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Loma Alta Middle School
Medina Valley
Independent School District

Loma Alta MS eighth grade students dive into plot elements with The Outsiders

Inside the classroom
(LOMA ALTA MS, September 28, 2023) — INSIDE THE CLASSROOM — The layers within the plot of The Outsiders is what pulls Sonia Chapa into keeping it in her curriculum year after year. She’s been using this story to teach eighth graders reading elements for more than 20 years.

LAMSLoma Alta MS students made connections with characters in the book then worked in pairs to analyze the plot, creating a plot fiction map.

You could feel the passion in Ms. Chapa’s voice as she told her students to not confuse the tragic event involving one of the characters as the climax. She goes even deeper when she pleads that students pay attention to all the dimensions of the story.