Somebody Wanted But So Then

Students are often asked to retell a story or event either orally or in writing. The ability to retell or summarize demonstrates a student's comprehension abilities. There are a number of strategies to help children do this with success. We often use graphic organizers that break the story up into characters, setting, problem and solution. We provide sentence starters: In the beginning, Then, Finally.
Another way (that works very well), is the Somebody Wanted But So Then strategy. By using this organizer, students are prompted to recount the story by naming the characters, the problem and how it's solved. It works! Try it at home.
Read a story together and have your child retell (recount/summarize) it either in writing or orally.