SOCIAL STUDIES
STRATEGIES
Emotional Timeline
The idea behind this activity is to chart the main events in the main character’s
life as told in the story being read. As you read you record the main events that
occur in the character’s life. These should include important or significant things
that may be good or bad in the life of the character. When all events have been
recorded from the story, you chart them on a line graph according to how good or
bad they are in the life of the main character.
For example in the read aloud, A Paradise Called Texas, here are two main events in the
beginning of the story:
1. Mina’s family decides to move to Texas. (Ch. 1-2)
2. Mina’s family leaves their family behind and heads to Texas. (Ch. 3-4)
The emotional time line may begin to look something like this:
Sad
Emotional Rating
Happy
Mina’s Emotional Time Line from A Paradise Called Texas
5
4
3
2
1
-1
-2
-3
-4
-5
Event 1
Event 2
Event 3
Event 4
Event 5
Event 6
Event 7
Event 8
Event 9
Event 10
Explanation: The first event would be rated a +2. The family was happy to move to Texas and
establish their home on the vast land there. They liked the idea of having their own land. They
were a little worried about going also because it was a little scary having never seen the land.
The second event would be rated a –5. The family was very sad to say goodbye to their family
when they left!
When all 10 events are charted you can see the how the emotions of the main
character changed throughout the book. You can discuss
the good and bad things that have happened to the
character. Were there more good or more bad events?