Character Traits

We've been working in narrative nonfiction in our reader's workshop this month. Reading narrative nonfiction is very similar to reading narrative fiction. Narrative nonfiction readers do the same kind of work that narrative fiction readers do. They track their thinking and pay attention to the main character. Only this time, your main character is a real person!

We've been learning that in a narrative nonfiction text, readers can track the character and grow ideas about what kind of person they are. We look for clues the author gives us about their personality by examining what other characters (in this case, other real people) say and think about them. We also pay attention to what the character does and says, and determine if there is a pattern in their behavior.

My students track their thinking and find evidence of their character theory on sticky notes, then transfer the best example of each onto this thinking map. Hope you get good use out of this too!

I've found that this unit has been so much more enjoyable by looking at it through a fiction reader's eyes. My students have been much more successful at identifying the author's perspective by examining the main character.

Happy reading!