Listening Comprehension
Topic: Identifying Basic Story Elements
What makes a story
a story?
Listening Comprehension
Topic: Identifying Basic Story Elements
It’s what happens in a story. It’s a sequence of events.
A plot can be
summarized in very few
sentences—sometimes
just one sentence!
Listening Comprehension
Topic: Identifying Basic Story Elements
In TV listings, plots are usually
summarized in just one sentence.
A test shows that Spud is a genius.
American Dragon: Jake Long
Raven and Chelsea go on a TV show to compete for a date with
a cute guy.
That’s So Raven
The Tipton crew becomes a part of a ballroom dance team.
The Suite Life of Zack and Cody
Miley and Lilly plot revenge against Amber and Ashley.
Hannah Montana
Listening Comprehension
Topic: Identifying Basic Story Elements
Listening Comprehension
Topic: Identifying Basic Story Elements
Characters are the people or
animals who take part in a story.
Main Characters are the most important.
Stories are about main characters.
Secondary Characters are less important.
Stories are not about them, but without them
stories would not be very interesting.
Listening Comprehension
Topic: Identifying Basic Story Elements
Listening Comprehension
Topic: Identifying Basic Story Elements
Time: Night
Place: A big city
Time: The 19th century
Place: An island in the
Caribbean
The setting is the time and place in which the
action in a story occurs.
Listening Comprehension
Topic: Identifying Basic Story Elements
Time: The Future
Place: The planet Saturn
Time: December 25, 1995
Place: A farm in Horse
Head, Virginia
Listening Comprehension
Topic: Identifying Basic Story Elements
Listening Comprehension
Topic: Identifying Basic Story Elements
The setting is usually described in the beginning
of a story, but sometimes writers don’t tell much
about the setting. They make the reader guess.
Listening Comprehension
Topic: Identifying Basic Story Elements
The problem is the situation or event that causes
trouble and must be dealt with by the main
characters.
A story’s problem can be silly or serious, but there
always has to be one!
Listening Comprehension
Topic: Identifying Basic Story Elements
The solution is how the problem is solved.
Listening Comprehension
Topic: Identifying Basic Story Elements
The basic story elements of plot, character, setting,
problem, and solution are present in every story.
A good way to remember them is to remember that there
are five letters in the word "story" and five basic
elements in a story. The characters (1) must be in a
setting (2), and the plot (3) must include a problem (4),
and a solution (5).
Listening Comprehension
Topic: Identifying Basic Story Elements
Listening Comprehension
Topic: Identifying Basic Story Elements
Listen as Aunt Isabel Tells a Good One
is read to you. As you listen,
1. make a “mind movie”
2. make a note of the story elements in the
main story and in the story that the
characters make up.
Listening Comprehension
Topic: Identifying Basic Story Elements
Aunt Isabel Tells a Good One: The Main Story
Plot:
Characters:
Problem:
Solution:
Setting:
Listening Comprehension
Topic: Identifying Basic Story Elements
Aunt Isabel Tells a Good One: The Story-within-the-Story
Plot:
Characters:
Problem:
Solution:
Setting:
Listening Comprehension
Topic: Identifying Basic Story Elements
Look for the basic story
elements in the book we are
reading!