Who, What, Where, When, Why and How

Six powerful questions

Reporters, detectives, scientists and readers all use the same six question words to understand events and ideas:

Question word	Asks about	Example
Who?	people or characters	Who won the race?
What?	things or events	What happened at the park?
Where?	places	Where does the story take place?
When?	time	When did the storm begin?
Why?	reasons	Why did the girl run away?
How?	the way something happens	How did they solve the problem?

Together, these are called the 5 Ws and H.

Why the 5 Ws and H matter

These questions help you:

Understand what you read by finding the key information.
Write clearly so readers get the whole picture.
Research a topic by guiding what to look for.
Ask better questions in conversations and interviews.
Summarize stories, articles and events.

Who?

Who asks about people, animals or characters.

Who is the main character?
Who invented the telephone?
Who was at the party?

Answer with names or descriptions: Alexander Graham Bell, my cousin Leo, a curious fox.

What?

What asks about things, events or actions.

What happened next?
What is the problem in the story?
What did the scientist discover?

Where?

Where asks about places.

Where does the story take place?
Where do polar bears live?
Where did you find your keys?

Answers might be a country, a city, a room or a setting like a dark forest.

When?

When asks about time.

When did the First World War begin?
When does the movie start?
When does the story happen: long ago, today or in the future?

Answers might be a date, a time of day, a season or a period.

Why?

Why asks for reasons or causes.

Why did the character lie?
Why do leaves change colour?
Why is exercise important?

Answers often use because. Why questions usually need the most thinking.

How?

How asks about the way something happens, or how much or how many.

How do bees make honey?
How did the team win?
How many students are in your class?
How does the character feel?

Open and closed questions

A closed question can be answered with yes, no or one word: Did you like the book?

An open question needs a longer answer: What did you like about the book? Why?

Why and how questions are usually open. They lead to deeper thinking and better conversations.

Using the 5 Ws and H in reading

After reading a story or article, try to answer all six questions. This makes a great summary.

Story: On a snowy Saturday morning, Maya and her dog Pepper went sledding at Hilltop Park. Pepper chased a squirrel into the woods and got lost. Maya followed his barking and found him stuck under a fallen branch. She lifted the branch, and they walked home safely.

Who? Maya and her dog Pepper
What? Pepper got lost and stuck; Maya rescued him.
Where? Hilltop Park and the woods
When? A snowy Saturday morning
Why? Pepper chased a squirrel.
How? Maya followed his barking and lifted the branch.

Using the 5 Ws and H in writing

News reports

A news report answers the 5 Ws and H quickly. The first sentence or paragraph, called the lead, usually answers most of them.

On Friday afternoon (when), students at Maple Elementary (who) raised over $2,000 (what) for the local food bank (why) by holding a bake sale (how) in the school gym (where).

Stories

Before writing a story, plan with the 5 Ws and H:
– Who are your characters?
– What problem will they face?
– Where and when does it happen?
– Why does the problem happen?
– How will it be solved?

Reports and research

Use the questions to guide research: Who discovered it? What is it? Where is it found? When was it discovered? Why is it important? How does it work?

Using the 5 Ws and H in conversation and interviews

When you interview someone, prepare open questions:

What is your job like?
Why did you choose it?
How did you learn your skills?
When did you know you wanted to do this?

Common mistakes

Mixing up where and when. Where = place; when = time.
Answering why with what. Why did he leave? needs a reason, not just an event.
Asking only closed questions in interviews.
Leaving out important Ws in news writing.

Try it yourself

Read: Last Tuesday, a firefighter named Jamal rescued a kitten from a tall maple tree on Oak Street. He used a ladder because the kitten was too scared to climb down.

Who?
What?
Where?
When?
Why?
How?
Change this closed question into an open one: Did you like the field trip?

Answers: 1. Jamal, a firefighter (and a kitten). 2. He rescued a kitten. 3. A maple tree on Oak Street. 4. Last Tuesday. 5. The kitten was too scared to climb down. 6. He used a ladder. 7. What was your favourite part of the field trip, and why?

Study tip

Draw a hand on a sticky note. Write Who, What, Where, When, Why on the fingers and How on the palm. Use it as a bookmark and check it after reading each chapter.

Quick recap

The 5 Ws and H are who, what, where, when, why and how.
They help you understand, summarize, research and write.
Why and how questions need the most thinking.
News reports answer the 5 Ws and H in the lead.
Open questions lead to richer answers than closed questions.