A common use for Storyboard That is to help students create a plot diagram of the events from a story. Not only is this a great way to teach 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. For each cell, have students create a scene that follows the story in sequence using: Exposition, Conflict, Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action, and Resolution.
The "Weird Watsons" are introduced. Byron, the juvenile delinquent, gets his lips stuck to the frozen mirror.
Byron is constantly causing problems. Mr. and Mrs. Watson resolve to bring the family to Alabama.
The Watsons drive to Birmingham, Alabama and meet Grandma Sands. Byron's behavior improves, while Kenny becomes more mischievous.
The bombing at Joey's church leaves Kenny in shock; he sees what he thought was his sister's body buried under the rubble.
The Watsons return to Flint, Michigan. Kenny is traumatized by the church bombing and spends much of his time behind the couch.
Byron and Kenny discuss what happened in Alabama. The brothers become closer as Byron consoles Kenny.
(These instructions are completely customizable. After clicking "Copy Activity", update the instructions on the Edit Tab of the assignment.)
Student Instructions
Create a visual plot diagram of The Watsons Go to Birmingham.
Explain the concept of literary conflicts to students and ask them to identify the main problem or obstacle that drives the story. In "The Watsons Go to Birmingham," the family's struggles with their family dynamics and encounters with racism serve as the central sources of tension. Students can highlight any conflicts they observe in the story and discuss them as the story progresses.
Take into account internal conflicts—fights a character has with their thoughts or emotions—that feed into the primary conflict, as well as external conflicts—those that occur between characters or with outside forces. Teachers can first explain these concepts to the students with the help of examples and then ask them to separate the identified conflicts according to their types.
Encourage the students to think about the overarching concepts that the conflict raises. Race, familial ties, and resiliency are all major themes in "The Watsons Go to Birmingham," and they are all intimately related to the main struggle. Students can analyze the development of themes and conflicts as the story progresses and highlight their connection.
Examine how the conflict affects the characters' traits and show their progress throughout the story. For instance, how do the characters react to each conflict and can we track their progress through their reactions?
Help the students perform different engaging and interesting activities that will develop their interest in learning. Teachers can give some flexibility on creative projects such as the students who like to write can perform activities related to creative writing and the students who like to draw can make visual storyboards.
The topics of racial inequity, familial ties, resiliency, and personal development are all represented in the plot diagram. It demonstrates how the protagonists overcome obstacles and eventually turn to their connections for support. The structure also helps in tracking the progress of the characters and their connection with different aspects of the literature.
The Watson family finds strength in their love, support, and solidarity for one another in the story's ending. They accept what has happened and develop both as a family and as individuals. Byron tries to improve himself and be a better sibling to Kenny and the other members also try to develop an understanding.