Objective: 

Students will write a narrative and decompose it into smaller, manageable tasks by breaking the story into scenes, using computational thinking to structure events and character interactions.

Materials Needed: 

• Paper

• Pencils

• story planning templates

• index cards

• scene charts.

Steps:

• Introduction: 

  • The teacher introduces the concept of decomposition in both storytelling and computer science, explaining that just like programmers break down a complex problem into smaller parts, authors break a story into scenes. 

  • Students discuss how stories need to have a clear sequence of events, with dialogue, character reactions, and actions unfolding naturally.

• Activity: 

  • Students write a short narrative, focusing on setting up a situation, introducing characters, and using dialogue and descriptive details. 

  • Then, they break their stories down into individual scenes using index cards. 

  • Each card represents a "block" in the narrative, with specific actions, dialogues, and character reactions tied to it. 

  • Students organize their cards to ensure that events flow logically, just as programmers sequence their instructions. 

  • They also use temporal words to signal the order of events, like programmers structuring the flow of code.

• Discussion: 

  • After completing their scenes, students reflect on how decomposing the story helped them manage its complexity, similar to breaking down a coding problem into steps.

• Presentation: 

  • Students present their stories to the class, explaining how they decomposed their narrative into smaller parts and how each scene connects to the overall plot, much like functions in programming work together to solve a larger problem.

Equity and Access: 

Provide pre-written story templates or scaffolding for students needing 

additional support, and encourage peer collaboration by pairing students with varied skill levels.

Real-World Connection: 

Relate the process to how computer programmers and video game developers break down complex storylines or processes into individual tasks before coding them.

CS Practice(s): 

• Recognizing and Defining Computational Problems: students break their narrative into smaller, manageable scenes to ensure the structure and flow of their story. 

• Creating Computational Artifacts: Students build their stories piece by piece, similar to constructing a program.

Standard(s): 

• CA CCSS ELA-Literacy.W.4.3

• CA CS 3-5.AP.13

Objective: 

Students will write a narrative and decompose it into scenes, then use Scratch or another coding platform to animate each scene by programming characters and actions.

Materials Needed: 

• Computers or tablets 

Steps:

• Introduction: 

  • The teacher introduces the class to narrative writing, focusing on developing characters and events with dialogue, descriptions, and clear sequences. 

  • Students learn they will use Scratch or another coding platform to animate their stories, breaking them into scenes and coding actions for each part.

• Activity: 

  • Students write short narratives, breaking the story into individual scenes. 

  • They select backgrounds and characters for each scene, using coding blocks to animate actions like character movement or dialogue. 

  • Loops are used to repeat certain actions, such as walking or a character speaking multiple times. 

  • Students refine their animations to ensure that each scene flows smoothly into the next, using conditionals to control different outcomes or reactions in the story.

• Presentation: 

  • Students present their animations, explaining how they decomposed their story into scenes and programmed their characters’ actions and dialogue to match the narrative.

Equity and Access: 

Provide pre-built story templates for students needing extra support and group students in mixed-ability pairs to encourage collaboration.

Real-World Connection: 

Connect the lesson to the animation and video game industries, where developers break down scripts into scenes and code animations.

CS Practice(s): 

• Creating Computational Artifacts: Students use a coding platform to build an animated story by coding actions and dialogue. 

Standard(s): 

• CA CCSS ELA-Literacy.W.4.3

• CA CS 3-5.AP.12

• CA CS 3-5.AP.13