Character Trait Posters

Using Characters from Children's Novels to make Character Trait Connections

An activity that I have had a lot of success with is making character trait posters.  I use the classic children's novel, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

1. First we either read the novel, or if you prefer you can show the video to save time. Go over character traits as you normally would.
2. I have my class take notes and we discuss the traits of each character.  I discuss mood, personality, etc. and how they differ from traits such as weight, appearance, etc.  I call it external traits versus internal traits.
3. We then brainstorm other characters from movies, cartoons, novels, etc. that have the same traits as a character or all the characters from the Charlie movies.
4. Students then will need to give reasons from the story that leads them to believe they have matching traits. I use quotations to do this.  For example, I have them write things that each character both said in their respective movies/books.  The traits should match. 
5. Finally, we make posters.  I have the main "Charlie" character in the middle, and the other characters in each corner.  I assign a corner to each child in order to give individual grades.  The whole group is responsible for making the center character.
6. I assess their abilty to list traits correctly.  I only want internal traits.  I also assess quotations, and spelling.