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Retelling, and What the Story Teaches

A 40-minute Grade 1 lesson on retelling a story with its key details and then naming the message behind them.

Retelling, and What the Story Teaches is a free 40-minute Grade 1 English lesson plan for Common Core standard RL.1.2 — retell a story with its key parts, and say what it was trying to teach. It is timed across 5 sections, gives the exact wording to use where the wording carries the mathematics, names 3 misconceptions with the teaching move that addresses each, and ends with an exit ticket and a printable worksheet with its answer key.

Grade:
Grade 1
Length:
40 minutes
Standard:
RL.1.2

Grade 1 · Reading: Literature

RL.1.2

Retell stories, including key details, and demonstrate understanding of their central message or lesson.

Objective

Students will be able to retell a story with its key details and say what it was trying to teach.

Students are successful when they can

  • Retells beginning, middle and end.
  • Includes the part the story turns on.
  • States a message rather than an event.

What you need

  • A story with a clear lesson in it
  • A three-box retelling strip
  • The printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan

The lesson

Warm-up — three boxes

5 min
  1. Retell a known story into three boxes: beginning, middle, end.
  2. Ask which box the story turns on. Usually the middle.

Teach — from what happened to what it means

13 min
  1. Read the story. Fill the three boxes together.
  2. Read the retelling back. Confirm it holds.
  3. Now ask a different question: what was this story trying to tell us?
  4. Take a first answer that is an event — 'the mouse helped the lion'. Say that is what happened, and ask what it MEANS.
  5. Get to the message and write it under the boxes, separately.
  6. Name the two things: what happened, and what it means. They are different lines.
“That is what happened. Now: why did somebody bother to write it down?”

Guided practice — retell, then the message

12 min
  1. Pairs retell into three boxes, then write one sentence for the message.
  2. Take four messages from the room and compare them. They will differ, and several will be defensible.

Independent practice

8 min
  1. Students complete the retelling and message page.
  2. The passage is on the sheet.

Close

2 min
  1. Ask the class for the message in one sentence.
  2. Ask which part of the story shows it.

What goes wrong, and why

Each of these is a reasoning error rather than carelessness. The fix addresses the reasoning.

Gives an event when asked for the message.

Why: Both are true statements about the story, and the event is available while the message has to be inferred.

Fix: Ask 'why did somebody bother to write this down?' An event is not an answer to that question.

Gives a message that the story does not support.

Why: The message came from elsewhere — a rule they know — rather than from the events.

Fix: Ask which part of the story shows it. A message with no supporting event is somebody else's message.

Retells at enormous length and never reaches the end.

Why: Without a limit, every detail is worth including.

Fix: Three boxes and one sentence each. The boxes are the limit.

If they are not there yet

  • Fill the boxes with drawings rather than sentences.
  • Give two possible messages and ask which the story supports.

If they finish early

  • Give a second message the story also supports.
  • Say what would have to change for the message to be different.
  • Compare the message with another story's.

Exit ticket

Retell the story in three sentences. Then say in one sentence what it was trying to teach.

What to look for: Four sentences with the last one different in kind. A fourth event means the 'why write it down' question needs to become standing.

Printable practice for RL.1.2

Free to print and copy, answer key included. Each sheet can generate a fresh set of problems for a retake.

Questions about Retelling, and What the Story Teaches

How long does the Retelling, and What the Story Teaches lesson take?

40 minutes, split across 5 timed sections: warm-up 5 min, teach 13 min, guided practice 12 min, independent practice 8 min, close 2 min. The minutes are stated per section and add up to the stated length, so the plan can be cut or extended at a section boundary rather than abandoned halfway.

Which standard does Retelling, and What the Story Teaches teach?

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.2 — RL.1.2, Reading: Literature for Grade 1: “Retell stories, including key details, and demonstrate understanding of their central message or lesson.” In plain terms, retell a story with its key parts, and say what it was trying to teach.

What do I need to teach this lesson?

A story with a clear lesson in it, a three-box retelling strip and the printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan. Everything listed is either ordinary classroom equipment or a free printable from this site — there is nothing to buy and nothing to prepare beyond photocopying.

What mistakes should I expect in this lesson?

Three, each a reasoning error rather than carelessness: gives an event when asked for the message; gives a message that the story does not support and retells at enormous length and never reaches the end. The plan gives the thinking behind each one and the teaching move that addresses the thinking rather than the symptom.

How do I know whether the lesson worked?

The exit ticket asks: “Retell the story in three sentences. Then say in one sentence what it was trying to teach.” Four sentences with the last one different in kind. A fourth event means the 'why write it down' question needs to become standing. That tells you whether the class needs a reteach or a thirty-second conversation before you plan tomorrow.

Is there a worksheet to go with Retelling, and What the Story Teaches?

Yes — 1 printable RL.1.2 worksheet, linked at the end of the plan and free like the rest of the site. Each one comes with an answer key and 25 versions, so the practice after the lesson can be a different paper on every desk.

Is Retelling, and What the Story Teaches free to use?

Yes. The plan, its printables and their answer keys are free to read, print and photocopy for your own class, with no account and no email capture. It was last reviewed on 7 September 2026. Please do not resell it or republish it as your own.

Last reviewed 2026-09-07. Aligned to RL.1.2 of the Common Core State Standards for English language arts.