"Somebody, Wanted, But, So": A Graphic Organizer

Writing summaries is an important skill students need to master.  Summaries help students decide main ideas and separate important from less important details.  The problem comes with the latter.  Most students have a difficult time deciding what to include and what to leave out.  One graphic organizer we like which may be used to aid students is sometimes called the “Somebody, Wanted, But, So”.  Here’s what it could look like:

If you asked a child to use this form to write a summary of Cinderella, it might look like this:

Somebody:  Cinderella

Wanted:  To go to the prince’s ball

But:  Her stepmother and stepsisters gave her too much work to do.

So:  Her fairy godmother came and gave her a gown, coach, horses, and a time to be home.  Cinderella went to the ball.

This could be written from the point of view of several different characters:  the prince, the stepmother, or the fairy godmother.

Although at first glance this organizer may seem too simplistic, it can give good information about the depth of understanding a student has.  If a child wrote a summary of Fly Away Home by Eve Bunting, it might look like this:

Somebody:  A young homeless boy and his father living in an airport

Wanted:  To find a real home

But: The father didn’t have a job

So:  They continued to live in the airport.

While this is a true account of the book, it is simplistic.  Compare it to the following:

Somebody:  A young homeless boy and his father

Wanted:  To stay safe while living in an airport

But:  The authorities kept looking for homeless people and throwing them out.

So:  The boy and his father had to move and sleep in different places in the airport each day.  They both continued to hope the father would find a job, and they could move to a real home.

The second summary shows more insight into the author’s message.  Students may not start out at this level of summarizing a book, but they can be taught by example to think and write with deeper understanding.

We have found this is a useful tool not just for picture books, but for chapter books, too.  It is rare that longer books have just one problem and one solution. It’s important to check for understanding after every chapter or every few chapters.  Then at the end of the book students may consider and write about the overarching theme of the book.

Most graphic organizers are meant to be quick glimpses of someone’s thinking.  That’s what this organizer does.  It gives the teacher a chance to look at the depth of their students’ understanding.

To download your FREE “Somebody, Wanted, But, So” graphic organizer from ERG, click here!