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Common Core ELA1st GradeReading: Literature

RL.1.3: Describe Characters, Setting and Events

Also written as CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.3 · Cluster: Key Ideas and Details.

All 41 1st Grade ELA Standards

The Official Wording

Describe characters, settings, and major events in a story, using key details.

Common Core State Standards, Grade 1, Reading: Literature · Read it at the source · Checked October 14, 2026

What RL.1.3 Means in Plain English

First graders describe who is in a story, where and when it happens and what big things happen, and they back each part with a detail. Grandma isn’t just “a lady”: she is the calm one, because she pulls the cord while Omar grips the basket.

Kindergartners named these story parts with prompting (RL.K.3); now children describe them on their own, and the detail is the proof. In 2nd grade the focus narrows to how characters respond to big events and challenges (RL.2.3), like Grandma answering the wind.

RL.1.3 I Can Statements

  • I can tell who is in the story and what they are like.
  • I can tell where and when the story happens.
  • I can tell the big events and use details to show them.

RL.1.3 Worked Example

A five-line story set somewhere a child can picture, then two descriptions of it.

Read the Story
Early one morning, Omar and his grandma floated over the farms in a hot-air balloon.Below them, the cows looked as small as ants.Then a strong wind pushed the balloon toward a tall tree!Omar gripped the basket, but Grandma calmly pulled the cord.Whoosh! The balloon rose up and over the tree, and Grandma winked at him.
A short passage written for this page.
Question: Who is in the story, where are they, and what is the big thing that happens?
Not Yet“A boy and a lady. They’re outside. Something happens.”Every part is named, but with no details. Outside could be anywhere, and “something” isn’t an event.
Meets the Standard“Omar and his grandma. They’re in a hot-air balloon over the farms, early in the morning. The wind pushes them toward a tree, and Grandma stays calm and pulls the cord to go up and over it.”Names, a setting with where and when, and the big event, each with a detail from the story, plus a word that describes Grandma.
Question Stems to Use
The characters are…The story happens…I know it’s morning because…The big event is…Grandma is… because…

Common Mistakes with RL.1.3

Names with no description

“Omar and Grandma.”

Try this: Follow every name with “What are they like?” and “What did they do that shows it?” until there is a detail.

Setting as only “outside”

“It happens outside.”

Try this: Ask two setting questions every time, where and when, and point to the line that answers each: hot-air balloon, early morning.

A small detail as the big event

“The big thing is the cows looked like ants.”

Try this: Ask “If we took this part out, would the story change?” Only the parts that change the story count as big events.

Where RL.1.3 Fits

Comes BeforeRL.K.3Identify the characters, setting and major events, with prompting and support.
AlongsideRL.1.7Use the pictures and the words together to describe characters, setting or events.SL.1.4Describe people, places and events out loud with details that matter.
Comes NextRL.2.3Describe how characters respond to major events and challenges.

Practice RL.1.3

Quick Check

  1. Where and when does the story happen?
  2. What is the big event?
  3. What is Grandma like? Use a detail.

RL.1.3: Other Names

RL.1.3CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.3

Common Core State Standards © Copyright 2010. National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved. Official wording from the Common Core State Standards PDFs at corestandards.org, last checked October 14, 2026. The explanation, I can statements, example, mistakes and practice on this page are EMStudio’s own, written beside the official wording. They are not part of the standard.