I had the privilege of attending a training with the brilliant Lucy Calkins this winter. Of course I left the day long session with a lot of notes and ideas, but I wanted to share this particular set of questions because they are all simple yet very profound. Here is the list that has already helped me to be a better teacher of reading and thinking. I hope you experience the same thing!
Questions to push thinking about CHARACTER…
- How are the character names significant?
- How are the characters changing or staying the same over time?
- What or who causes the character to most be themselves?
- How do the characters react to the setting?
- What are the relationships between the characters like?
- Who do these characters remind you of and why?
- What details about the characters has the author left out?
Questions to push thinking about SETTING…
- What tone does the setting create?
- If the story was set somewhere else, how might it be different?
- What does the setting allow for?
- What does the setting limit?
- Does this setting remind you of somewhere you’ve been?
- What details has the author kept from us about the setting?
Questions to push thinking about PLOT…
- What patterns are showing up?
- How do the current events add to the problem or the solution?
- Is there any hint of what’s to come (foreshadowing)?
- How is the passage of time represented?
- What is moving the story forward?
- How is the structure related to the plot?
- What perspectives are represented?
- What perspectives are missing from the story?
Ways to write longer…
- I wonder if this…
- More evidence of this is…
- The author could have __________ but instead they…
- If nothing changes, this might lead to…
- This adds to my theory about…
- This supports or conflicts with the title because…
- I disagree with the author’s choice to…
- As I read, I’m changing how I think about…
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