Text Reading and Comprehension: Character and Setting

We are going to read a book today. Begin by identifying the basic features of the book, including the front cover, the title, and the author and illustrator’s names. Who can point to the title? Call on a student to respond. Point to the title as you read it aloud. Read it again, and encourage students to read it aloud with you. There is a name on this book. Read the author’s name aloud. Who is this person? (the author) Why is this person’s name on the cover of the book? (She is the person who wrote the book.) Explain that some books are storybooks that tell stories about made-up characters, and some books give real facts and information. Is this a storybook or a book with facts? Let’s look at the picture on the cover for another clue. What does the picture show? Prompt students to identify details, such as the wind and the sun look happy and are smiling. Can the real wind and sun smile? (No.) So what kind of book is this? (a storybook) That’s right, this is a storybook. It is about made-up characters.

Now let’s look at the illustrations in this book together. As you turn pages, prompt students to describe what they see and to predict what the book is about. List the predictions on a board or chart. Then invite students to share what they know about the wind and the sun.

Did you know that this word is used in our book? Let’s look for it. Turn to page 1, point to the word, and read the associated sentence. Now let’s figure out what this word means. With your bodies, show me what a flag on a flagpole looks like when the air is still. Students might make their bodies limp. Now show me what a flag looks like when it is moving around. Students might wave their arms or sway. A flag moves when the air around it moves. The moving air is wind.

Now let’s look at some other words that you will find in this book. Write the words stronger, blows, and shines on the board or a projector. Walk the students through the meaning of each of these words as shown in the model above, including acting out the meanings of words.

Now that we know a little more about the book, and we have learned about some of the words used in this book, I want to share something with you that will help make you an even better reader. Most stories have at least one character. A character can be a person, an animal, or even a thing. In a story about a boy and a girl, the boy and the girl are the characters. If the story is about the boy and girl eating in a restaurant, the restaurant is the setting. Now think of a story you know. Who are the characters? Call on a volunteer to name a story and its characters. Where are the characters in the story? That is the setting. Allow time for a response.

When we read our story, I want you to think about who the characters are and what the setting is. We will talk more about this later in our lesson.

Let’s read the book again. This time, we will look at some important sentences and illustrations. I will also ask questions along the way. Include the following in your discussion. Add others, depending on your students’ needs and the instructional time available to you.

What does Wind say? (that he is stronger) Point to the illustration. What is Wind doing in the picture? (blowing air)

What does Sun say? (that she is stronger) Point to the illustration. What is Sun doing in the picture? (shining; stretching out her arms)

What are Dad and his son doing? (walking) What are they wearing? (jackets)

What are Dad and his son doing? (sitting) Why did they take off their jackets? (They are hot.)

What did Sun do to show that he was stronger than Wind? (Sun made Dad and the boy take off their jackets and sit down.)

Earlier in this lesson, we talked about characters and setting. Can anyone remember what characters are? Can anyone remember what a setting is? Give students time to recall the earlier activity. Now let’s take a look at the book and figure out who the characters are and what the setting is in this story.

Look at this picture. Who do you see? (Wind and Sun) Wind and Sun are two characters in this story. Who else do you see? (Dad and his son) Dad and his son are the other two characters in the story. Now, where are the four characters in this story? (in a park) The park is the setting.

Do you remember our new words? Point to the words you wrote or projected. To understand some of these words better, let’s play a game called Fill in the Blank. I am going to start a sentence. One word will be missing. I will say blank instead. When you hear me say blank, look at the words on the board. One of those words will finish the sentence correctly. When you think you know the word, raise your hand. If I tag your hand, say the word. Then go to the board and point to the word. After that, I’ll say a new sentence. Let’s start! Start with sentences that pertain to the story, such as Wind _____ hard (blows) or Sun is _____ than Wind (stronger). For a challenge, you may say sentences that do not pertain to the story. After each round, prompt students to explain what clues they used in each sentence to identify the vocabulary word.

Now that we have read the book carefully, let’s talk about the characters in the story. Who are they? (Wind, Sun, Dad, son [boy]) What is the setting? (a park) Which characters are in the sky? (Wind and Sun) Which characters are walking in the park? (Dad and son [boy]) Who thinks he is stronger? (Wind) What does he do to show he is stronger? (He blows.) What happens when he blows? (Dad and his son get cold. They cross their arms and try to keep warm.) What does Sun do to show she is stronger? (She shines.) What happens when she shines? (Dad and his son get hot. They sit down and take off their jackets.) How does the story end? (Sun shows that she is stronger.) Use students’ explanations to determine individual understanding. Now let’s say your friend who has never read the book wanted you to describe what happens in this story, but you have less than a minute to do it, what would you tell him or her? Ask students to summarize the story in 1-2 sentences.

I am going to show you a picture. Point to the illustration on page 2. Look at the top of the picture. Who do you see? (Wind and Sun) Where are they? (in a park)To reinforce character and setting, repeat the activity by calling attention to the characters and settings in illustrations throughout the book. Do the characters and the setting change anywhere in the book? (No.) Throughout this book, the characters and the setting stay the same.

Now we are going do some drawing and a little bit of writing, too. First, watch me draw. Draw a simple representation of Sun and Wind from the story, based on the illustrations in the book. I drew Sun and Wind. Now draw Sun and Wind on your paper. Give students time to draw. Now write Sun under Sun and Wind under Wind. Then write a word about Sun and a word about Wind. You can use words from the board. Or you can use words from the book. Demonstrate by writing the characters’ names under each drawing. Then write shines under Sun and blows under Wind. Show students your paper and read what you have written. Read your writing aloud. Describe the connection between what you drew, what you wrote, and the story. Now it’s your turn. Permit students to refer to the book. Give students time to complete the activity. Prompt and support them in their work. If time permits, encourage children to share and explain their work.