Cause and Effect with Comic Strips

Explicit Instruction/Teacher modeling

• Tell students that today the comic strips that we create will be cause-and-effect comic strips.
• Explain that a cause is the reason why something happens. The effect is the result of what happened.
• Ask students to think about examples of a cause and effect. Then have students turn and talk to a neighbor and think-pair-share.
• Write students’ examples on the board with an arrow showing that the cause leads to the effect (Cause: It was my birthday / Effect: We ate cake).

Guided Practice

• Remind students that our cause-and-effect comic strips will be created using what we have been learning in science (e.g., animal behaviors).
• Reread or review science text if necessary.
• On chart paper, draw multiple comic strips with two squares per strip and with room for a caption under each square.
• Ask students to share some examples of cause and effect as they relate to their science topic (e.g., animal behaviors).
• As you call on students, write their "cause" example in the first square and their "effect" example in the second square. Ask students to tell what the captions for each comic strip should say. Write in the captions and draw a quick sketch in each square (e.g., Cause: It is winter and the weather is becoming colder. / Effect: The monarch butterfly migrates to Mexico in search of warmer temperatures.).

Independent working time

• Show students the Cause and Effect Comic Strips worksheet.
• Explain that they are now going to create their own cause-and-effect comic strips using what they have been learning in science.
• Remind students that each square must have a picture and a caption.
• Encourage students to have fun and get creative with their drawings, speech bubbles, and sound effect bubbles.
• Circulate the room as students work to offer support and assess their levels of understanding.