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Gabrielle Esparraguera
Host Teacher: Sharon Shumate
School: Wilson Middle School, 7th grade
29 April 2015

Analysis of Student Learning: Plot Structure

1. The second, observed lesson I taught at Wilson Middle School is about the elements of plot
structure. My pre and post lesson assessments are meant to analyze the second objective,
every student will be able to identify plot points (initiating action, rising action, climax,
falling action, and resolution) in a story. I chose to analyze this objective because it is a
higher level of thinking than simply writing the definition of each element of plot structure. I
think it is important that students are able to identify the plot structure of any narrative text
they read or watch (as in a movie). During the short PowerPoint lecture, students learned the
definition of each element of plot structure and they were given an example of that plot point
from the story, The Memory Coat.
2. The pre and post lesson assessment used during the lesson are the same. I created and labeled
a plot diagram on the top and bottom half of a piece of paper. Students were instructed to
write the numbers on the bottom of each story card (cards with events that correspond to
each element of plot structure from the story The Memory Coat) in their respective places.
The students had read the story with their teacher the day before my lesson. The worksheet is
attached.
3. For data collection below, a students answer for each plot element is counted as correct only
if it is fully correct. For example, some students recorded only two of the four rising action
story cards. These students were counted as wrong, even if the two out of four were correct.
This data is from both first and second block.

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Data from Plot Structure Lesson

Number of Students

40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Initiating Event

Pre-Assessment
Post Assessment

Plot Points

4. This lesson is one that can be taught and reinforced multiple times during the school year.
But for students first exposure to plot structure, they grasped the definitions and examples of
each plot element. For example, when I asked my second block class to tell me the plot of the
movie, Frozen, using SWBS (Somebody, Wanted, But, So). Although I did not explicitly
make the connection between the But and the climax of the story, students were easily able
to recall the turning point of the movie. Also, as I taught students the definition of each plot
element, I asked students to volunteer examples from The Memory Coat. I was pleasantly
surprised that students were excited to share their knowledge and that some students could
determine the climax of the story.
While the students in second block were much more excited to share their predictions on
movie or story plot points, block one was not as talkative. This is partially my fault because I did
not use as exciting of a movie example for SWBS. In block one I asked students to tell me the
plot (using SWBS) for the Hunger Games. However, I did not know the SWBS for that movie
myself, so I was not able to help them as much as I could for the movie Frozen. Students from
both classes were also weak in giving me verbal or non-verbal feedback when I was going over
the PowerPoint slides for each element of plot structure. I would have liked to know if they were
confused or needed another example. I think in the future I will have to directly ask the students
if they need any more information.
5. From the pre and post lesson assessment, there is a huge shift of students understanding the
climax and rising action of the story, The Memory Coat. I am pleased to see that many more
students can distinguish the climax from the rising action. This increase in correct answers on

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the post lesson assessment might be because students learned that the climax is the most
significant turning point in the story. After the climax there is a short falling action and then
resolution. Before the lesson, many students assumed that the climax of the story was the
most action filled or tragic point. Many students first believed that the climax was when
Grisha hit his eye on the basket. This is a great turning point, but if this were the climax then
the falling action would still be long. So, this is still a part of the rising action. After the
lesson, more students were able to determine the climax as the turning point closest to the
end.
From the post lesson data, I also noticed that many students did not label only one climax
or all four points of rising action. I think many students got this part incorrect because they did
not understand that there can be many points of rising or falling action, but only one climax. If
students had asked for clarification or volunteered their own ideas about these plot points from
the story, they could have identified these events correctly