Literary Elements Teaching Resources
Are ou teaching literary elements and looking for worksheets and activities to get students excited about tone, narration, plot and a host of other elements to writing a great story? How do you engage elementary students on the concept of character traits and make plot development as exciting as recess?
The ELA teachers on the Teach Starter team have done just that with a collection of printable worksheets and digital activities built around this core reading standard. Aligned with both TEKS and the Common Core English curriculum, each literary elements activity in the collection has undergone a careful review by a member of our teacher team to ensure it's ready for your lesson plans and your students.
Explore our teacher team's guide to learn more about the various literary elements and how to bring them to life in your classroom!
Is this your first year teaching this sector of ELA? Or the first year in a while? Our teacher team has put together a quick refresher to get you ready to rock and roll in the classroom, including a way to explain what literary elements are to students.
What Are Literary Elements? A Kid-Friendly Definition
First thing's first: Let's talk about the definition.
Literary elements are the basic components of writing that the author uses to share the story with the reader. Without them, the narrative falls apart!
They are sometimes referred to as narrative elements. No matter what you call them, these elements give a piece of writing structure and help the author convey information to the reader.
On the reading side, literary elements are also key to breaking down a story to understand better what the author is trying to say.
What Are Examples of Literary Elements? 8 Examples That Can Help Your Students
There are eight main examples of literary elements that students will encounter in narrative texts:
1. Setting
This element is crucial for developing a story as it provides the time in which the story takes place as well as where it takes place. Setting helps ground the story.
2. Plot
The plot is the way a story unfolds. It's essentially a pattern for the text.
3. Conflict
Conflict helps move a plot forward as it offers the reader a climax to move toward as they read.
4. Characterization
This element of writing covers the way characters are developed within a story.
5. Point of View
Also called narration, this literary element is the perspective from which a story is told, such as first person or third person.
6. Tone
The tone of a story can be boiled down to the author's attitude about the subject of the story.
7. Genre
Genre covers the type of story written, such as realistic fiction, science fiction or even magical realism.
8. Figurative Language
Similes, metaphors, and onomatopoeia are just some examples of the figurative language students encounter in a text.
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Retelling Stories Paper Chains Template
Get crafty with this fun retelling stories activity where students use paper chains to create a chain for a story they have read in class.
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Literary Plot Elements - Graphic Organizer
Familiarize students with finding the 5 elements of plot in a literary text.
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Story Elements Graphic Organizers – Portrait
Encourage your students to write and draw about various story elements with this set of differentiated graphic organizers.
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Free Character Traits List
Teach your students to analyze characters more effectively by providing them with a list of character traits.
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Character Anchor Charts - Traits, Feelings, and Appearances
A set of 3 posters depicting words and phrases that can be used to describe a character traits, feelings and appearance.
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My Mini Book Report
Have students write about their favorite literature with this fun-sized mini-book.
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Gingerbread Man Retelling Activity Cards
Teach your students about retelling with this set of sequencing cards for The Gingerbread Man.
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Character Profile - Graphic Organizers
Explore the internal and external traits of story characters with a set of differentiated graphic organizers.
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Character or Not? Cut and Paste Worksheet
Explore the difference between characters and non-characters with this cut-and-paste worksheet.
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Reading Response Template – Retelling Important Events
Help students retell important events in a piece of text with this one-page template.
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Story Retell Graphic Organizers (Differentiated)
Help students confidently retell a story with this set of differentiated graphic organizers.
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Christmas Finger Puppets - Read and Retell Christmas Craft for Kindergarten
A cute set of Christmas finger puppets for students to make and enjoy!
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Finding the Theme Worksheet
Identify and explain the theme in 3 short story paragraphs provided in this worksheet.
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Story Retell Brochure Template
Explore retelling a story with this brochure template covering the major elements of a retell.
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Story Elements Worksheets - The Goose and the Golden Egg
Practice identifying the story characters, settings and main events with this set of worksheets based on a traditional tale.
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Elements of Plot Teaching Presentation
Teach them to your students with a Plot Elements Teaching presentation.
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Setting-Plot Relationship Worksheet
A worksheet that explores the connections between setting and plot.
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Story Retelling Strips
Explore a story with your students with this story-retelling cut-and-paste worksheet.
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Robot-Themed Retelling Writing Template
Explore the elements of a retell with this cute robot-themed retell writing template.
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Story Elements Cut and Paste Worksheets - The Boy Who Cried Wolf
Explore story characters, settings and main events with this set of cut-and-paste worksheets based on a well-known fable.
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Introduction to Story Characters Teaching Slides
Introduce your students to the wonderful world of story characters with this visually appealing teaching presentation.
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Story Elements Flipbook
Teach your students about story elements with this double-sided flipbook.
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Story Setting or Not? Cut and Paste Worksheet
Explore the difference between story settings and non-settings with this cut-and-paste worksheet.
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Character or Not? - Coloring Worksheet
Explore the difference between characters and non-characters with this coloring worksheet.
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What Is the Setting? - Worksheets
Encourage your students to identify the setting in short and simple texts with this set of six worksheets.
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Story Beginning, Middle, and End - Graphic Organizer
Help your students write and draw about the beginning, middle and end of stories with this set of differentiated graphic organizers.
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Parts of a Story - Story Elements Workbook
Explore the different elements of a narrative story with this student mini workbook.
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Hey Diddle Diddle - Story Elements Slide Deck
Engage young readers in texts and learn about setting with an instructional slide deck featuring the Hey Diddle Diddle rhyme.
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Humpty Dumpty Worksheets - Character, Setting, and Story Elements
Identify characters, setting, and parts of a story with kindergarten reading worksheets featuring the Humpty Dumpty nursery rhyme.
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Kindergarten Story Elements - Instructional Slides
Introduce your kindergarten and first-grade students to the elements of a story using this interactive Google Slides teaching presentation.
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Character Traits: Interactive Activity
Analyze text and identify character traits of characters with a Google Slides Interactive activity.
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Character Analysis Task Cards
Use these task cards to practice analyzing characters within any fictional text.
- Literary Elements Worksheets
- Literary Elements Templates
- Literary Elements Games
- Literary Elements for Kindergarten
- Literary Elements for 1st Grade
- Literary Elements for 2nd Grade
- Literary Elements for 3rd Grade
- Literary Elements for 4th Grade
- Literary Elements for 5th Grade
- Literary Elements for 6th Grade