How to Do Character Analysis in English Language Arts
Being able to call up deeply most character traits for the characters in a short story or novel is an important part of understanding the writer's deeper bulletin. Lower-level texts often spell these out directly, describing a grapheme every bit friendly or sly, to help the reader.
Still, as students brainstorm reading more challenging texts, they'll demand to recall more deeply about the characters and their character traits. Being able to accurately describe characters is a prerequisite skill that students must chief before they'll be able to analyze how characters are influenced past the plot and their relationships with others.
Establishing a potent understanding of graphic symbol traits is essential for success with later skills similar analyzing graphic symbol change.
Today I wanted to share some of my favorite resources and strategies for educational activity students how to employ text clues to identify character traits. I'll also share some neat printables y'all can utilize to facilitate these lessons in your classroom.
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What yous'll find on this page:
Why teach grapheme analysis?
Graphic symbol analysis, or identifying character traits, is an approachable way to become students used to the rigorous expectations for deep thinking near literature. Students must use text clues to make inferences, and they must also exist able to back up their answers with details from the plot.
Character discussions tin can exist great for building vocabulary and helping students build a banking concern of interesting adjectives they tin use every bit they begin writing their own stories.
Yous'll find you can spiral character assay skill practice throughout the year and tin progressively raise your expectations as students go more practiced.
Getting started teaching grapheme traits
Identifying character traits is an important foundational skill. Whether this is your first twelvemonth teaching reading or you're looking for some new ideas to incorporate into your classroom, my hope is yous'll find some ideas and set-to-use resource you can add together to your lesson plans for this skill.
Before nosotros dive into the lesson program, here'south some background information on how this skill fits into the larger moving picture of instruction reading.
What standards address character traits?
This skill is introduced in very different grade levels depending on what standards you utilise. This is a second-course standard in Texas, and students are expected to apply this skill to analyze graphic symbol relationships past third grade, The Common Cadre standards innovate character analysis in third grade and expand upon it through the remaining unproblematic years.
Hither are the Texas standards (TEKS) and Common Core State Standards (CCSS to aid with lesson programme documentation:
- TEKS 2.8BDescribe the main character'due south internal & external traits
- CCSS RL.3.3 Describe characters in a story (e.grand., their traits, motivations, or feelings) and explain how their actions contribute to the sequence of events.
- CCSS RL.4.iii Draw in depth a graphic symbol, setting, or effect in a story or drama, cartoon on specific details in the text.
What reading comprehension skills do my students need to have before I dive into teaching character traits?
Different many higher-level reading comprehension skills, Identifying character traits doesn't require a ton of prerequisite lessons. Once students are able to recollect the primary elements of fiction and can tell about the principal character, they're ready to brainstorm the process of identifying grapheme traits. In other words, the foundations of comprehension must exist solid.
If you're worried almost students' reading levels or you lot have a very various group of learners, the lesson below outlines a great way to brainstorm education this skill because it doesn't even crave students to use text for the initial lessons.
What books are good for introducing & modeling how to identify character traits?
In that location are so many great books to use with lessons on character analysis. While nosotros tend to wait at picture books as mentor texts, biographies are actually a great option for this skill. The story but needs a strong main character and/or supporting characters that your students can brand inferences about.
Hither are my ten favorite books for teaching students to place character traits:
- Ada Twist, Scientist past Andrea Beaty
- The Paper Pocketbook Princess by Robert Munsch
- The Recess Queen by Alexis O'Neill
- Thank You lot, Mr. Falker by Patricia Polacco
- The Invisible Boy by Trudy Ludwig
- The Very Impatient Caterpillar by Ross Burach
- A Bad Case of Stripes by David Shannon
- The Practiced Egg by Jory John
- Sheila Rae the Brave by Kevin Henkes
- Boundless Grace by Mary Hoffman
Before Reading: Introducing Character Traits
Character traits can be hard for younger learners to grasp. While many things are spelled out for them in early readers, character analysis requires students to make inferences based on clues in the text.
When you're introducing character traits, information technology is of import to begin by helping students define the term. Examples and non-examples can be a powerful strategy for edifice understanding.
Students demand to exist able to differentiate between what a character looks like – their advent – and their internal graphic symbol. Yous'll also need to differentiate between emotions and character traits.
I nifty way to practise this is by modeling these differences using yourself or a student in your class. Take students accept turns giving examples of concrete attributes first. Then transition to discussing the traits of that person. When you lot finish, compare the ii lists to help students internalize the differences between the two.
Here's a great case of an ballast nautical chart to utilise with your class as yous begin this foundational work.
See more great examples of anchor charts to teach character traits.
Once you've done this equally a group, you can even have students intermission off into groups. They tin complete an instance using themselves or another classmate.
The great matter about doing this first is that information technology doesn't require text. Your struggling readers get the chance to sympathise the skill without using all their mental free energy on decoding.
You may also consider creating a list of character traits as a form. Alternatively, you may share and discuss the free character traits list I've created equally a group. This can assist students build vocabulary.
If yous feel similar your students might demand additional practice earlier they place these traits in text, you tin piece of work astern by assigning each student a trait and having them write well-nigh how someone with that trait might think, act, or speak to others. This can really help students tune into what clues the text might provide.
Transitioning to Text – Guided Practice
In one case your students have a solid grasp on what character traits are, you're likely ready to transition them toward identifying the traits of characters in a brusk text.
At this point, I like to selection a picture book to utilise equally a mentor text. My favorite for upper simple is A Bad Instance of Stripes past David Shannon. A great alternative for younger students or those with shorter attention spans is No, David! from the same author.
Equally you read, have students pay attending to the master graphic symbol's thoughts, words, actions, and feelings. Stop to talk over character traits they tin infer along the style.
After y'all end reading, employ the free flipbooks to aid your students document the traits they observed. Under each flap, they should provide evidence from the text that supports the trait they've identified.
Depending on the text you select, this can besides be a great spot to begin the discussion of positive vs. negative graphic symbol traits. You lot can even apply the cut & paste grapheme traits included to help your students sort traits into three categories – positive, negative, and neutral.
Grab the gratis resource here.
Independent Practice Options
Once students seem to have a solid grasp on this skill, at that place are many different ways you can contain this into independent practice.
Encouraging students to discuss character traits during their literature circles or guided reading is one great option. I've included a free graphic organizer that students can use to organize their thoughts and record text show for their book.
Hither are a few means yous tin offer some fun additional practice:
- Use costless online games to exercise the skill & keep students engaged
- Use task cards to accept students exercise identifying traits
- Accept students create a Wordle for a character in a book they've read
Grab the gratis resources for teaching grapheme traits
Now that you've read about how y'all can become students to think securely about characters and their traits, I'one thousand sure you're fix to tackle this in your classroom.
That'southward why I created a set up of gratuitous resources for teaching this skill. In this free pack, you'll find:
- Character traits list for reading journals
- Graphic organizers – internal vs. external, text evidence, comparing characters
- Comparing characters graphic organizer
- Graphic symbol trait writing task – differentiated options available
- Trait sort – positive, negative, and neutral traits
Source: https://www.differentiatedteaching.com/character-traits/
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