Story Retell Practice

Story retell whether it be a personal story or of a story read/listened to can be a challenge for children with developmental language disorders!

Story retell is crucial not only for literacy and language skills but also pragmatic language skills!! Without it, it is hard to start/join a conversation and share personal stories needed to maintain relationships.

Many children with development language disorders will skip right over the setting and jump to the problem. Some may include the characters but not the when and where. Some children may just provide the resolution. Sound familiar?!

Well, I am here to help with some therapy tips and free resources.

Quick Story Retell Review

When retelling a story, at a basic level you must include:

Setting

Who (characters - people/animals)
Where (location/places)
When (time)

Problem

The main event or problem

Resolution

How the story ends
How do the characters feels

That is a BRIEF overview. If you are looking for a more in-depth review, please check out my Narrative Structure Page.

Story Retell Materials

Many of my clients have trouble sharing stories about their weekend or their day due to leaving out crucial story structure components. I was brainstorming a SIMPLE and ADAPTABLE way to target such a skill quickly during each session and came up with the system below.

Please watch the video to learn m ore about the materials and how to use them.

Story Retell Cards Using Google Slides

I made 4 different decks that target the following structures:

Who, Where
Where, When, Who
Where, When, Who, What Happened
Who, Where, When, (you decide what happens)

How To Use The Story Retell Cards

You can use the cards anyway you see fit; however, I have some ideas for you!

First, I review what each blank square needs (watch video above to find out what I am talking about!)
I have the child pick out the needed cards (who, where, when, what happened)
Then, I have the child practice "telling the story."
The child works on which story components are needed, what they are, and how to put them together.
As a bonus, I also practice present/past tense verbs, grammar, and more!

These materials are ADAPTABLE for a few reasons!

I purposely left out story grammar cues (you can add your own or just leave them out)
Some children get confused with the visual cues!
You can re-arrange the sentence structures as needed
You can use the visuals provided or make up your own!