* ask and answer who, what, where, when, why and how questions to demonstrate understanding of texts

* recount stories and determine their central message, lesson, or moral

* describe how characters in a story respond to major events and challenges

* describe how words and phrases (regular beats, alliteration, rhymes, repeated lines) supply rhythm and meaning in a story, poem, or song

* describe the overall structure of a story

* acknowledge differences in the points of view of characters, including speaking in different voices for characters when reading aloud

* use information gained from illustrations and words in a print or digital text to demonstrate understanding of characters, setting, and plot

* identify dialogue as words spoken by characters and explain what dialogue adds to a particular story/poem

* compare/contrast two or more versions of the same story by different authors from different cultures

* know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words

* read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension

* read and comprehend stories at Level M and beyond