What Is Narrative Voice? A Guide for Elementary Students

Narrative point of view is the perspective or “lens” through which a story is told. It influences how much a reader knows, how close they feel to characters, and how they connect with the events of a story.

This comprehensive 19-slide teaching presentation has been created by our team to introduce your students to three of the most commonly used types of narrative voice (also known as “narrator point of view”). Each narrator viewpoint is explained with clear definitions and examples, relatable visuals and discussion prompts to spark curiosity and comprehension. Review activities are also included.

The types of narrative voice included in this presentation are:

• First person
• Third person limited
• Third person omniscient

This narrative voice slide deck downloads as a Microsoft PowerPoint or Google Slides file.

Read on to learn how to maximize the potential of this teaching tool in your classroom!

Extend Your Students’ Learning About Narrative Voice and Point of View

This slide deck provides a solid foundation for introducing your students to narrative voice and point of view and the way this affects the reader’s experience of a text. Once students have explored the slides, you can extend their learning with a range of simple but effective activities. Here are some ideas from our team to get you started:

• Class Debate – After exploring the slide deck, encourage students to discuss which type of narration makes a story more exciting, suspenseful or personal. Encourage the students to support their responses using information from the slide deck.
• Class Anchor Chart – Work together as a class to create an anchor chart that outlines first person, third person limited and third person omniscient narration, including key features and examples. 
• Collaborative Rewrite – Choose a passage from a well-known text, such as a fairy tale. As a class, rewrite the passage using a different narrative voice, applying what was learned from the slide deck.

Download This Narrative Voice Slide Deck

Use the dropdown menu on the Download button to access your preferred version of this narrative voice teaching presentation. (Note: You will be prompted to make a copy of the Google Slides presentation before accessing it.)

You now have an engaging and visually appealing resource that not only supports explicit teaching but also sparks rich class discussions about reading and writing.

This resource was created by Kaylyn Chupp, a teacher in Florida and a Teach Starter collaborator.

More Resources for Teaching Voice in Storytelling

Teach Starter boasts a wide range of age-appropriate resources for teaching your upper elementary students about voice in storytelling. Click below to browse a selection hand-picked by our expert team!

teaching resource

Comparing Narrator’s Voice Worksheets

Teach how narrator’s voice shapes the reader's experience of texts with this set of worksheets where students compare passages written from different points of view.

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Point of View in Narration Booklet

Explore point of view in narration with this engaging mini book that helps students analyze the narrative voice of a book they have recently read.

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Types of Point of View in Literature Poster

Teach the types of point of view in literature with this classroom poster that explains first person, third person limited, and third person omniscient narration.