Check for Understanding – Point of View 1
Identify the point of view used in a text AND explain the effect the point of view a text has on the readers'
understanding of characters' actions, motivations, and personalities
Read the following passage and answer the questions 1-3.
Spotted Cats
Several members of the cat family have spotted fur. Do you know the difference between a leopard, a jaguar,
and a cheetah? From a distance they may appear somewhat similar. If you examine them at closer range,
however, they are clearly different cats. They differ in various ways, including where they live, how big they
are, how they move and hunt, and how their fur is marked.
Of all the big cats in the wild, the true leopard is found across the largest area. Leopards live in much of Asia
and Africa. A leopard grows to be from 3 to 6 feet long, with an added 3 feet of tail. Leopards are skilled
climbers that can hunt monkeys in trees. They can also lie in wait and pounce on passing prey. When food
sources are scarce, they might eat fruit, field mice, and large insects. Leopard spots are not actually solid spots;
they are broken circles.
1. Which of the following statements best represents the author’s point of view in the passage?
a. People should be scared of large cats like leopards, jaguars, and cheetahs.
b. The most interesting thing about large cats is their fur.
c. Leopards are vicious predators.
d. Spotted cats are fascinating animals and people should learn more about them.
2. Underline at least three parts of Spotted that helped you determine the point of view.
3. The author choose this point of view because the author wanted the reader to
a. know the thoughts and feelings of different cats
b. know the setting and problem well
c. learn about the conflict from the cheetah’s perspective
d. learn about the differences between the cats
Read the poem and answer questions 4-6
Water Picture
by May Swenson
In the pond in the park
all things are doubled:
Long buildings hang and
wriggle gently. Chimneys
are bent legs bouncing
on clouds below. A flag
wags like a fishhook
down there in the sky.
The arched stone bridge
is an eye, with underlid
in the water. In its lens
dip crinkled heads with hats
that don’t fall off. Dogs go by,
barking on their backs.
A baby, taken to feed the
ducks, dangles upside-down,
a pink balloon for a buoy.
Treetops deploy a haze of
cherry bloom for roots,
where birds coast belly-up
in the glass bowl of a hill;
from its bottom a bunch
of peanut-munching children
is suspended by their
sneakers, waveringly.
A swan, with twin necks
forming the figure
steers between two dimpled
towers doubled. Fondly
hissing, she kisses herself,
and all the scene is troubled:
water-windows splinter,
tree-limbs tangle, the bridge
folds like a fan.
4. What point of view does the author use in this poem?
a. This poem is told in 1st person point of view
b. This poem is told in 2nd person point of view
c. This poem is told in 3rd person limited point of view
d. This poem is told in 3rd person omniscient point of view
5. The point of view used in the above poem allows the reader to…
a. understand the setting without connecting too closely with any one character
b. feel like the narrator is speaking directly to them.
c. participate in the action of the story
d. know the thoughts and feelings of all the characters
6. What is the effect of the use of this point of view in this poem?
a. it shows that the swan knows more than the narrator knows
b. it allows the author describe more of the setting
c. it shows that the author did some research before writing
d. it helps the reader understand the narrator’s fear
Answer Key on the next page.
Check for Understanding – Answer Key
Identify the point of view used in a text AND explain the effect the point of view a text has on the readers'
understanding of characters' actions, motivations, and personalities
Read the following passage and answer the questions 1-3.
Spotted Cats
Several members of the cat family have spotted fur. Do you know the difference between a leopard, a jaguar,
and a cheetah? From a distance they may appear somewhat similar. If you examine them at closer range,
however, they are clearly different cats. They differ in various ways, including where they live, how big they
are, how they move and hunt, and how their fur is marked. This sentence shows the author is trying to teach
us, the readers.
Of all the big cats in the wild, the true leopard is found across the largest area. Leopards live in much of Asia
and Africa. A leopard grows to be from 3 to 6 feet long, with an added 3 feet of tail. Leopards are skilled
climbers that can hunt monkeys in trees. They can also lie in wait and pounce on passing prey. When food
sources are scarce, they might eat fruit, field mice, and large insects. Leopard spots are not actually solid spots;
they are broken circles.
1. Which of the following statements best represents the author’s point of view in the passage?
a. People should be scared of large cats like leopards, jaguars, and cheetahs.
b. The most interesting thing about large cats is their fur.
c. Leopards are vicious predators.
d. Spotted cats are fascinating animals and people should learn more about them.
2. Underline at least three parts of Spotted that helped you determine the point of view.
3. The author choose this point of view because the author wanted the reader to
a. know the thoughts and feelings of different cats
b. know the setting and problem well
c. learn about the conflict from the cheetah’s perspective
d. learn about the differences between the cats
Read the poem and answer questions 4-6
Water Picture
by May Swenson
In the pond in the park
all things are doubled:
Long buildings hang and
wriggle gently. Chimneys
are bent legs bouncing
on clouds below. A flag
wags like a fishhook
down there in the sky.
The arched stone bridge
is an eye, with underlid
in the water. In its lens
dip crinkled heads with hats
that don’t fall off. Dogs go by,
barking on their backs.
A baby, taken to feed the
ducks, dangles upside-down,
a pink balloon for a buoy.
Treetops deploy a haze of
cherry bloom for roots,
where birds coast belly-up
in the glass bowl of a hill;
from its bottom a bunch
of peanut-munching children
is suspended by their
sneakers, waveringly.
A swan, with twin necks
forming the figure
steers between two dimpled
towers doubled. Fondly
hissing, she kisses herself,
and all the scene is troubled:
water-windows splinter,
tree-limbs tangle, the bridge
folds like a fan.
4. What point of view does the author use in this poem?
a. This poem is told in 1st person point of view
b. This poem is told in 2nd person point of view
c. This poem is told in 3rd person limited point of view
d. This poem is told in 3rd person omniscient point of view
5. The point of view used in the above poem allows the reader to…
a. understand the setting without connecting too closely with any one character
b. feel like the narrator is speaking directly to them.
c. participate in the action of the story
d. know the thoughts and feelings of all the characters
6. What is the effect of the use of this point of view in this poem?
a. it shows that the swan knows more than the narrator knows
b. it allows the author describe more of the setting
c. it shows that the author did some research before writing
d. it helps the reader understand the narrator’s fear