The aim of the study at hand is to generate knowledge about what pupils aged nine to ten years old need to discern in order to develop the ability to write stories with a well-developed, exciting and coherent plot, and how teaching can make it possible for the pupils to develop this ability. The theoretical framework has been Variation Theory. It is a theory of learning that focuses on how discernment of aspects affects the way we perceive our world and how variation can be used to promote learning. A basic assumption is that we learn by seeing differences, not by seeing sameness. Learning Study was used to answer the research questions. It is an interventionist approach, where the focus is on an object of learning, in this case the ability to write stories with a well-developed, exciting and coherent plot. In the research process the aim was to find out which aspects were critical for the pupils to discern in order to develop the ability, and how these could be made visible in the teaching. Together with a group of teachers, lessons were planned, implemented, evaluated and refined in an iterative process. Interview data, pupils’ texts written before and after the lessons and video recordings from the lessons were the basis of the analysis. It was found that in order for these learners to handle the object of learning, they needed to discern eight critical aspects that can be related to two different areas: (a) discerning the perspective of a reader and (b) seeing that a plot consists of several problems and solutions. The aspects were made discernible by using contrast as a pedagogical tool. The result of the study contributes to previous research by identifying and specifying what the pupils need to discern, what it means in a classroom setting and how it can be taught in a powerful way.