Comparing Characters

Your young students will compare how two characters have changed in a story.

A Character’s Challenges and Changes

Your 1st and 2nd graders will analyze how a character responded to a challenge.

Comparing Characters’ Bedrooms

What item’s in a character’s bedroom would reflect their deepest desires? And what if they toured a similar character’s room?

A Character’s Playlist

What playlist of songs best goes with a character’s change over time?

Stories with the Same Problems and Solutions

Have you ever noticed that some stories have awfully similar problems? What if we looked for the most unusual way of solving a repeating problem?

Analyze Character Change with Depth and Complexity

Your students will use Depth and Complexity to note how a character’s main trait changes across a story.

Introduce Symbolism with Pixel Art

Create a pixelated icon that represents the essence of a character!

Motivation and Moral Development

Can someone do the right thing, but for the wrong reason?

Romeo and Juliet Summary

Romeo and Juliet in just about five minutes.

“Much Ado About Nothing” Summary

Shakespeare’s Much Ado summarized in just five minutes!

Twelfth Night Summary

An animated summary of Shakespeare’s utterly ridiculous “Twelfth Night.”

Hamlet Summary

It’s Hamlet in just about five minutes!

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Nothing could possibly go wrong with a love potion on the loose!

Better Stories Part 2: Types of Conflict

If your students’ stories are packed with endless ninja fights or arguments between frenemies, it’s time to expose them to a wider range of conflicts.

Better Stories Part 3: Literary Themes

A typical student narrative includes plot and characters but lacks a larger idea to hold it all together. This is where a lesson on themes comes in…

Better Stories Part 4: Character Archetypes

Are students’ characters a bit flat? Archetypes give them a strong foundation on which to build their own characters as well as a tool to analyze existing stories.