an example of each literary conflict and depict them using the Storyboard Creator.
The main conflict of Out of My Mind centers around Melody's inability to express herself to others because of her physical disability. However, there are many other conflicts that arise between characters, with Melody and herself, and with Melody and the world around her.
Using a traditional three-cell storyboard with titles and descriptions, identify three different types of conflict that are described in the text. Visually represent an example of each conflict, along with an explanation of the scene, and how it fits the particular category of conflict. Label each type in the title cell and describe how it is shown in the description cell.
Melody is angry with her own body. She doesn't understand why she has to be the way she is.
Melody struggles to enter all the information she wants her communication board to contain, so she can say all of the million things she's never been able to say.
(These instructions are completely customizable. After clicking "Copy Activity", update the instructions on the Edit Tab of the assignment.)
Student Instructions
Create a storyboard that shows at least three forms of literary conflict in Out of My Mind.
Start your lesson by asking students to share examples of conflict they’ve read about or experienced. Encourage participation by relating conflicts in the story to real-life situations, helping students connect literature to their own experiences.
Invite students to suggest new ways the characters in Out of My Mind might resolve their conflicts. This promotes critical thinking and empathy as students consider different perspectives and solutions.
Have students work in groups to act out one of the conflicts from the book. Assign roles and encourage them to improvise dialogue, making the literary conflicts more memorable and understandable.
Distribute graphic organizers for students to visually track each conflict, the characters involved, and possible resolutions. This helps students organize their thoughts and see the structure of literary conflict more clearly.
Out of My Mind features several types of literary conflict, including Character vs. Self (Melody's struggle with her own body), Character vs. Character (Melody's disagreements with her mother), and Character vs. Technology (Melody's challenges with her communication device).
Use a storyboard activity to have students identify and depict different conflicts from the novel. Ask them to create three cells, each representing a distinct conflict type, and include titles and descriptions explaining each scene.
An example is Melody feeling frustrated and angry with her own body because she cannot control it or communicate easily, highlighting the internal struggle she faces daily.
Storyboarding helps students visually organize and better understand different types of conflict by illustrating scenes and providing explanations, reinforcing critical thinking and comprehension skills.
Categorize each conflict as Character vs. Character, Character vs. Self, Character vs. Society, Character vs. Nature, or Character vs. Technology based on who or what Melody is struggling against in each scene.