Squiggle Stories!

 This is one of my favorite assignments!  I love seeing how different students take the same computer-generated random squiggle lines, year after year, and create totally different art work.  Then, it is so amazing to see the creative stories that come from their art work!  For this project, we learned the "5W's and an H" story map:

WHO is in my picture

WHAT is happening

WHERE (setting)

WHEN (setting)

WHY this is happening (story line)

HOW my story ends

Once the students jotted down these important notes, they wrote a story with a clear beginning, middle, and end.  Enjoy these entertaining samples across the grades!

Squiggle Story by Liam (3rd grade)

  Once upon a time, there was a bunny who heard the myth about Easter.  They always said in the middle of spring, if you go to the Forest of the East, you will find falling eggs with stuff in them. The bunny set off in a hurry, trying to get there.  Many days later, he found an unfamiliar forest.  He thought for a minute, and he looked up and saw eggs falling from the sky!  He did it!  He found the Forest of the East.

The Attack of the Monkeys, by Grayson (3rd grade)

        Once upon a time, there was a little farm house in New York.  It was a very normal day.  Then at 5:00 AM, Avery (the son of the family) saw a god and thought he was there to bless him.  But then thirty seconds later, he realized that the god was just there to fight off these monkeys and the monkey god. 

         About five minutes later, Avery's brother Sam came and started to watch the fight.  Then they got the whole family to be looking through the window.

        After that, the god sent a tornado to try to defeat the monkeys.  Then Sam, Avery, and their scared parents had to go to the tornado bunker so they did not get sucked into the tornado.  

        Then their sister Kate came in and said, "Have you seen what's happening?"

        "Yes, it is very terrible!" exclaimed Sam.

        Avery was watching the commotion outside of the bunker when he yelled, "The monkeys are throwing fireballs towards the house and god created a lightning storm!"

        The family rushed to see what Avery was talking about.  They say what Avery was saying: The god had created a lightning storm and the monkeys were throwing fireballs at the house.

        The family decided to go back into the bunker when the god summoned a tsunami to put out the flame of the monkeys.  Their fire went away, so they became statues.  Then it was just the monkey god vs. the good god, who luckily knew Monkey's weakness.... banana bombs!  So god threw a banana bomb, but the monkey god did not chase it and he said, "I can tell if a banana is a bomb or not."  Little did the monkey god know the banana bomb was right behind him, and it blew up.

        The monkey god lost his wings, and to the good god's surprise, the monkey god turned into King Kong and started to punch god, who fought back.  He sent a. meteor to hit King Kong, and then King Kong was defeated and he faded away.  

        Then the family broke open the meteor and found a very, very rare metal, and sold it.  They became rich and lived happily ever after!

The Death of Bakaluela, by Andreas (5th grade)

        In the black of night, the island of Bakaluela suffers at the thought that it's facing its enemy.  Today, in the middle of the night, the island will experience death.  There was no doubt.  The end was just around the corner.

        The tall was volcano was rumbling.  It was like a car running.  But louder, waves of sounds, words don't have the ability to describe.  Scorching heat flamed, spreading warm temperatures across the island.  Lava popped, and not satisfyingly, but deadly.

        Time was beating, very rapidly, so fast the island of Bakaleula didn't have time to think.  A rumble echoed across the island.  Tsunamis rose above unimaginable heights.  San flew everywhere at the beach.  Trees shivered as undescribable air passed by.  The whole island was trembling with horror.  Everything was feeling it.  Something was coming.  No one knew exactly what, but they knew it would be deadly.

        Everything was silent.  Now everbody was ready.  The trees didn't whisper, the sand didn't tremble with wind, and the waves didn't flow.  It was just a sound that stood out.  A little pop in the lava at the volcano.  Just an average, simple, and tiny pop.  But it wasn't a good pop.  No, not even close to a little pop.

        Lava erupted out of the volcano.  The volcano was screaming, leaving burning ash, smoke, and lava on the poor trees.  Ash gathered in the sand, making it black.  The water was steaming, as it faced the lava.  The volcano continued its deadly bursting while it tilted to the left.  It tilted slowly, then faster, until the volcano fell on the island, cracking its base under the ocean.  The island was slowly sinking.  The island was almost dead.  The trees were vanished, the sand was black as the night sky, and the volcano left a gigantic puff of ash. 

         The volcano stopped.  It realied its mistake.  But it was too late.  Seconds later, nothing was there.  The island was under the sea, never again to be seen.

We Stand Together, by Emily (5th grade)

        On Earth, corruption lurked in all the nooks and crannies on the surface of the world.  Disease and destruction were found everywhere, including the infamous Covid-19.  Everywhere, people fought.  War corrupted and destroyed cities, forests, and more.  In most places, people lay hopeless, waiting, just waiting, for things to get better.

        One fateful day, Covid-19 made a drastic impact, killing hundreds of thousands of people.  Earth fell into chaos.  You could almost hear the primal screams of despair, every day and every night. 

         Then, one day, heroes stood up, tired from everything and determined to make a change.  Doctors, police officers, firemen, teachers, artists, writers-- even children-- stood up from their seats, all with one goal: to change the world.

        We joined hands and helped those in need.  People of all ethnicities stood up together.  Big or small, short or tall, we never judged.  We helped many in need, raising money, providing food, supplying shelter, even hosting drives where we gave out necessities to those that were poor.  We stood together, never giving up.  Even in dire situations, we never sat down.   Never backed down, never relented.  Never gave up, never stopped trying to reach our goal: to change the world.

        Everyone helped.  Doctors healed the sick, writers inspired.  Artists drew, citizens volunteered.  Even children helped, writing, inspiring, drawing.  In the end, we eventually did it.  We sparked hope.  We joined hands, never giving up.  We succeeded.  Even though Covid-19 still hung in the air, something else overtook the feelings of pain and corruption: Hope.

        We joined hands, fighting for what we wanted.  We worked together, giving giving up, never backing down.  In the end, we succeeded.  We brought back hope.  Hope that we should keep going.  Hope that everything is going to be alright.  We also learned a lesson, a valuable lesson.  We learned that no matter what, we stand together.