Brief Description

Over a period of three days, students will write a creative paragraph and post it to the Internet using the Storybook Website. Students are given a series of pictures that they must use in their writing.  Students develop definitions for the pictures and write a story that includes those words.  Students publish their work on the Storybook Website, where the website replaces the student-selected words for pictures.

Standards and Frameworks

Technology Standards

• 3T-E1. Use formatting capabilities of technology tools for communicating and illustrating.
• 4T-E2. Use technology tools for individual and collaborative writing, communication and publishing activities to create curricular related products for audiences inside and outside the classroom.

• W-E1. Use correct spelling, punctuation, capitalization, grammar and usage, along with varied sentence structure and paragraph organization, to complete effectively a variety of writing tasks.
• W-E2. Write a personal experience narrative or creative story that includes a plot and shows the reader what happens through well-developed characters, setting, dialog, and themes and uses figurative language, descriptive words and phrases.

Academic

• Using the six traits of writing rubrics, students will write a creative story scoring a rubric rating of 4 or above in at least 2 of the following areas: organization, ideas, and conventions.
• Using Microsoft Word, students will compose a creative story with a maximum of 3 errors in conventions.

• Using Microsoft Word and Internet Explorer, students will cut text from Word and paste into a webpage to publish their online story successfully.

• Students must have parental permission as documented on the district acceptable use policy to access and post work on the Internet.
• Students must be able to locate and open Microsoft Word/word processing program.
• Students must know how to save and print a word processing document.
• Students must be able to enter a website address into the Internet browser.

• A computer with Internet access and a word processing program, preferably a lab setting with one computer for each child.
• Paper and pencil
• Access to the Storybook Website at http://www.kids-space.org/story/story.html.

In order to meet the needs of all students, the following accommodations can be put into place.

• Gifted Learners- Students can be challenged to exchange papers with a friend and try to determine what the symbols stand for without the picture key present.
• ELL Learners- Students can partially complete the assignment orally. The teacher or volunteer can type part of the story for them as they dictate the story.
• ADD/ADHD Learners- Students can be given various occasions over several lab sessions and classroom computer sessions to complete the assignment in smaller chunks. They can also have a peer typist help type if needed.
• Special Education Learners- Students can be given a modified assignment. The student is still required to write a story but at their level. For example, they could  complete the first half of the story and then the teacher/volunteer can type the rest with the student telling it to them.

Several Days Before Teaching Lesson

• Visit the storybook site (http://www.kids-space.org/story/story.html) and click on the submit button at the top of the page.
• Scroll down to the teachers sections and click on the correct answer to the question presented.
• Read through the forms about privacy and fill out the form to request a password.
• The website will take up to two days to send you the class password and the web page URL. This information is very important for the final stage of publishing.

• Teacher will introduce website (http://www.kids-space.org/story/story.html) in the classroom using computer hooked up to a computer-television converter.
• Teacher will show some examples of previous stories created for the website.
• Teacher will show students the assigned pictures for the month of publishing.
• Teacher will explain that students will assign a meaning to each picture on their own.
• Teacher will give the following assignment. Students are to create a short story that incorporates the five selected words. The story must have a beginning where a character and setting are presented, a middle where a problem arises, and an ending where the problem is solved.
• Students will assign meaning to each of the five pictures and write them down at the top of a piece of paper.
• Students will begin writing a rough draft of their story.

• Once completed, the students will pair up to edit each other’s stories. Students will check for character, setting, problem, solution as well as conventions.
• Students will fill out The Peer Editing Checklist as they edit and turn in checklist to their peer.
• Teacher will monitor class and assist as needed.

• Students will open a word processing document and type their story into the document.
• Students will save their work to a disk or server space and print a copy to turn in for assessment.
• Teacher will monitor and assist as needed. Students who finish early may assist students who need extra modifications as a peer typist or as a technology tutor for saving and print documents.
• Teacher will asses stories using the six traits rubric and guarantee that they are ready for posting using the guidelines found at http://www.kids-space.org/guide/storyH/S_class.html

• Teacher will have students open their saved story from the prior lab session.
• Teacher will have students open an Internet browser and have them enter the Internet address written above.
• Teacher will direct students to click on the submit link at the top of the page.
• Teacher will tell students to click on the link that says they are at a school computer.
• Teacher will have students click on the yes I know my password link.
• Teacher will direct students to click on the monthly storybook link.
• Teacher will direct students to scroll down and enter the password. Students will then enter the self-created definitions under each corresponding picture in the little white box.
• Teacher will show students to click in the toolbar on the open document from earlier that lesson. This will maximize the document over the webpage.
• Teacher will assist students in highlighting their text. Once highlighted, students will use the right mouse button and choose the copy function.
• Teacher will demonstrate how to click on the toolbar where it says Shelf Entry Form. This will pull up the webpage.
• Teacher will show students to click in the “story field” to bring up a cursor. Teacher will then tell students to right click on their mouse again and choose the paste command. This should paste the entire story into the white “story field” box.
• Teacher will tell students to type their title and finish filling out the required information. Teacher will give their own school email address to the students in order to complete the posting. Students will click on Send this Story Button.

Students will be assessed on their successful publishing of the story online. Students will also be assessed on the ideas, organization, and convention rubrics of the Six Traits of Writing. Both of these goals will be assessed in their overall assignment rubric.