Asking Questions About Story Details

When you read a story, you can ask questions to check that you understand it. You can also answer those questions using words from the story. This helps you find important details about who is in the story, what happens, and where and when it takes place.

There are six question words that help you talk about a story. Each word asks about a different kind of detail.

• Who: asks about the people or animals in the story.
• What: asks about things that happen or things you see.
• Where: asks about the place in the story.
• When: asks about the time, like morning, night, or a season.
• Why: asks about the reason something happens.
• How: asks about the way something happens or how many there are.

Read this short story.

The little duck woke up on a sunny morning. She wanted to find her three friends by the pond. She waddled slowly because her feet were small. She looked for her friends because she wanted to play a game with them.

Now you can ask and answer questions about this story.

• Who is the story about? The little duck.
• What did the duck want to do? Find her three friends.
• Where did the duck want to go? By the pond.
• When did the duck wake up? On a sunny morning.
• Why did the duck look for her friends? Because she wanted to play a game.
• How did the duck waddle? Slowly, because her feet were small.

Each answer comes right from the words in the story. This shows that you understood what you read.

Asking a question is only the first step. When you answer the question too, you prove you found the detail. If you cannot answer a question, you can go back and read that part of the story again to look for the answer.

Try to use full sentences when you answer. Instead of just saying "pond," you can say "The duck wanted to go to the pond." This shows you understand the whole idea, not just one word.

Question Words: The words who, what, where, when, why, and how, used to ask about a story.

Details: Small facts in a story about characters, places, times, and events.

Who: Asks about the people or animals in a story.

What: Asks about things that happen or things you see in a story.

Where: Asks about the place in a story.

When: Asks about the time in a story, like a season or time of day.

Why: Asks about the reason something happens in a story.

How: Asks about the way something happens or how many of something there are.

After you read a story, pick two question words and ask questions about it. Then answer your own questions using words from the story.

Ask a friend or family member a who question and a where question about a story you both know. Check that the answers come from the story.

Look at a picture in a book and ask a what question about it. Answer with a full sentence.

Related lessons

• Asking Questions About Text Details