How to Use Writing Standards with Story Coins

Includes connections for Writing Standards, Speaking and Listening Standards, and Language Standards. Read an Overview of Standards for more background on each writing standard.

Each section below includes a general overview of the standards, how Story Coins can support the standards, and ideas for using Story Coins with the standards.

General Writing

Range– ability to write for a range of time. Includes short responses, extended time or about a specific topic. Story Coins is a great place to start when building idea generation, stamina, and editing skills for students of all ages.

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Writing Process (includes technology)

  1. Brainstorm/ idea generation- finding ideas to write about
  2. Plan/ organize ideas- creating a graphic organizer, completing research (internet or physical texts), deciding which audience the piece is for
  3. Draft- creating a draft of the writing
  4. Edit & revise- checking for grammar/spelling, rewriting, reorganizing ideas, adding or eliminating parts, trying a new approach
  5. Publish- using a platform to publish writing digitally with intended audience and purpose in mind

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Writing Standards

  • Narrative– this type of writing is all about storytelling, which can be real or imagined. Key elements include:
    • Beginning, middle, and end
    • Characters and setting(s)
    • Plot (action in the story)
    • Dialogue 
    • Conflict/resolution or problem/solution

Use Story Coins to help generate ideas and sequence events. Each coin can represent another step in the plot (next, then, after). The coins can also help add characters and dialogue to the story. Use them to change settings to make the story more interesting or use them to generate an idea of a problem or conflict for the characters to tackle. 

Ideas for Use:

  • Sequence practice
  • Using specific genre words
  • Drawing prompts to tell a story
  • Character development
  • Specific problem/solutions
  • Setting development
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  • Informational– this writing is all about the facts. Key elements include:
    • Citations or resource references
    • Charts and graphs
    • Specific vocabulary words
    • Text structure (cause/effect, problem/solution, sequence, description, compare/contrast)

Story Coins are a great place to start when looking for a research idea. Use the icons to generate questions about a specific topic or to spark a discussion. Additional coins can provide more context for the research topic, add new question ideas, or provide more research paths to take. 

Ideas for Use:

  • Research ideas
  • Question ideas
  • A specific audience 
  • Visuals to accompany writing
  • What Would You Do?
  • Opinion– this writing is based on opinion or an argument for/against a topic. Key elements include:
    • Clearly stated opinion 
    • Evidence to support the opinion
    • Reference to the opposite opinion

Use Story Coins to spark opinion statements for students to research or discuss further. Start with a “this or that” using one of the coins. Then, have students research their choice further to find evidence for their opinion. 

Ideas for Use:

  • Would You Rather…
  • Defending a perspective that’s not your own
  • Opinions to research

Speaking & Listening Standards

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  • Overall, this standard encourages students to contribute to group conversations, follow rules for discussions, and take turns speaking and listening to others. 
  • This standard may also include giving presentations to a group and creating presentations with visuals 

Story Coins are intended to be used as a group storytelling activity, which allows each player to create a sentence based on their coin’s icon. The nature of the game helps students practice interacting with others in a group and working collaboratively to create a story. 

Ideas for Use:

  • Story in a sentence
  • Create a group story
  • Play therapy
  • Challenge a perspective
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Language Development Standards

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  • Kindergarten-2 only- identifying upper and lower case letters and understanding letter sounds
  • Developing and using new vocabulary in context of communication (writing, speaking, listening) 
  • Finding relationships between words (rhyming, synonyms, antonyms, roots)
  • Understanding and using Greek/Latin affixes 

Each coin’s unique icon can be interpreted in multiple ways. This allows for students to build and practice vocabulary skills in a group or independently. Students can also use the icons to find relationships between various terms or ideas the coins represent. Use the coins to generate new words based on root words and affixes that can be added. 

Ideas for Use:

  • Letter/Sound/Word recognition game
  • Analogy challenge
  • Add a prefix or suffix
  • How Many Words Do You Know?

Additional Ideas for Use:

  • Try a new book genre based on the coin
  • Building challenges
  • Fine motor skill practice

Visit the FAQ Page

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  1. Pingback: How To Create Personalized Writing Prompts During A GimKit Game

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