Narrative Retell — Short Story
Retell a short story using picture sequence cards.
Session summary (SOAP)
Stays on this screen. Nothing is saved or sent.
Mark a card Correct, Correct with cue or Incorrect and the summary writes itself here.
How to run it
Do all three retells, in that order. The fading is the whole design: the first is supported, the second adds the connectives, and the third is the target. The instruction on the last card — don't leave out the problem — is there because the missing nose is the element students skip, and a retell without it is a list of actions rather than a story. Fifteen minutes covers the story and the three retells.
Cueing ladder
Start at the top. Add support one step at a time.
- IndependentPresent the item and wait 5 seconds of quiet before helping.Log as correct
- Question promptAsk a story-grammar question: who, where, what was the problem, what happened next?Log as cued
- Two choicesOffer two possible next parts of the story and let the student pick and say it.Log as cued
- ModelTell that part yourself; the student tells it back in their own words.Log as cued
Adjust it
Use fewer parts, and keep a first-next-last visual on the table.
Ask for the retell without the pictures, with a feeling or a reason added to each part.
Matching IEP goal
Given a picture or story prompt, Student will tell a story that includes a character, setting, problem and ending in 4 of 5 opportunities across 3 consecutive sessions, given no more than one question prompt.
Send it home through the parent portal →About this activity
A seven-picture story with a problem in it: Maya woke up and saw snow outside her window; she put on her boots, hat and mittens; outside she rolled three big snowballs; she could not find anything for the nose; her mom brought her a carrot; Maya put the carrot on and hugged the snowman. Then three retells — with the pictures, with sequence words, and without the pictures at all.
What to listen for
Watch whether the problem survives the unsupported retell. Students who retell accurately with pictures often drop the complication when the pictures go, because it is the one element that is not a visible action. Listen for the connectives in the second retell — first, next, then, finally — and whether they carry into the third without prompting.
Carrying it home
Any picture book supports the same three-step routine. Retelling with the pictures, then with the book closed, is a bedtime routine that takes two minutes and builds narrative structure.
What's in this activity
- Picture 1 — Maya woke up and saw snow outside her window.
- Picture 2 — She put on her boots, hat, and mittens.
- Picture 3 — Outside, she rolled three big snowballs.
- Picture 4 — She stacked them up and made a snowman.
- Picture 5 — She could not find anything for the nose.
- Picture 6 — Her mom brought her a carrot from the kitchen.
- Picture 7 — Maya put the carrot on and hugged the snowman.
- Now retell the story using all the pictures.
- Retell it again using: first, next, then, finally.
- Retell it without the pictures. Don't leave out the problem.
Questions
- What grades is this for?
- First through fourth, for early narrative retelling.
- Is it free?
- Yes, the whole story and all three retells play with no account.
- My student retells with pictures and not without. Is that progress?
- It is the expected middle stage. The pictures are carrying the sequence, and the work is transferring that to memory — which is why the third retell exists as a separate step rather than an afterthought.
Use this board with your caseload
With a free account, every correct, cued and incorrect mark is saved to the student and scored against their IEP goal, with the data written up for you. Assign it as home practice through the parent portal.
Track progress freeFree for SLPs. No card, no trial clock.