A STORY FRAMES PLOT ANALYSIS OF MR. FERRIS AND HIS WHEEL

Summer is a time for exploring new things and new places. County fairs, amusement parks, and local celebrations abound, but did you ever consider the engineering feats behind local attractions or the chemistry and physics behind pyrotechnology at your local fireworks display? Asking young people to take a closer look at the fun rides and exciting attractions can spark interesting conversations about science and technology.

With that in mind, this month's Story Frames Analysis explores Mr. Ferris and His Wheel, written by Kathryn Gibbs Davis and beautifully illustrated by Gilbert Ford. This analysis (along with many others) can be found in my resource for teachers and speech-language pathologists, Story Frames for Teaching Literacy: Enhancing Student Learning Through the Power of Storytelling, which includes additional tools and lesson plans for using this story and many others in the classroom. The picture book has a Lexile reading level of 900, placing it at approximately a fifth-grade level, making it a narrative appropriate for all ages. 

Summary: George Washington Gale Ferris, a mechanical engineer, races the clock to create the main attraction for the 1893 World’s Fair. 

1. Ordinary World: Mr. Ferris works as a mechanical engineer designing roads, bridges, and tunnels. 

2. Call and Response: The newspapers announce a nationwide contest for a design for the star attraction for the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago. 

3. Mentors, Guides, and Gifts: George’s partner, William, helps him create a design for a Monster Wheel. 

4. Crossing: Mr. Ferris takes his drawing to Chicago to show it to the construction chief for the fair. 

5. New World: The construction chief tells Mr. Ferris that his wheel looks flimsy and will most likely collapse.

6. Problems, Prizes, and Plans: Ferris finally gets permission to build his wheel, but he must raise his own money. 

7. Midpoint Attempt: When George’s crew starts digging, they discover that the ground is frozen. Underneath the frozen earth, they find quicksand. 

8. Downtime Response: Thirty-five feet down, George’s crew erects the two towers and the axle that serve as the foundation for the wheel. This is a big accomplishment, but there is no time to rest. 

9. Chase and Escape: The men work nonstop to complete the Monster Wheel. 

10. Death and Transformation: George’s partner, William, loses hope, but the water wheel from George’s youth is finally transformed into a giant Monster Wheel. 

11. Climax: The Final Test: The final test is to see if the wheel will spin. It is a success, and the news spreads across the country. 

12. Final Reward: Now the Ferris wheel is a favorite ride at amusement parks across the world. 

The complete story analysis for this book, along with analyses of 21 additional picture books and 10 chapter books and novels, is available on the download hub at the publisher's website for purchasers of Story Frames.

Check out my February post on A Race Around the World to explore more travel adventures.

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STORY FRAMES AND A RACE AROUND THE WORLD

This month, I'm featuring A Race Around the World: The True Story of Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bisland. My Story Frames analysis is slightly modified and shortened here. This nonfiction narrative picture book on a topic relevant to all ages is written by Caroline Starr Rose and illustrated by Alexandra Bye, from the She Made History series. 

With spring break approaching, many students and teachers will be traveling. A Race Around the World is a relevant topic to explore. It follows the most unusual true journey of two female journalists in 1889, who race around the world to beat each other and the record set by the fictional character Phileas Fogg in Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne. For students who aren't traveling, encourage taking a journey through a good book. Discuss how stories let us visit places we may never visit in real life. That way, when you come back together after break, everyone has a story to share.

This story analysis is not meant to replace reading the book, but to enhance the discussion with students. Read more about Story Frames and my story analysis system HERE.

1. Ordinary World: Nellie Bly is a reporter for a local newspaper, the World, while Elizabeth Bisland writes a monthly column for Cosmopolitan magazine. 

2. Call and Response: Nellie Bly plans to travel the world in 75 days and beat the fictional Phileas Fogg record. Elizabeth's editor tells her he wants her to make the same journey around the world, but traveling in the opposite direction.

3. Mentors, Guides, and Gifts: Her boss advises Nellie that too much luggage will slow her down. She has a special dress made that she can wear for the entire journey.

4. Crossing (The Journey Begins): Nellie heads east, leaving New Jersey for England on an ocean steamer. At Grand Central Station, Elizabeth catches a westbound train, travels across the U.S., and then boards a ship heading to Japan.

5. New World: Both women visit many new and unusual places.

6. Problems, Prizes, and Plans: The Prize for both women is to win the race. Many obstacles and Problems arise to slow them down.

7. Midpoint Attempt: Nellie goes to meet the author, Jules Verne, then rushes to Italy, where she almost misses her next ship.

8. Downtime Response: Nellie arrives in Ceylon and relaxes on the beach. Elizabeth arrives in Japan and has such a good time that she plans to return.

9. Chase and Escape: Their two ships cross paths on the South China Sea as they continue their race.

10. Death and Transformation (All Hope is Lost): In France, Elizabeth misses her boat back to America. In San Francisco, Nellie's train is cancelled because of snow. Things look hopeless, and both women must make a new plan.

11. Climax: The Final Test: Nellie takes a train south through Arizona, where people cheer her on at every station. Meanwhile, after missing two more ships, Elizabeth must take a train to catch the last ship to America.

12. Final Reward: Nellie wins the race, completing the trip in 72 days. Although Elizabeth loses the race, she continues to travel for the rest of her life.

The complete story analysis for this book, along with analyses of 21 additional picture books and 10 chapter books and novels, is available on the download hub at the publisher's websit for purchasers of Story Frames.

A fun connection to this story is my free Story Ad Lib entitled Travel Trouble. The PDF may be downloaded as a link in my 2026 newsletter. Sign up HERE.

In 2021, I combined my love of writing with my experiences working with struggling readers and writers to create Story Frames: Enhancing Student Learning Through the Power of Storytelling. It is a twelve-step story analysis I created that is inspired by The Writers Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers by Christopher Vogler and various other books on story plotting for professional writers. Read more about it HERE.  

FALL, FERRIS WHEELS AND STORY FRAMES

Fall means back to school. For many places it also means state fairs and autumn carnivals. You may see Ferris wheels and bouncy ball pits popping up unexpectedly in parking lots and parks. It’s a great time to explore Mr. Ferris and His Wheel, written by Kathryn Gibbs Davis and illustrated by Gilbert Ford. This non-fiction narrative picture book tells the story of how mechanical engineer, George Washington Gale Ferris Jr., designed the first Ferris Wheel for the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair.

Although this is a picture book primarily for kids ages 6-10, the vocabulary and concepts explored make it worthy of discussion for middle school and high school students as well. High school teachers may even want to contrast Mr. Ferris and His Wheel with the non-fiction thriller, The Devil in White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America by Erik Larson. Contrasting the two books with older students provides an opportunity to talk about how different authors may use the same event to explore a topic for very different audiences and very different purposes.

I have been using my story plot analysis called Story Frames, to explore Mr. Ferris and His Wheel for the past couple of weeks with my third, fourth, and fifth grade students. For those of you unfamiliar with Story Frames, the tool I use to talk about story structure, see the description on my blog page entitled, The Secret Language of Stories. Information in bold below represents the key ideas for each section. Young children or children with expressive language challenges may only be able to state these key ideas. Older students may be expected to add more detail as well as transitions between ideas.

Check out the 10- Page VOCABULARY FREEBIE I have created for this book at my Teachers Pay Teachers Store.

It is part of a comprehensive 57-Page book companion also available on TpT entitled STORY FRAMES: NARRATIVE STRUCTURE FOR MR. FERRIS AND HIS WHEEL.

                               PLOT ANALYSIS FOR MR. FERRIS AND HIS WHEEL

The information in bold is the essential information I want my students to be able to discuss in their story retells and their written summaries.

Ordinary World: When George Ferris is a boy he dreams of riding on the water wheel he sees on the Carson River where he frequently goes fishing (see the very first illustration with the quote from Daniel H. Burnham). As an adult, Mr. Ferris works as a mechanical engineer in Pittsburgh designing roads, bridges, and tunnels.

Call & Response: The newspapers announce a nationwide contest for a design for the star attraction for the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago. The judges don’t like any of the drawings. They all look like the Eiffel Tower, the star attraction of the 1889 World’s Fair in France.

Mentors, Guides & Gifts: George's partner, William, helps him create a design for a Monster Wheel. The wheel is inspired by the water wheel of George’s youth along with many other smaller items like bicycle tires.

Crossing: Mr. Ferris takes his drawing to Chicago to show it to the construction chief of the fair.

New World: The construction chief tells Mr. Ferris that his wheel looks flimsy and will collapse. Opening day draws near and there is still no star attraction.

Problem, Prize, & Plan: Ferris finally gets permission to build his Monster Wheel (Prize) but the construction chief won’t give him any money for the materials he needs (Problem). Mr. Ferris goes from bank to bank to ask for a loan (Implied Plan), but they won’t give him money either. He finally uses his own money and the money of some rich investors.

Midpoint Attempt: When George’s crew starts digging, they face two new challenges. The ground is frozen and the shovels break. Underneath the frozen earth they find 20 feet of quicksand.

Downtime Response: Thirty-five feet down, George’s crew finally hits solid ground. They erect the two towers and the axle that serve as the foundation for the wheel.

Chase & Escape: It’s a race to the finish as thousands of parts arrive by train every day. There are 100,000 parts in all and the men work non-stop to complete the Monster Wheel.

Death & Transformation: George’s partner, William, loses hope and wants to give up. He is responsible for the many parts. They finally finish the project and George’s water wheel is transformed into a Monster Wheel that’s 265 feet high.

Climax/Final Attempt: The final test is to see if the wheel will spin. On opening day, 2,000 people watch as George, his wife, and their guests board Car Number One. It’s the size of a living room with 40 velvet seats. The wheel works and news of George’s invention, now called the Queen of the Midway, soon spreads across the country.

Final Reward: George’s wife gives him and golden whistle. The investors decide to give the invention his name and call it the Ferris Wheel. The Chicago World’s Fair, also known as the “White City,” inspires the Emerald City in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz as well as Disneyland. Walt Disney’s father was a construction worker at the fair.

Themes: The book explores several important themes including Inspiration and Invention.

1. INSPIRATION: Inspiration is a thread found throughout this wonderful little story. On the first page, before the book begins, we see an illustration of young George fishing by the water wheel on the Carson River. A drawing of the water wheel is also posted on the wall in his workshop. The illustration of his workshop includes many other items of inspiration such as a bicycle tire and a pencil sharpener. I like to have fun with students searching that page for the many things that inspired the design for the Ferris Wheel. In addition, the bird cage is the inspiration for the first sky scraper. The White City is the inspiration for the Emerald City and Disneyland.
2. INVENTION: The story is primarily about mechanical inventions, but it opens up discussions around all types of inventions including electric light bulbs, also appearing for the first time at the fair, and food inventions like the hamburger and Cracker Jacks. Cracker Jacks first appeared in 1893 at the Chicago World’s fair while the hamburger made its big debut at the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis. Kids enjoy talking about interesting food inventions. I also like to point out that both George Ferris and Walt Disney had childhood dreams that seemed crazy at the time but later changed the world. I tell students that they might have an idea right now that will one day become a reality.

Deception Pass, The Eclipse, and Winnie-the-Pooh

Last week was quite an adventure. My husband and I flew to Seattle and then took the train to Bellingham, Washington where we spent a few days with my brother and sister-in-law and got to watch the eclipse. We squeezed in a drive to Vancouver, Canada and a ferry boat ride to the San Juan Islands where we visited  Friday Harbor and Deception Pass. Now wouldn't those make good book titles? 

My creative wheels are turning.

On Wednesday my husband flew home and I took the train to Portland where I was graciously welcomed by members of the Oregon Branch of the International Dyslexia Association. On Thursday I gave a workshop on Adventures in Verse: Using Poetry to Support Reading, Writing and Speech. Afterward my good friend, Paula Moraine, and I held teacher workshops for the Oregon Branch including a three-hour workshop on The Secret Language of Stories. I will be holding several SLOS Workshops this fall in Colorado, New Jersey, Georgia and Los Angeles at various conferences across the country. There is a tab on this blog where you may learn all about SLOS and find several stories that I have already analyzed using this method that I created to teach writing and story analysis to students of all ages. 

On today's post I'm including an analysis of Finding Winnie, the story Paula and I shared at the Oregon workshop for those who so graciously attended and for anyone else who might be interested. Paula has added a wonderful executive function perspective to my material and has written two books on the subject.

Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World’s Most Famous Bear by Lindsay Mattock. Winner of the Caldecott Medal.

SUMMARY: In 1914, Harry Colebourn, on his way to war, rescued a baby bear and took her with him across the ocean. He named her Winnie and left her at the London Zoo where a small boy named Christopher Robin befriended her. This true story of the bear that inspired Winnie-the-Pooh is told from the perspective of Harry’s great granddaughter, Lindsay Mattock.

ORDINARY WORLD: Harry Colebourn lives in Winnipeg and works as a veterinarian. 

CALL AND RESPONSE: World War I breaks out and Harry gets on a train with the other troops headed to Valcartier, Canada.

MENTORS, GUIDES, & GIFTS: He gets off of the train to take a little walk around the station and pays a trapper twenty dollars for a bear. He names the bear Winnipeg to remind his regiment of home as they gather in Valcartier and prepare to go across the sea.  

CROSSING: Harry takes Winnie with him in a giant ship across the Atlantic Ocean. 

NEW WORLD: The regiment trains on the Salisbury Plain and Winnie becomes the Mascot of the Second Canadian Infantry Brigade.

PROBLEM, PRIZE, PLAN: The order comes that it is time to fight. Harry doesn’t want Winnie to get hurt so he plans to take her some place safe.

MIDPOINT ATTEMPT: Harry takes Winnie to the London Zoo. 

DOWNTIME RESPONSE: Harry and Winnie say goodbye. He tells her, “I’ll always love you. You’ll always be my bear.”

CHASE & ESCAPE: Harry goes off to take care of the horses at the front in France. 

DEATH & TRANSFORMATION: It seems that Winnie’s story is over, but then a boy named Christopher Robin comes to the zoo and a new story begins.

CLIMAX/ THE FINAL TEST: Christopher Robin plays in the bear enclosure with Winnie. He loves the bear so much that he names his stuffed bear Winnie-the-Pooh. Playing with Winnie inspires him to take his stuffed bear on adventures in the woods.

FINAL REWARD: Christopher Robin’s father, A.A. Milne, writes many famous books about his son and his bear and that’s how Harry’s Winnie becomes the famous Winnie-the-Pooh. Harry returns to visit Winnie and is happy to discover that she has found people who love her. A statue of Winnie and Harry is unveiled in Winnipeg in 1992. 

 Please send feedback if you are using SLOS with students. I always love hearing  your stories.