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will review that first person is written as if the story is happening to the narrator, while third person is written as if the narrator is watching what is happening in the story from outside. I will discuss how stories written in the first person usually use the pronouns “I,” “me,” “my,” and “we,” and stories written in the third person usually use the characters’ names and the pronouns “he,” “she,” or “they.” I will choose two books that the class is familiar with (one written in first person and one written in third person). I will reread a few pages and model identifying the point of view. I will explain the differences in the story based on the point of view. For example, in White Socks Only, we get to know the narrator very well as she tells the reader her story. In Where the Wild Things Are, we do not know much about what Max is thinking or feeling because the narrator is someone else. (See Direct Teaching Teacher Example Chart, provided below in Teacher and Student Materials.)

Ask: How did I determine the differences in first person point of view and third person point of view? Students should respond that you read a few pages from a text and paid close attention to pronouns being used. You also thought about who was telling the story and whether they were a character in the story. Then you thought about how much you know about the characters based on the point of view in which the story is told.

will read the first few pages of Chicken Sunday by Patricia Polacco and the first few pages of Great Black Heroes: Five Bold Freedom Fighters by Wade Hudson. We will identify the point of view of each book and discuss how we determined the point of view. We will also discuss the differences in the books based on the point of view. For example: Chicken Sunday is a personal story written in the first person, while Five Bold Freedom Fighters is written more for informational purposes and in the third person.

will identify a book from the class library that is written in the first person and a book that is written in the third person. You will explain how you determined the point of view and describe the differences in the books based on their points of view. (Student Independent Practice is provided below.)