EnglishFreePrintable

Narrative Point of View

A free english worksheet ready for your classroom. Open in Kuraplan to grab the print-ready PDF, customize it for your students, or generate a fresh version in seconds.

Download now

Name:Date:

Narrative Point of View

Read the three short versions of the same moment. Then investigate how the narrator’s point of view shapes what the reader knows. Use evidence from the writing in your answers.

Read the scene

A. First person I reached the lighthouse just as the storm broke. The shed door was locked, and the brass key was missing from my pocket. Behind me, something scraped against the stone path. I told myself it was only a loose branch, but my hands would not stop shaking. B. Third-person limited Mara reached the lighthouse just as the storm broke. The shed door was locked, and the brass key was missing from her pocket. Behind her, something scraped against the stone path. She told herself it was only a loose branch, but her hands would not stop shaking. C. Third-person omniscient Mara reached the lighthouse just as the storm broke, certain the key had been in her pocket. Behind the wall, Manaia gripped it and wished he had not taken it. He had wanted to prove the shed was already open, but now he was afraid to call out. Neither teenager knew that the scrape on the path came from the shed’s swinging metal latch.

1.In version A, identify the narrative point of view. Give one pronoun from the passage as evidence.

2.Which version uses third-person limited narration, and whose thoughts can the reader access in that version?

3.In version C, what does the reader know that Mara does not? Give two details.

4.Choose the most accurate description of version B.

A first-person narrator describes events as “you”.
A third-person narrator follows one character’s experience and knowledge.
A third-person narrator reveals every character’s thoughts.
A narrator speaks directly to the reader as a character.

5.Why does version B create suspense about the missing key? Explain how the limited point of view affects the reader.

6.Complete the idea: A narrator who uses “I” and can report only their own experiences is usually a -person narrator.

7.Match each description to the most suitable point of view.

The narrator uses “I” and tells what they personally notice.
The narrator uses “she” and stays close to Mara’s thoughts.
The narrator reveals Mara’s, Manaia’s and other hidden facts.

Third-person limited
First person
Third-person omniscient

8.Rewrite this sentence from Manaia’s first-person point of view: “Behind the wall, Manaia gripped the key and wished he had not taken it.” Keep the meaning, but use a first-person pronoun.

9.Suppose the mystery continues, but the writer wants readers to understand Manaia’s guilt while Mara still does not. Which point of view would best achieve this? Explain why.

10.Write two or three sentences continuing the scene from Mara’s first-person point of view. Include what she notices, but do not reveal Manaia’s thoughts or anything she could not know.