Reading: Point of View

Today, we are going to take a look at point of view together.

Have you ever had someone tell you a story about something that happened to them? Maybe it was a friend telling you about his day. Or maybe it was your grandmother telling you about something that happened to her when she was little.

They were telling you a story through the first person point of view. Whether it’s real or imaginary, the person telling the story is also a character in the story.

There are some key words we can look for when we read a story to figure out if it’s being told in the first person point of view. Words like I, me, and my are clues that the narrator is telling the story and is also a character in the story.

Let’s read this short passage and see if it’s told in the first person point of view.

What do you think? Is this told in the first person point of view?

No! The person telling this story is not a character in the story. Someone else is telling a story about a boy named Jacob.
Let’s try another one.

What do you think? Is this told in the first person?

Yes! The person telling the story is also a character in the story. The word I is used many times, so that’s a good clue that this is told in the first person point of view.

This week, we will be reading a story called “Hiking the Grand Canyon” and we will take a look at the point of view of the story as we read.