Book Report Graphic Organizers Printouts Graphic Organizers can help students think about and list the major topics that will be covered in a (fiction) book report.

The Structure of Your Report:
Start your report with an introductory paragraph that states the book's title, the author, and the type of book it is (mystery, fairy tale, science fiction, western, etc.). Then write at least four to five paragraphs that clearly describe the book. Each paragraph should cover one topic (for example, you should have at least one paragraph that describes the main character). End the report with a closing paragraph that summarizes what you learned from the book and if you liked or disliked the book (and why).

Finally, cite your references (see the section below on formats for your bibliography).

Check that your grammar, spelling, and punctuation are correct. Make sure to use complete sentences and write neatly! Define any technical terms that you use. Proofread your report for errors before you hand it in -- do not hand in a rough draft.

Topics to Include in Your Report:
When you write your report, try to cover as many of the following topics as you can:

• Setting: Describe the setting or settings of the book. Note where the action takes place and when. Have you ever been to a place like that? Did you like it or not? Would you like to be in a place and time like that described in the book?
• Main Character: Write about the main character, including what they are like, what they look like, what they like to do, and so on. Does the character change, learn, or grow in the story? If so, describe how and why this happens. Would you like to be friends with this character?
• Other Characters: List the other characters in the books and give some characteristics for each.
• Which characters did you like/dislike?: State why you liked/disliked certain characters. Did any of the characters do things that you think are wrong, noble, risky, etc?
• What happened at the beginning of the story?: How does the story start? Usually this is where the characters are introduced to us and the problem is stated.
• What happened in the middle of the story?: This is usually where we find out a lot about the characters and the story becomes more exciting.
• What happened at the end of the story?: This is usually where the main problem in the book is resolved.
• What was the problem in the story and how was it solved?: What was the big problem in the story, how was it solved, who solved it. and why?
• What did you learn from this story?: The best books leave the reader with a lot to think about and learn.
• Theme/Main Idea: What was the main idea or theme of the book? Some stories have a moral (like Aesop's fables), while others try to teach a life lesson.
• Do you like this story?: Tell if you liked or disliked this story and why you did or didn't like it.

• Book: Author(s). Title of book. Edition. Location of publisher: Name of Publisher, year of publication.
• Web Site: Author(s) if appropriate. Title of Site or web page. URL of site, date of publication (the earliest copyright year listed).

Another format for Internet sources is as follows:

Last name, First name of author. Title of Page. Name of the publisher (EnchantedLearning.com in our case). Date the page was created (at Enchanted Learning, this is the earliest date on the copyright notice located at the bottom of each page), Date of revision (at Enchanted Learning, we do not keep track of page revisions).

Some teachers also request that you include the date of access; this is the date (or dates) that you went to the web page (or pages).

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