RL.6.3: How the Plot Unfolds and Characters Change
Also written as CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.6.3 · Cluster: Key Ideas and Details.
The Official Wording
Describe how a particular story's or drama's plot unfolds in a series of episodes as well as how the characters respond or change as the plot moves toward a resolution.
Common Core State Standards, Grade 6, Reading: Literature · Read it at the source · Checked October 14, 2026
What RL.6.3 Means in Plain English
Sixth graders follow a plot one episode at a time and say what each adds: a new problem, a worse one, a turn. They track how a character responds at every step, so “Rafi learned his lesson” becomes a change they can point to, scene by scene.
In 5th grade (RL.5.3) students compared two characters, settings or events using specific details. Sixth grade links the episodes into one line and follows a character along it. In 7th grade (RL.7.3) students analyze how story elements interact, such as how a setting shapes a character.
RL.6.3 I Can Statements
- I can break a plot into episodes and explain what each adds.
- I can describe how a character responds at each turn of the plot.
- I can explain how a character has changed by the resolution.
RL.6.3 Worked Example
A hike told in four episodes, with Rafi doing something different in each, so the question asks for the whole line rather than one scene.
Day one: Rafi left the trail map in the van. “I’ve hiked this loop twice,” he told the group, and led them straight past the fork.Day two, noon: The creek they should have reached by lunch never appeared. Rafi walked faster, as if speed could fix the direction.Day two, dusk: Wen, who had barely spoken all trip, unfolded a sketch she had made of the trailhead sign. Rafi studied it for a long time. Then he sat down on his pack and said, “Show me where we went wrong.”Day three: They reached the ranger station before noon. Rafi walked at the back, and at every fork he waited for Wen.
Common Mistakes with RL.6.3
Skipping the middle
“At first Rafi is cocky. At the end he listens.”
Try this: Require one sentence per episode on what the character does there, and highlight the episode where the response first shifts.
Events with no links
“Then they got lost. Then Wen had a drawing. Then they got to the station.”
Try this: Replace every “then” with “because” or “so” and check that each episode is caused by the one before it.
A change with no proof
“Rafi becomes humble.”
Try this: Ask what the character does differently at the end, and accept a trait only when an action from the text backs it.
Where RL.6.3 Fits
Practice RL.6.3
Quick Check
- What does Rafi leave behind on day one, and why?
- What is the turning point of the plot?
- How does Rafi act on day three?