Showing A Character’s Trait
We tell students to “show not tell” in their writing, but this advice isn’t effective until they experience the difference. In this video, we’ll write two examples of a scene: one showing a character’s trait, and one just telling.
We tell students to "show, not tell" in their writing, but this advice isn't effective until they experience the difference. In this video, we'll put a famous character (of students' choosing) into a mundane situation and develop a fun scene to show off their main traits.
Objective
To practice the common writing advice of "show, not tell," students will write two examples of a scene: one showing a character's trait, and one just telling. They'll put a famous character into a mundane situation and develop their scene.
In this task,
- Students pick a well-known character and put them into an everyday situation: a miniature golf course, a trip to the library, a meal at the diner, etc.
- They identify the character's main trait and come up with an event that will highlight that trait.
- They brainstorm ten specific ways that the character will show that trait (words they'll say, noises they'll make, actions they'll take, how they'll look, etc).
- Finally, they write up the situation - using their ten ideas to show the character's main trait.
- They'll also write a non-example in which they only tell the trait. No showing allowed!
