Have students create a visual plot chart of Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky by Kwame Mbalia, illustrating the beginning, middle, and end.
Testo Storyboard
BEGINNING
MIDDLE
END
Tristan's best friend Eddie is killed in a bus accident. Hoping it will help him heal, his parents send him to Alabama for a month to stay with his grandparents on their farm. The first night there, a mysterious creature named Gum Baby sneaks in the window and steals Eddies journal. Tristan goes after her.
Tristan smashes a bottle against a tree and a hole opens up, swallowing him and Gum Baby up into a whole new world. They land in the Burning Sea. Tristan meets people and creatures from stories he knows, and he learns he must be a hero and save MidPass from evil. He has several adventures.
Tristan defeats the iron monsters and gets the Story Box from Uncle C. He learns that Brer Rabbit is really Anansi in disguise. As a punishment, Anansi is made to sew the hole in the sky with his web and join Tristan in the human world to help him with his storytelling project. Tristan returns to the farm with his stories and Anansi stored in a smartphone. He begins to record his first story from Eddie's journal.