Hello all, Chris here. Today I would like to discuss a specific activity type which has several applications and variations in language teaching - Strip Stories. First off, what are Strip Stories? A Strip Story is a story which has been separated into smaller segments from beginning to end. These story segments do not have to contain much or any text at all. In fact, a Strip Story could insist entirely of pictures similar to what one would find in a comic book. The name for these stories comes from that fact that the various segments of the story are often given to the students out of order by cutting them into little strips of paper.
There are numerous formats in which one could present a Strip Story, for example:
- A story which has been separated into either individual sentences or groups of shorter sentences
- A story with pictures and limited text
- A story consisting purely of pictures (comic style)
- An audio text with several short tracks
- A video which has been cut into its individual scenes
This activity provides a fun and useful way of introducing new texts and/or new vocabulary and grammatical items. There are several parts to a Strip Story activity including pre-, during, and post-reading activities. This is not purely a reading activity however, and there are several supplemental activities that can be done to enhance a Strip Story which will lead students having a greater command of the vocabulary, as well as improving their reading, writing, and oral skills.
I will now outline a basic Strip Story for you including various supplemental activities.
1. Pre-Reading Activities (Activating Background Knowledge/Preparation)
Before simply diving into a new text it is helpful to activate background knowledge that the students have and to prepare them for new vocabulary and grammatical structures they are going to encounter in a text. To do so, there are several possible activities. These include but are not limited to:
- Vocabulary Bingo
- Matching with vocabulary pictures and words
- Drawing pictures of important vocabulary and playing a Pictionary/Memory type of game
- Short interview activity to activate background knowledge of the subject area (partner or small group)
2. Reading Activity (The Strip Story)
The actual Strip Story can be done numerous ways and this will largely determine the types of activities you will do before, during, and after the reading. For this example, I will discuss two of the formats mentioned above:
- A story which has been separated into either individual sentences or groups of shorter sentences
- A story with pictures and limited text
A story consisting purely of text works as well as any of the other formats. I have found that texts which feature some sort of riddle or puzzle typically add a good challenge for students as getting the order of the story right becomes all the more imperative in order to solve the puzzle. However, virtually any narrative text will do. First off, the story will have to be separated into various 'strips'. Depending on the level of the students, these can be limited to single sentences or slightly bigger chunks of text. As the teacher, you will have to determine what works best with a given text. It is helpful to create a digital version of the text you will use in order to make it easier to use as a handout later. I typically create a table in MS Word (any word processor will do) which has one column and several lines for the text. A 1x10 table is a typical size. Once a text is broken down into 'strips' you can then type these into the table. Whenever you wish to do the activity, simply print as many copies as you need. It is best to do this activity in small groups. Each group should receive a copy of the story which has been cut into its various strips and mixed up so as not to be in chronological order. Students should be made aware of the riddle or puzzle (if used) which needs to be solved. This can even be listed on one of the strips you provide the students which will require them to recognize it as the riddle to be solved and not as part of the story sequence.
Once each group has their materials they may begin by trying to place the story in the correct sequence which will not only test their puzzle solving skills but also their ability to correctly read and process information in the L2.
I will discuss the other formats for the strip story in Part 2 of this post along with the various post-reading activities that can be done. Stay tuned!
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