First Grade · Reading · week 31

Retell: Beginning, Middle, End

Retell a story in order, naming the beginning, middle, and end and the major events in each part.

A good retell has three parts: the beginning (how the story starts), the middle (what happens, often a problem), and the end (how it gets solved or finishes).

Try to use your own words instead of repeating the book exactly. If you can tell the beginning, middle, and end, you really understood the story.

📋 For the teacher
Teach it (10–15 min):
  • After reading, ask for the beginning, middle, and end as three separate, short questions rather than one big "what happened."
  • Model a retell yourself first on a story your child already knows well.
  • Encourage your child is own words rather than word-for-word lines from the book.
  • Keep retells short -- one or two sentences per part is plenty for now.
Talk about it:
  • What happened at the very beginning of the story?
  • What was the big problem or event in the middle?
  • How did the story end?

Mastery looks like: They retell a story in order with a clear beginning, middle, and end using their own words.

Common stumbles: Retelling events out of order or focusing on one small detail instead of the main events.

See it visually

Interactive, spoken-aloud tools that show this idea in motion.

Story SequencePut events in order: first, next, then, last.try →
Homework for this lessonType it, write it with a stylus, or print it for pencil & paper.open →
Records attendance + 15 min of Reading for this learner.
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