Who Said That?

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SWBAT determine a character's point of view in a text.

Big Idea

This is another lesson for students to determine a character's point of view from in a complex text.


5 minutes

Common Core Connection

I really like this lesson image because it makes me think about determining who is speaking in a text.  The kids look like the might be talking, but I can't really tell if they are.  I  have to look close at kids in my class to see who is really talking sometimes. Likewise, I feel that I have to look close in text as well to determine who is speaking and what they are trying to tell me.

The Common Core Standard is RL1.6 (Point of View Standard) and it says students need to identify who is telling the story.  To increase the rigor and start preparing students for the second grade version of the standard, which asks students to distinguish the points of view of different characters, I not only ask students to tell who the speaker is in this lesson, but I also ask the students to start identifying the point of view in the guided practice and partner work.

Lesson Overview

Students are seated in the lounge in heterogeneous groups. The students have assigned seats beside their partners. The grouping remains consistent as students move to their desks for guided practice.  Then students transition to the center tables to work in different heterogeneous groups of two or three.  I use heterogeneous groups for this style lesson because students can support each other and learn from each other.  The students that are at a higher comprehension level help students who need work in comprehension.  Students excel in different areas and by mixing the groups they can support each other in those areas. We finish the lesson back at the lounge.

Introductory Activity

I seat my class in the lounge area which is what most people call the carpet.  I use the word lounge to help develop vocabulary in my students. I share a story as my activating strategy. This gets the students thinking and lets my students learn a little more about me. I think making my lessons personal motivates my students.

I tell the class my son loves cats, but my husband recently got a dog that is really rough on our cats.  So, my son told me he thinks we should bring all eight of our cats in the house to protect them from the dog. My husband thinks pets should never be in the house because he is allergic.  So, we have two points of view. I write what they say under their name on a t-chart.   Last we will make a judgement about their point of view. My son's point is that the cats are valuable and need to be protected.  My husband does not want the cats in the house. So, we have two points of view.

I tell the class that we are going to learn about point of view in stories. I state the lesson goal.  I say, I can determine who is telling different parts to a story. The class echos, tells a friend, and then they repeat it with me.  This develops ownership or the goal and makes the goal personal.

Guided Practice

20 minutes

I give each child a copy of the excerpt. I project this one the Board.   I like shorter pieces of a text for introducing skills and I think it is helpful to use exemplar text listed in the CCSS appendix. I project the  excerpt from Frog and Toad Together, which is in the resources, on the board.  This lesson stretches the applications because their are two speakers and a narrator in this text.  I fold a piece of paper twice to make three columns.

We sort each sentence by who is speaking.  First we have to identify how a person know who is speaking. I explain to look for the quotation marks and then the words ___ said or ask.  I share that we learn more insight about the characters from their statements.  Students need this explicit instruction on quotations early in their reading development.  Then I show the students how we know the narrator is the person that is giving us the general statements.  I explain that the word narrator and third person can be exchanged.  Likewise, first person can be used to refer to the person talking.  I write these vocabulary terms on the board to help my students get familiar with them.

I ask the students to discuss who is speaking.  I tell them there are three speakers in the story.  One volunteer tells me the answer and I label the graphic organizer Frog, Toad, and the narrator.  They discuss how they know who is talking  before I ask a volunteer to share their thoughts.  I think this engages more students. 

After we have thoroughly located the speakers and narrator I ask the students to discuss the specific meaning we gather from the speakers.  The students will discuss the point of view from each characters perspective.  I really want the students to see that Frog frustrated because his seeds won't grow.  Toad is trying to be helpful to his friend.  Once volunteers have located the point of view of the characters I ask students to locate evidence from the text to justify their choice. The board work (Board) is in the resource section so you can see what it looks like.

The students are seated at their desks beside a heterogeneous ability partner that I assign.  I call one peanut and the other jelly.  This way I can ask peanut to tell jelly something and reverse.  Its a nice way to organize collaboration.

Partner Work

20 minutes

The students move to the center tables so they have more room.  I can also already have materials Center Table Set Up set up. Most first graders also need a transition after about twenty minutes.

I give the students excerpts from the resources. I try to choose text that correlate to their lexile level. I use Owl Moon because students can easily find a point of view of the characters.  Each group gets a different excerpt, and I try to make sure each excerpt has several points where students can identify the speaker and their point of view.  This keeps their practice consistent with the guided practice.

My students (Collaboration) fill in the foldable chart for the speakers and they write what each character's point of view is from what the text said. I walk around, ask questions, and check for understanding.

Student Reflection

5 minutes

I know this is one activity that each child will want to share.  So, we form two lines.  Line one presents their line to line two.  Then they switch.  This allows everyone to be engaged at the same time.  

Prior to the presentation I review the rules of speaking and listening.  This keeps me from having to correct any behavior.


5 minutes

Each student tells their peanut butter jelly partner what they learned.  I listen to see what they are saying.  Then I share some comments.
