Identifying Characters and Their Traits

Active learning works for characters and traits because young children develop empathy and narrative understanding through movement and discussion, not just listening. When students physically act out emotions and discuss choices, abstract concepts like motivation become concrete and memorable.

• Kindergarten
• English Language Arts
• 3 activities
• 10 min–20 min

Learning Objectives

1. Identify the main character and at least two minor characters in a familiar story.
2. Analyze a character's facial expressions and body language to describe their feelings.
3. Compare the feelings of a character at the beginning of a story to their feelings at the end.
4. Predict how a character might respond to a simple problem based on their known traits.

Role Play

⏱ 15 min·Whole Class

Role Play: Emotion Statues

After reading a story, the teacher names a specific event and students must freeze in a pose that shows how the character felt at that moment. Students then explain to a partner why they chose that specific facial expression or body posture.

Prepare & details

Analyze how a character's facial expressions and body language reveal their feelings.

Facilitation Tip: For Emotion Statues, freeze the action between each emotion to give students time to observe and discuss physical cues.

Setup: Open space or rearranged desks for scenario staging

Materials: Character cards with backstory and goals, Scenario briefing sheet

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness

Think-Pair-Share

⏱ 10 min·Pairs

Think-Pair-Share: Character Choices

The teacher pauses at a climax in the story and asks what the character should do next. Students turn to a partner to share their idea and one reason why that choice fits the character's personality before the class finishes the book.

Prepare & details

Differentiate between main characters and minor characters in a story.

Facilitation Tip: During Character Choices, provide sentence stems like ‘I think the character felt ____ because ____.’ to scaffold responses.

Setup: Standard classroom seating; students turn to a neighbor

Materials: Discussion prompt (projected or printed), Optional: recording sheet for pairs

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

Inquiry Circle

⏱ 20 min·Small Groups

Inquiry Circle: Character Suitcase

Small groups look at a collection of 3 to 4 physical items (like a hat, a toy, or a snack) and decide which character from the story they belong to. Groups must present one item and explain the connection to the character's actions in the text.

Prepare & details

Predict how a character might react to a new problem based on their past actions.

Facilitation Tip: In the Character Suitcase activity, use props to make character traits tangible—include a toy crown for ‘kind’ or a magnifying glass for ‘curious.’

Setup: Groups at tables with access to source materials

Materials: Source material collection, Inquiry cycle worksheet, Question generation protocol, Findings presentation template

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Self-Management
• Self-Awareness

Teaching This Topic

Experienced teachers approach this topic by grounding abstract traits in physical and visual evidence. Avoid asking students to infer without visual or textual support, as young children need concrete anchors. Research suggests that combining movement (like statues) with discussion strengthens memory and empathy. Keep language simple but precise—use emotion words daily so they become part of students’ vocabulary.

What to Expect

Successful learning looks like students naming characters, describing traits with evidence from text or pictures, and explaining how a character’s feelings or choices change over time. They should connect actions to feelings and use vocabulary like ‘happy’ or ‘brave’ with examples.

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

Common Misconception

During Emotion Statues, watch for students who act out the same emotion repeatedly. Some may think feelings stay fixed.

What to Teach Instead

After freezing in one emotion, prompt students to slowly transition to another emotion using the ‘feeling thermometer’ strip taped to the floor. Ask them to show the change step-by-step.

Common Misconception

During Collaborative Investigation: Character Suitcase, students may sort stuffed animals or objects as settings instead of characters.

What to Teach Instead

Have students physically place items into a suitcase labeled ‘Character Traits’ or ‘Setting Props’ after naming the character they represent, reinforcing that only characters perform actions.

Assessment Ideas

Quick Check

After Role Play: Emotion Statues, show a picture of a character from a familiar book making a facial expression. Ask: ‘What feeling is this character showing? How do you know?’ Record whether students cite evidence from the character’s face or body.

Exit Ticket

After Collaborative Investigation: Character Suitcase, provide a scenario like ‘The character found a lost puppy.’ Ask students to draw one way the character might show their feeling and write or dictate one sentence describing how the character feels.

Discussion Prompt

During Think-Pair-Share: Character Choices, read a short story aloud. After reading, ask: ‘Who was the main character? How did their actions at the beginning show one feeling? How did their actions at the end show they felt differently?’ Listen for answers that connect actions to feelings and change over time.

Extensions & Scaffolding

• Challenge: During Emotion Statues, have students pair up to create a new emotion not yet explored (e.g., ‘shy’), then act it out and explain how they showed it.
• Scaffolding: Provide picture cards of emotions during Character Choices for students to match their response to an image.
• Deeper exploration: After the Character Suitcase, ask students to draw a new item that would help their character feel better or solve a problem.

Key Vocabulary

character	A person or animal who takes part in the action of a story.
trait	A special quality or characteristic that describes how a character acts or feels.
feeling	An emotion a character experiences, like happy, sad, angry, or surprised.
expression	How a character's face looks to show their feelings, such as smiling or frowning.
body language	How a character's body moves or is positioned to show their feelings, like crossing arms or jumping up and down.