Teaching elementary students that different characters in a story have different points of view helps the kids to better comprehend the text they are reading. When elementary kids can identify each character’s unique perspective in a story they have a greater understanding of plot events and the author’s message.
Character Point of View Comprehension Lesson Objective
Elementary school students will identify a character’s point of view in a short poem.
How to Introduce the Concept of POV to Elementary Students
The teacher uses the poem “What Your Hamster Might Be Thinking” from What’s the Weather Inside? by Karma Wilson [McElderry Books, 2009] to introduce character point of view to elementary kids.
The teacher begins the lesson by showing the students a pet hamster, or stuffed animal hamster, that she places in an animal exercise ball. She places the ball on the floor and lets the students observe the hamster. The teacher asks the students what they are thinking as they see the hamster rolling around in the ball.
The teacher records the student responses on the board prompting the class when necessary. Sample responses could include, “The hamster is so funny!” and “I hope it doesn’t run into the wall.” The teacher then asks the students to list what they think the hamster sees, feels, and thinks and writes the responses in a separate column on the board.
How to Teach Character Point of View to Elementary Students
The elementary teacher reads “What Your Hamster Might Be Thinking” to the students. The kids discuss the poem and add some of the hamster’s thoughts to the list on the board. The teacher and the students then use the lists on the board to compare and contrast the hamster’s thoughts with the class’ thoughts.
The teacher explains that everyone has his own point of view, or his own way that he sees, feels, and thinks about what happens to and around him. The teacher refers to the lists on the board and labels them Hamster’s Point of View and Kids’ Point of View.
The teacher then reads the poem “What Your Dog Might Be Thinking” by Karma Wilson from What’s the Weather Inside? to the class. The teacher then puts an outline of a dog and a person on the front board and labels them Dog’s Point of View and Person’s Point of View.
The teacher discusses the poem with the elementary kids and asks them what someone who was watching the dog in the poem might be thinking. She prompts the students to list what a person might be seeing, hearing, smelling, thinking, and feeling if they were watching the dog in the poem. The class uses this information to complete the Person’s POV graphic organizer.
Elementary Students Identify Character Viewpoint in Cooperative Groups
After completing and discussing the Person’s Point of View graphic organizer the teacher splits the elementary class into cooperative groups. Each group works together to use the poem “What Your Dog Might Be Thinking” to complete the Dog’s POV graphic organizer.
The cooperative groups share and discuss their answers with the class. The teacher records the answers on the dog outline on the front board. She then explains to the class that thinking about how different characters in a story have different points of view helps them better understand the story.
Elementary teachers can increase kids’ comprehension skills by showing them how to identify the point of view of characters in a story. Teachers can use short poems to help students learn how identify what a character’s viewpoint is and to analyze how that perspective is usually different from the other characters in the story.
For more ideas on using poetry in the classroom elementary teachers can read A Poetry Guide for Elementary School Students and Write ABC, Haiku, Quatrain and Concrete Poems.
For more information about Karma Wilson’s book What’s the Weather Inside? teachers can parents can read Review of What's The Weather Inside? Poetry Book.
Megan Sheakoski - Megan Sheakoski is a teacher, mom and writer whose ideas have been featured in college text books, graduate courses, on websites and on ...
Join the Conversation