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Exploring Story Perspectives

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Exploring Story Perspectives

Read the story first. Then answer the questions using clues from the story. For the writing task, there can be more than one good answer: make sure your new narrator’s thoughts and details fit that character.

The Paper Boat

Mere and her cousin Wiremu were walking home beside the stream when they spotted a paper boat spinning in the water. It had a red star drawn on its sail. “Someone’s lunch note!” Mere said. She hurried towards the footbridge, but rainwater rushed over the first few boards. Mere imagined the boat being swept beneath the bridge and disappearing. She gripped the railing. Her hands felt cold, though she wasn’t sure if it was the rain. Wiremu crouched at the bank. He watched the boat circle a rock, then drift into a calm patch near the reeds. “It’s not going under,” he said. “We can reach it with that fallen branch.” Mere looked at the rushing water. Wiremu seemed calm, which annoyed her a little. Then she noticed his shoes were muddy and his sleeve was torn. He had already climbed down the bank while she was staring at the bridge. Wiremu stretched out the branch. The boat bumped against it. Mere held the branch steady while Wiremu lifted the boat onto the grass. Inside was a damp note: “Meet me by the big pōhutukawa after school.” Mere smiled with relief. Wiremu grinned. “Good thing you held the branch.” Mere had thought Wiremu was being reckless. Now she wondered if he had been brave—or simply better at noticing where the water was calm.

Spot the viewpoint

Use details from “The Paper Boat” to explore how a narrator shapes a story.

1.Which point of view is used in “The Paper Boat”?

First person, told by Mere using “I”
Third person, following Mere’s thoughts and observations
Third person, sharing the private thoughts of every character
Second person, speaking directly to the reader as “you”

2.Copy one phrase from the story that gives the reader access to Mere’s thoughts or feelings.

3.At first, what does Mere think about Wiremu’s behaviour, and what later detail makes her reconsider?

4.The narrator tells the reader exactly what Wiremu is thinking when he crouches by the bank. Write true or false, then give a reason.

TrueFalse

5.Match each story detail to what it helps the reader understand.

“Mere imagined the boat ... disappearing.”
“He watched the boat circle a rock.”
“which annoyed her a little”

Wiremu’s careful action
Mere’s worry
Mere’s reaction to Wiremu

6.The story follows Mere’s perspective. Name one detail Wiremu might notice or think about that the narrator does not tell us.

7.Rewrite the moment when Wiremu reaches for the paper boat as Wiremu speaking in first person. Write 3–4 sentences. Include what he notices and how he feels.

8.Imagine the story is told by the paper boat. Write two sentences describing the moment it circles the rock and drifts towards the reeds. Use details a paper boat could sense or notice.

9.If Wiremu told the whole story, what might the reader learn about him that Mere’s version does not explain? Give one idea and support it with a story detail.

10.Which sentence best shows that the story’s narrator is close to Mere’s perspective?