Draw a Story

Your Child Will Learn

About the elements of stories in books and how to re-tell stories

Read a picture book that your child is very familiar with. As you read, point out story elements like characters, settings, beginning, middle, and ending.
When you’re done, ask your child to remember the characters and settings. Ask them what the beginning, middle, and end of the story was.
Fold two pieces of blank paper to make a book; staple the pages along the side or in the corner. Have your child re-create a simple version of the book by drawing one picture for the beginning, one (or more) for the middle, and one for the end. Encourage them to add details about the character and the setting.
‘Read’ your child’s version of the book, and write down the words your child uses to explain each picture.

PAUSE

ENGAGE

“Who were the characters in this book? Where was the setting, where the story happened?”
“Think about the beginning of the story. What happened in the beginning? Can you draw that on the first page?”

ENCOURAGE

Help your child add details about the characters or settings, like: “I see that you drew the queen there, great job remembering the character! Is there anything about the setting you might be able to draw, like trees from the magical forest?”
“It’s tricky to remember what happens in the story. Let me give you a hint, after the first goat crosses the troll’s bridge, what happens next?”

REFLECT

Ask your child to retell the story from the book out loud.

Ask your child to predict what might happen next after the end of the story, and add a few pages about their prediction to the book.

They will be able to identify characters and settings from a story, and to retell the story in the correct order.

30-60 minutes

Blank paper, pencils, coloring materials (crayons, markers, color pencils), stapler