Kindergarten Reading Lesson Plan: Identifying Characters and Setting

Transform your young readers into 'Story Detectives' with this complete kindergarten ELA lesson plan. Designed to help students identify characters and setting, this lesson masterfully blends reading comprehension with foundational skills like reading CVC words and simple sentences. Includes fun, hands-on activities like Sight Word Hopscotch and a creative 'Story Builder' game to keep students engaged. This Common Core aligned plan is perfect for teachers and homeschool parents looking for an interactive literacy lesson.

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Kindergarten Reading Week 25: The Story Detective & Builder

Materials Needed

  • Sidewalk chalk or masking tape and paper for an indoor hopscotch grid
  • Index cards (about 15-20)
  • Markers or crayons
  • Several sheets of plain paper, folded in half and stapled to make a small blank book
  • A pencil
  • A short, simple storybook with clear characters and setting (e.g., "Go, Dog. Go!" by P.D. Eastman or a Bob Book)

Learning Objectives

By the end of this lesson, Finley will be able to:

  • Read 5 simple sentences containing CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant) words aloud.
  • Identify the main character(s) and the setting of a short story.
  • Create a unique one-sentence story by combining a character and a setting, and illustrate it.

Curriculum Standards (Common Core Alignment)

  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.K.4: Read emergent-reader texts with purpose and understanding.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.3: With prompting and support, identify characters, settings, and major events in a story.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.K.3: Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to narrate a single event.

Lesson Activities (Approx. 45-60 minutes)

1. Warm-up: Sight Word Hopscotch (10 minutes)

  1. Before the lesson, draw a hopscotch grid with chalk outside or create one inside with masking tape.
  2. Write one sight word Finley knows in each square (e.g., the, a, see, I, like, to, and, go).
  3. Activity: Call out a word. Finley finds the square, reads the word aloud, and then hops to it. Continue until Finley has hopped through the whole grid. This gets the wiggles out and activates prior knowledge.

2. Mini-Lesson: Story Detectives (5 minutes)

  1. Sit with Finley and say, "Every story has two secret ingredients. Our job as Story Detectives is to find them! The first is the WHO of the story—the characters. These can be people, animals, or even talking crayons!"
  2. "The second secret ingredient is the WHERE and WHEN—the setting. Is the story in a castle? At the park? At night?"
  3. Read the chosen simple storybook aloud with Finley. As you read, point out the characters ("Look, here is a character! Who is it?") and the setting ("Where are they? This is the setting!").

3. Guided Practice: Sentence Reading & Detective Work (15 minutes)

  1. On 5 separate index cards, write one simple sentence each. Use CVC words and familiar sight words.
    • The cat sat on a mat.
    • A big dog can run.
    • Did the pig sit in the mud?
    • A red bug is on the rug.
    • The sad man had a nap.
  2. Place the cards face down. Have Finley flip one over and read it aloud. You can read it together first if needed.
  3. After reading each card, ask detective questions: "In this sentence, who is the character?" (the cat) "What is the setting?" (on a mat). This connects reading fluency with comprehension.
  4. Support: If Finley struggles with a word, cover the letters and reveal them one at a time to sound it out (c-a-t).
  5. Challenge: Ask Finley to act out the sentence after reading it.

4. Creative Application: Be a Story Builder! (15 minutes)

  1. Now, tell Finley it's time to switch from being a detective to being a Story Builder.
  2. Take out 10 new index cards. On 5, draw or write simple characters (e.g., a boy, a hen, a fox, a frog, a queen). On the other 5, draw or write simple settings (e.g., in a box, on a log, in the sun, on a jet, at the den).
  3. Spread the character cards out in one group and the setting cards in another.
  4. Activity: Let Finley choose one character card and one setting card. For example, "a hen" and "on a jet."
  5. Help Finley build a sentence with these cards: "The hen is on the jet." Celebrate this new, silly story! Encourage Finley to mix and match a few more times just for fun.

5. Wrap-Up & Assessment: My One-Sentence Story Book (10 minutes)

  1. Give Finley the small blank book you made. On the cover, help write a title, like "Finley's Story."
  2. Ask Finley to choose their favorite character/setting combination from the Story Builder activity.
  3. On the first page of the book, help Finley write the sentence they created (e.g., "The frog sat on a log."). Finley can write it, trace it, or dictate it to you.
  4. On the facing page, Finley draws a picture that illustrates their sentence. This is the key part that shows comprehension.
  5. When finished, read the book together and place it on a bookshelf with other favorite stories.

Assessment

Learning will be assessed through:

  • Formative Observation: Listening to Finley read the sentence cards and noting fluency and accuracy. Asking questions about characters/setting provides an on-the-spot check for understanding.
  • Summative Project: The "My One-Sentence Story Book" serves as the final assessment. It clearly demonstrates if Finley met the objectives:
    • Identified Character/Setting: Evidenced by the choices made from the cards.
    • Created a Sentence: Evidenced by the written/dictated text.
    • Understood the Sentence: Evidenced by the matching illustration.