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Read Chapters 5-9; Complete Student Packet Worksheets for Chapters 5-9

Distribute one card from the deck of Direct Effect Cards to each student. The first card is the Decision Card, which directly brings about an effect, which, in turn, becomes the cause of another effect, etc. Each student will receive a card and must find the “direct effect” to their card until everyone has found their effect partner. In the end, the group will all be lined up, illustrating that causes and effects are interconnected and impact the plot of a story. Explain that putting the cards together illustrates how events in a story may be caused by important character decisions. Note: If you do not want to implement a whole group activity, pair students off with a shuffled stack of the Direct Effect Cards. Ask students to sort them into their cause and effect sequence, and have them raise their hands when they have completed the task. When everyone is done, read the story aloud in sequence while the students check their work with their partner.

will explain that, similar to our cause and effect game, character decisions impact the plot of a novel. The effects of these decisions ripple throughout the story and form its plot. Good readers pay careful attention to the decisions a character makes in a story and track the effects of those decisions to better understand the plot.

To examine the effects of characters’ decisions in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, I will first determine when an important decision has been made that will affect the rest of the story. Particularly in Fantasy Fiction, characters make significant decisions to embark on a journey or to take a particular path while on a journey. Also, characters in Fantasy Fiction are often faced with moral dilemmas in which they must choose a course of action. (For example, characters in a Fantasy sometimes face dilemmas between good or evil, one of the Fantasy elements we discussed in the Genre Lesson.) Then, I will list the direct effects of this decision and the direct effects of those effects, just like in our cause and effect game. I will model tracking and explaining the effects of Tumnus’ decision to let Lucy return to the Wardrobe in Chapter 2. I will use textual information from Chapter 8 to explain what happened to Tumnus because of his decision not to turn Lucy into the Queen. (See Tumnus’ Decision: Cause and Effect Chart for an example.)

Ask: "How can I analyze the impact of a character’s decision on the plot?" Students should answer that you should stop at an important decision and then list the direct effects of making that decision. Finally, you should continue to record the effects of those effects, linking each to its logical cause.

will examine the effects of Edmund’s decision to take the Turkish Delight from the Queen. We will link the direct effects of this choice through Chapter 7, when Edmund runs away from the Beaver’s home. First, we will write the character decision prompt on an index card tape it to the board or chart paper: “Edmund decides to take the Turkish Delight from the Queen.” Then, we will write effects on additional index cards and tape them next to or beneath their direct cause. We will stop when Edmund leaves his siblings. See Edmund’s Decision: Cause and Effect Chart for an example. We will, in summary, explain how Edmund’s decision to trust the Queen and take the Turkish Delight resulted in his departure from his own family.

will list the effects of the siblings’ decision to save Tumnus after they discover the Queen has taken him on The Effects of Characters’ Decisions page in your Student Packet. You will summarize the effects of their decision beneath the list on The Effects of Characters’ Decisions page in your Student Packet. (See page 11 in the Student Packet.)

will come together to share the effects of the siblings’ decision to save Tumnus. We will discuss how the story might have been different if the characters made different decisions. Ask: "What if Edmund hadn’t taken the Turkish Delight? What if he had told the truth to his siblings? We will return to the question—how does a character’s decision affect the plot of the story?"