Year 3 English · Reading fiction · Lesson 7.2

Year 3 English: Characters, setting and word meaning

Part of the Year 3 English reading fiction chapter. Chapter overview · whole chapter on one page

7.2

Characters, setting and word meaning

Year 3
Name the characters and the setting of a story, Explain a word from the words around it

Story. Maya and Grandad walked along the harbour on a Friday evening. Who was there, and where were they?

A character is a person or animal in a story. The setting is where and when the story happens. Writers often tell us the setting in the first few sentences.

Some words have more than one meaning. To work out what a word means in a story, read the words around it, and ask: what makes sense here?

Read this short story. Then answer the questions in exercise 7B.

A Walk by the Harbour

The harbour town of Kettlecove was busy on Friday evening. Stalls lined the cobbled quay, and lanterns swung gently above them. The sky was turning pink and orange over the sea. Maya held Grandad's hand as they wandered past the fish stall. The smell of fresh bread drifted from the bakery on the corner. 'Look at those boats,' said Grandad, pointing at the masts that bobbed on the water. Maya had never seen the harbour so crowded. Then she spotted a small blue stall that sold hand-carved wooden ships. 'Could we look?' she asked, her eyes shining. Grandad smiled and nodded. They spent the rest of the evening choosing the very best ship.

The characters answer who. The setting answers where and when.

Key ideas

A character is a person or animal in a story. The main character is the one the story is mostly about.
The setting is where and when the story happens.
Writers often give the setting in the first few sentences.
To find the meaning of a word in context, read the words around it.
A detail about a place can show the setting, such as the sea, the smell of bread or the lanterns.

Worked example 7.2.1

Use the extract: The cold wind blew across the empty beach at Pebble Cove, where Jo was building a sandcastle. Where is the story set?

Method. Find the words that tell us the place.

Find the key words in the question. These words tell us which sentence to read: where.
where
Find the sentence that gives the answer. The text says:
the empty beach at Pebble Cove
Write the answer.
the empty beach at Pebble Cove

Check. The setting is a beach. ✓

Worked example 7.2.2

Use the extract: The cold wind blew across the empty beach at Pebble Cove, where Jo was building a sandcastle. Who is the character in the story?

Method. Find the person the story is about.

Find the key words in the question. These words tell us which sentence to read: who.
who
Find the sentence that gives the answer. The text says:
where Jo was building a sandcastle
Write the answer.
Jo

Check. Jo is the one building the sandcastle. ✓

Worked example 7.2.3

Use the extract: The cold wind blew across the empty beach at Pebble Cove, where Jo was building a sandcastle. In this sentence, what does blew mean?
(a) sang loudly
(b) moved through the air quickly
(c) stopped suddenly

Method. Read the words around blew.

Look at the words around blew. The wind is moving across the beach.
The cold wind blew across the empty beach
Test each meaning. Sang loudly does not fit wind, and stopped suddenly does not fit a wind moving across a beach.
(a) and (c) do not fit
Choose the meaning that fits. Blew means the wind moved through the air.
(b)
Write the answer.
(b) moved through the air quickly

Check. Read the sentence with the meaning in place: The cold wind moved through the air. ✓

Watch out

Watch out: a setting is not only a place. It can also be a time, such as a Friday evening. A character can be an animal, too.

Exam tip

Grown-up tip. Ask your child: who is in the story? Where and when does it happen? Then ask about one word: what does it mean in this sentence? Look at the words around it together.