Text Reading and Comprehension: Character and Setting

We are going to read this book today. Hold up a copy of The Kiwi and the King. Can someone point to the title? Read the title aloud. Point to and read the author’s name aloud. What does an author do? (writes the words for a book) Point to and read the illustrator’s name. What does an illustrator do? (draws the pictures for a book)

The Kiwi and the King is a folktale. Folktales are make-believe stories that people have told for a very long time. People told these stories long before there were books. They told the stories to their children, who told the stories to their children, and so on. Many folktales are stories that try to explain why something in nature is the way it is. Ask if anyone knows what a kiwi is. Some students may mention the kiwifruit. Explain that the fruit’s name comes from the name of a bird—the kiwi. The fruit is small, brown, and hairy. So is a kiwi. It is a small, brown bird with hair-like feathers that cannot fly. A kiwi is in our story today.

Now let’s look at the illustrations in this book. As you turn the pages, prompt students to describe what they see and to predict what this book will be about. List the students’ predictions on the board or a chart.

Let’s use words and pictures to figure out what the word barks means. Write the word barks on the board. Turn to page 1. Point to the word. Invite students to repeat the word after you. Have students look at the picture. What do you think the word barks means? (the outer covering on trees) Why do you think that? Accept reasonable answers that rely on the text or illustration for support.

Now let’s look at some other words you will find in this book. Write the remaining words beak, brave, bright, forest, kiwi, lose, strong, and tail on the board or chart and say them aloud. Guide students to use context and picture clues to understand the meaning of each word.

Who is your favorite story about? Write students’ responses under the word Who? Where does your story take place? Write students’ responses under the word Where?

Characters are who a story is about. Characters can be people, animals, and even things. Point to the characters listed under Who? on the board. Explain that we learn about the characters in stories by what they say and do. The setting is where a story happens. The words in this column describe settings. Point to the words listed under Where? on the board. Read them aloud. Thinking about the characters and the setting of a story helps us understand the story better. We will talk more about this later in our lesson.

How can we tell that this story is make-believe? (The animals talk.)

Now that I have read the story one time, let’s read it again. This time, let’s look at how the sentences and illustrations go together. I will ask questions along the way. Include the following examples in your discussion. Add others, depending on your students’ needs and the instructional time available to you.

Who is this? (the King of the Forest) Why is he sad? (His trees are sick.)

Why does the King call to the birds? (He needs their help.) What problem does the King have? (Bugs and worms are eating his trees.)

Why would the birds have to live on the ground? (That’s where the bugs and worms that are killing the trees live. Birds eat bugs and worms.) What does the King promise to give the birds if they help? (strong legs and a long beak) What will the birds have to give up if they help the King? (They will lose their bright colors and their tails. They won’t be able to fly.)

What does Kiwi tell the King? (I will do what you ask.) Which sentence on this page matches what you see in the picture? (Just like that, the kiwi changed.)

What reward does the kiwi get for doing as the King asked? (People will always know its name and tell stories about it. The King will love the kiwi best of all.)

Which character do we meet on this page? (the King of the Forest) If necessary, remind students that the character is the person, place, or thing the story is about. Where is the setting of this story? (a forest) If students need help, remind them that the setting is where the story happens.

What do all three birds do? (shake their heads) What does this tell you about the birds? (The birds are unwilling to help the King.) What does the first bird say? (The bird doesn’t like dirt.) What does the second bird say? (I love my bright colors.) What does the third bird say? (The bird doesn’t want a long beak.) What do their words tell you about these birds? (The birds are selfish, or unwilling to give up something, to help the King.)

How does the King feel? (happy) How do you know? (The words and picture say he’s smiling.)

Now, we’re going to play Guess the Word. Point to the list of vocabulary words. I’m going to choose a word. Then I’ll give you clues. You must guess which word I’m thinking of. Raise your hand when you know the word. If I tag your hand, go to the board and point to the word. The person who guesses correctly is the next player. I’ll start. A man I know can lift heavy weights over his head. How could I describe that man? (strong) After each round, prompt students to explain which clues helped them to identify the word.

Who are the characters in the story? (King of the Forest; Kiwi; three other birds) Where does the story happen? (in a forest) What problem does the King have? (Bugs and worms are eating his trees.) What does the King ask the birds to do? (live on the ground with the bugs and worms) Why don’t any of the first three birds agree to help? (One doesn’t like dirt; one wants to keep his bright colors; one doesn’t want a long beak; they all love to fly.) Who agrees to help the King? (the kiwi) Show me the page where the kiwi agrees to help. (page 5) What does the picture on this page show? (how the kiwi changed)

How does the King feel? (happy) How can you tell? (He is smiling.) Why is he happy now? (The kiwi will stop the bugs and worms from eating the trees.) Why does the King call the kiwi brave? (The kiwi agreed to live on the ground, lose his colors, and never fly again. The other birds were not brave enough to make those changes.) What does this folktale try to explain? (why the kiwi can’t fly and has a long beak)

Think about the characters in the story we just read. Now we are going to draw the most important character and write about him. Have students draw a line down the center of a piece of paper. Direct them to label one side Before, and the other side After. Point to the Before column. On this side, draw a picture of what the kiwi looked like at the beginning of the story. Point to the After column. On the other side, draw a picture to show what the kiwi looks like now. If time permits, have students share their work