Today we're going to learn about narrator.
As you watch the video, use the worksheet
to take notes and practice what you learn.
So, what is a narrator?
A narrator is the person who tells the story.
Remember, the narrator is different from the author.
Author, Narrator, and Character.
These three can seem similar.
Let's talk about how they're different.
The author writes the story, the narrator tells the story,
and the character acts out the story.
The author creates the narrator,
and the author creates the characters.
So, an author writes the story.
An author creates the narrator to tell the story.
And, an author creates characters to act out the story.
Author and Narrator.
As we said the author is not the same as the narrator.
Author and Narrator, let's look at an example.
This is a famous book called Roscoe Riley Rules
Never Glue Your Friends to Chairs.
The author is a lady named Katherine Applegate.
Here she is, she wrote the book.
The narrator is a boy named Roscoe Riley.
He is also a character in the story.
So, the author, Katherine Applegate,
created the narrator, Roscoe Riley to tell us the story.
Let's read some words from the story.
This will help you understand the difference
between the author and the narrator.
Well, it all started this morning.
I was helping my mom pack my lunch.
Banana? I asked her.
With no icky brown spots on it?
Mom looked in my lunch box.
Check, she said.
We just listened as the narrator,
Roscoe Riley, tells the story.
He says these words to readers.
And the author, Katherine Applegate, wrote these words.
She created the character Roscoe Riley to tell us the story.
Narrator and Character.
Sometimes the narrator is also a character.
So, how do we know if the narrator
is also a character or not?
Remember that all narrators tell about the action.
Some narrators do not participate in the action.
For example, this narrator is watching the action.
She's watching the people talk.
She's watching the people sit together.
But she isn't talking with them
and she isn't sitting with them.
She does not participate in the action.
She is just a narrator, not a character.
Some narrators do participate in the action.
See, the people are talking and sitting.
She's with them, she's listening.
In this case, she's a narrator and a character.
Narrators and Action.
A narrator who participates in the action talks
to characters and interacts with other characters.
What is interacts with?
That means the narrator does things with the characters.
For example, sits with them, walks with them,
laughs with them, eats with them,
talks with them or studies with them.
Let's look at an example of Narrator and Action.
Remember the words we read earlier by Roscoe Riley?
Let's review the same words and see
if we can answer these two questions.
Does Roscoe participate in the action of the story?
And, is Roscoe only the narrator, or is he also a character?
Well, it all started this morning.
I was helping my mom pack my lunch.
"Banana?" I asked her.
With no icky brown spots on it?
Mom looked in my lunchbox.
"Check," she said.
So what do you think?
Does Roscoe participate in the action of the story
or does he just watch and tell the action?
The answer is yes, Roscoe participates
in the action of the story.
How do we know that?
Well, we know that because in this part
that we read, Roscoe talks to his mom.
He also interacts with his mom by packing lunch with her.
When the narrator talks to a character,
and interacts with a character,
that means the narrator is
participating in the action of the story.
So, let's look at Question Two.
Is Roscoe only the narrator, or is he also a character?
What do you think?
Roscoe participates in the action
so he is also a character of the story.
Now, let's practice.
You'll answer questions about story narrators
and we'll check your answers at the end.
Practice Number One.
These words come from the famous story
Twilight by Author Stephanie Meyer.
The narrator is this teenage girl, I'll read her words.
My mother drove me to the airport
with the windows rolled down.
It was 75 degrees in Phoenix,
the sky a perfect, cloudless blue.
"Bella," my mom said to me, the last
of a thousand times before I got
on the plane, "you don't have to do this."
We'll answer three questions about the selection.
Question One, what is the narrator's name?
Question Two, does this narrator
participate in the action of the story?
And Question Three, how do we know that?
Pause the video while you work
and we'll check the answers in a moment.
Practice Number Two.
In my opinion, these practice questions
are a little more difficult than the ones
from Practice Number One, see if you agree.
These words are taken from the story
Harry Potter by Author J.K. Rowling.
I'll read the story.
Harry Potter was a wizard,
a wizard fresh from his first year
at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
And, if the Dursleys were unhappy
to have him back for the holidays,
it was nothing to how Harry felt.
He missed Hogwarts so much that
it was like having a constant stomachache.
Question Number One, what is the narrator's name?
Question Two, does the narrator participate
in the action of the story or,
does the narrator only tell the action?
Number Three, how do we know that?
Pause the video while you think
about the answers, we'll check them in a moment.
Practice Number Three.
We'll ask the same questions about this story.
These words come from Diary of
a Wimpy Kid by Author Jeff Kinney.
There was another announcement on the loudspeaker today,
and to be honest with you,
I kind of figured this one was coming.
Greg Heffley, please report to Mr. Winsky's office.
I knew it was just a matter of time
before I got busted for what happened last week.
When I got to Mr. Winsky's office he was really mad.
So, Number One, what is the narrator's name?
Number Two, does the narrator
participate in the action of the story?
And Number Three, how do we know?
Pause the video while you work.
We'll check the answers in a moment.
Practice Number Four.
This time we'll answer the same three questions
about the story The Knight at Dawn
from the Magic Treehouse Series by author Mary Pope Osborne.
I'll read the story.
Jack pushed his glasses into place.
Who was going to believe any of this?
Not his mom.
Or his dad.
Or his third grade teacher, Ms. Watkins.
Only his seven year old sister, Annie.
She'd gone with him to the time of the dinosaurs.
Question One, what is the narrator's name.
Question Two, does the narrator
participate in the action of the story?
And Question Three, how do we know?
Pause the video while you work
and we'll check answers after this.
Now let's check our answers.
Practice Number One Answers.
Number One, what is the narrator's name?
Her name is Bella.
How do we know this?
We know this because as the narrator
speaks she says Bella, my mom said to me.
The narrator is talking about her mom
and herself, so we know her name is Bella.
Number Two, does this narrator participate in the action
of the story or, does she just tell it?
Yes, this narrator participates in the action of the story.
So, how do we know that?
We know this because first, the narrator talks
to another character, her mother.
We clearly see this in the words "Bella," my mom said to me.
These words show us that the narrator
is having a conversation with the mother.
Also, this narrator interacts with a character
when she rides in the car with her mother.
We see this in the first sentence.
My mother drove me to the airport
with the windows rolled down.
When a narrator talks to and interacts with a character,
that means the narrator is part of the action.
Practice Number Two: Answers.
Number One, what is the narrator's name?
In this case, we don't know the narrator's name.
The narrator talks about the character Harry Potter
and the Dursley family, but the narrator
never tells his or her own name.
Number Two, does the narrator
participate in the action of the story?
No, this narrator does not participate.
This narrator only tells us about the action.
How do we know that the narrator doesn't participate?
First, the narrator does not talk
to Harry Potter or the Dursleys.
Next, the narrator does not interact
with Harry Potter or the Dursleys.
This narrator only talks about
Harry Potter and the Dursleys.
If a narrator doesn't talk to,
or interact with other characters,
the narrator does not participate in the action
but only tells about the action of the story.
Practice Number Three Answers.
Number One, what is the narrators name?
This narrator's name is Greg Heffley.
We know that because of the announcement
he heard on the loudspeaker at school which said,
Greg Heffley, please report to Mr. Winsky's office.
Number Two, does the narrator
participate in the action of the story?
Yes, Number Three, how do we know that?
We know this because the narrator
interacts with another character, Mr. Winsky.
How does the narrator interact?
Well, first, the narrator goes to Mr. Winsky's office.
Also, Mr. Winsky is angry at the narrator.
We know these two facts from this sentence.
When I got to Mr. Winsky's office he was really mad.
This shows us that the narrator is interacting
with another character and therefore
participating in the action of the story.
Practice Number Four Answers.
Number One, what is the narrator's name?
In this case, we don't know.
We learned the name of several characters
including Jack, Jack's mom, his dad,
his teacher Ms. Watkins, and his sister Annie.
The narrator tells us about all of these characters
but the narrator never tells us his or her own name.
So, we don't know the narrators name.
Number Two, does the narrator
participate in the action of the story?
No, this narrator does not participate.
This narrator only watches the actions and tells.
How do we know that the narrator doesn't participate?
Well, first, the narrator does not talk
to Jack or the other characters.
The narrator only talks about these characters.
Also, the narrator does not interact
with Jack or the other characters.
The narrator doesn't sit with them, talk to them,
play with them, eat with them, or interact in other ways.
Narrator, The End.
Our narrator lesson for today is complete.
I hope this video helped you understand
what a narrator is, the difference between author
and narrator, and when a narrator
participates in the action of the story.
Thank you for watching.