Question Stories

The teacher asks scaffolding questions (Who? Where? When? What happens?) and students' answers collectively build a story they then write or retell.

Procedure

1. Tell learners they are going to make a story and you will help by asking questions. Anything you ask about must be included in the story.
2. Ask questions to establish the setting:
   • Who is in your story? A man? A woman? A boy? A girl? An animal? (Then ask details about the character.)
   • Where is he/she/it at the beginning? (Push for precision: On the lowest branch of a big tree in a park in the middle of a city.)
   • When does the story begin? (season, month, day, time)
   • What is the weather like?
   • What is he/she/it doing?
3. Use further questions to unfold the drama: What's happening now? Something happens — what is it? Some people are watching — who are they? What do they want?
4. Students compose the story in present or past tense.

Tips

• Write brief note-form answers on the board as prompts for the writing stage.
• When students call out different answers, write up multiple options and let students choose which to use.
• The teacher should keep control of questioning to maintain dramatic momentum.
• Follow-up: The next day, ask the class to reconstruct and retell the story.
• Variations: base the story on pictures, physical objects, a single word/phrase, or a whole sentence (He's crying; It was very valuable; The wind was blowing).