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Identifying Story Elements

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Identifying Story Elements

This lesson helps young readers find and describe the three big parts of a story: the characters, the setting, and the main events. Students learn how to use clues in the words and pictures to say who is in the story, where and when it happens, and what happens from start to finish.

Introduction

Every story has three big parts that fit together. You will learn how to find the characters, the setting, and the main events. Then you will learn how to describe each part in your own words.

Story elements are the big parts inside every story. Think of them like three pieces of a puzzle. When you find all three pieces, you can tell the whole story yourself.

The three story elements are the characters, the setting, and the main events. You will look for these three parts every time you read.

Characters are the people or animals in the story. To find them, ask yourself, "Who is this story about?"

Once you find the characters, you can describe them too. Look at the words and pictures. Is the character happy, scared, or brave? Is the character big, small, fast, or silly? Saying these details is called describing the character.

The setting is the place and time of the story. It might be a school, a farm, a beach, or even the moon. It might happen in the morning, at night, or a long time ago.

To describe the setting, look for clue words like "in the forest" or "one sunny day." Then say the place and time in your own words, like "The story happens at a beach in the summer."

The main events are the important things that happen in the story. Every story has a beginning, a middle, and an end.

The beginning tells you about the characters and the setting. The middle shows a problem or something exciting. The end shows how the problem is solved. When you tell the main events in order, you are retelling the story.

Story Map Characters Who is the story about? Example: Mia Setting Where and when does it happen? Example: the park Main Events What happens start to finish? Example: lost dog is found Beginning Mia plays with her dog Middle Her dog runs away End Mia finds her dog and hugs him
A story map showing characters, setting, and main events from beginning to end.

Read this short story. "Mia and her dog Rex play in the park. Rex sees a squirrel and runs away. Mia looks everywhere and calls his name. She finds Rex hiding under a bench and gives him a big hug."

Now find the story elements. The characters are Mia and Rex. The setting is the park. The main events are: Mia and Rex play, Rex runs away, and Mia finds Rex under the bench.

Character: A person or animal in a story.

Setting: The place and time where a story happens.

Main Events: The important things that happen in a story.

Beginning: The part where you meet the characters and setting.

Middle: The part where the problem or exciting thing happens.

End: The part where the problem is solved.

Read a short story and draw the main character. Write one word to describe how the character feels. Draw the setting and label the place and time. Then draw three boxes for the beginning, middle, and end, and draw one picture in each box.

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