Character Analysis Unit

I have really started to love all of the Character Study we have been doing. I think the depth in which my kiddos are thinking is just amazing!!

One of the lessons we started with was on Inside/Outside Character Traits. We talked about how you often have to infer and use Text Based Evidence to justify inside character traits. We practiced by reading Amazing Grace and making the foldable picture below that came from HERE (I forgot to take pictures so here is the blog that shows the orginial). The site even has the printable frame to make this!! My kids listed the outside traits on the outside and the inside traits WITH TEXT BASED EVIDENCE on the inside. I made them realize they had to SHOW ME how they know what the character is like on the inside.



Up next we did a project where they were the character and they had to describe themselves using TBE. Here is some of their work (only a couple bc I don't have time to blur out pictures-which I don't have to, but feel as though I should). Also I always take their picture on that day to print so that if they save the assignment it will show how much they have changed!

Now we have started an AMAZING novel by a Missouri author called The Man Who Loved Clowns. It was written by June Rae Wood. She is a Missouri author and the book is set in MO and has locations that my kids can relate to throughout the book. I am loving it.

We are reading the novel as a part of our character analysis study. We are taking everything we have learned about characters (which is more than what I have listed above- I will post more later!) and are applying it to the characters throughout the novel. We are doing an in-depth analysis.

The students have packets of organizers for note taking that can be seen here on TPT. We are working up to creating something that looks like this:

It is the character analysis project from Teaching With A Mountain View. She is AMAZING and I use her blog and ideas almost daily!! There is even the rubric and instructions for this project along with her completed pictures. The picture above is my model for my students. 

Here are some of the pages from their packets for notes available at my TPT STORE: 

So we are taking notes about everything character related throughout the novel. We will work on the characterization project and a written character analysis at the conclusion of the novel. My kids are already loving it and are really thinking deep! 

*Note- The TPT link above is linked to the The Man Who Loved Clowns edition of these organizers. There is a generic version too that did not get uploaded yet, but I will hopefully get it next week. This version does include blank pages though and would work for any novel. :) 

Enjoy your weekend!!