Adapted from a printable of the same name on Read Write Think from the lesson Action is
Character and from the Character Revision Bite from BBC KS3 Bitesize.
CHARACTERS DO THINGS.
They feel things.
They hear things.
They say things.
They think things.
They go places.
They can walk, run, leap, and jump.
They may sip tea in a chair.
They may just lie in bed, sleep, and
dream.
But the important thing is that
characters act.
And these actions show us what kind
of people these characters are:
friendly
sad
nosey
happy
love
struck
confused
angry
inventive
WHAT IS A CHARACTER
TRAIT?
What is a character trait?

When we talk about character, we often
describe that character in terms of character
traits.

Character traits are specific adjectives that tell us
the specific qualities of the character.
Examples of character traits
Active
 Rough
 Serious
 Selfish
 Mean
 Friendly
 Gloomy

Tall
 Clever
 Honest
 Sly
 Weak
 Brainy
 Polite

• Now take turns with your face partner, and tell
him/her what 3 of these words mean.
What are character traits?

We might use these same kinds of words to
describe ourselves.

Pick 3 words that describe you.



“Ms. Roberts is clever, funny, and bizarre.”
Share them with a partner.
But, we can also use these to describe fictional
characters.
Stop and review!

Answer these questions with your shoulder
partner. Be prepared to share your answers
with the class.
What is a character trait?
 Name 3 character traits.

HOW DO WE FIND A
CHARACTER’S TRAITS?
How do we find a character’s traits?

The author may tell us these traits directly:


Jim Wellings was not a man to be glanced at. But
nor was he a man to be stared at. To say he was a
big man is like calling Buckingham Palace a big
house. He was a man who filled whatever space
there was. He wasn't fat, though; just big.
Tell your face partner what Jim is like.

How do you know?
How about this example?


Stanley didn't have many friends at home. He was
overweight and the kids at his middle school often teased
him about his size. Even his teachers sometimes made cruel
comments without realising it. On his last day of school, his
math teacher, Mrs Bell, taught ratios. As an example, she
chose the heaviest kid in the class and the lightest kid in the
class, and had them weigh themselves. Stanley weighed
three times as much as the other boy. Mrs Bell wrote the
ratio on the board, 3:1, unaware of how much
embarrassment she had caused both of them.
'Holes' - Louis Sachar
Tell your face partner what Stanley is like.

How do you know?
How do we find a character’s traits?
BUT, more often, the author will show us
these traits in action.
 Our job as readers is to draw conclusions
about the character’s traits (to infer them)
from what the character:

• Says
• Thinks
• Does
How do we find a character’s traits?
Now we’re going to look at another extract
from Holes. Stanley has just arrived at the
prison camp.
 Pay attention to what Mr. Sir (the man in the
cowboy hat) says, does, and thinks.
 We will use this to help us describe the
character of Mr. Sir.
 Some important phrases are in bold to help
you.

How do we find a character’s traits?
A man was sitting with his feet up on a desk. He turned
his head when Stanley and the guard entered, but otherwise didn't
move. Even though he was inside, he wore sunglasses and a
cowboy hat. He also held a can of cream soda, and the sight of it
made Stanley even more aware of his own thirst.
He waited while the bus guard gave the man some papers to
sign.
"That's a lot of sunflower seeds," the bus guard said.
Stanley noticed a burlap sack filled with sunflower seeds on the
floor next to the desk.
"I quit smoking last month," said the man in the cowboy hat.
He had a tattoo of a rattlesnake on his arm, and as he signed
his name, the snake's rattle seemed to wiggle. "I used to smoke a
pack a day. Now I eat a sack of these every week."
'Holes' - Louis Sachar
How can you find a character’s traits?
Think about what you SEE
Statement – What is the observation about a
character

Evidence – What proof is in the story to show
you that the character deserves those traits?

Explanation – What do you know about people
based on things you observe them doing?

Statement
Evidence
Explanation
Mr. Sir likes to be in
charge.
He sat with his feet up on
the desk
People who are in charge
can do what they want
AND it kind of scares
others when they do so
Mr. Sir wants to make an
impression on you
He wears sunglasses and a
cowboy hat inside
Dressing this way makes
him stand out
Mr. Sir is SELFISH and
CRUEL
He doesn’t offer Stanley or
the bus guard a soda
He doesn’t want to share
the soda, so he’s selfish,
AND he’s really cruel for
drinking it right in front of
2 very thirsty people
Statement
Evidence
Explanation
Mr. Sir must be short tempered
He stopped smoking
recently
When people stop
smoking, their bodies have
to get used to not having
all those chemicals in their
body, so they get cranky
Mr. Sir is a bully
He has a rattlesnake tattoo
He probably has a scary
snake tattoo to try to
scare other people into
being afraid of him
Mr. Sir is disgusting
He eats a ton of sunflower
seeds
He stopped a really gross
habit, but he just replaces it
with another one
So, Mr. Sir must be a disgusting, selfish,
bad-tempered bully!
Quick! Think with your shoulder
partner about other ways to
describe Mr. Sir.
But wait! There’s more!
All of our evidence from SEE just helps us
pinpoint what characters say, do, and think.
 So, let’s use SEE again!

Here’s your evidence!
Point
Evidence
Explanation
Mr. Sir likes to be in charge
He sat with his feet up on
the desk
People who are in charge
can do what they want
AND it kind of scares
others when they do so
Mr. Sir wants to make an
impression on you
He wears sunglasses and a
cowboy hat inside
Dressing this way makes
him stand out
Mr. Sir is SELFISH and
CRUEL
He doesn’t offer Stanley or
the bus guard a soda
He doesn’t want to share
the soda, so he’s selfish,
AND he’s really cruel for
drinking it right in front of
2 very thirsty people
And some more evidence!
Point
Evidence
Explanation
Mr. Sir must be shorttempered
He stopped smoking
recently
When people stop
smoking, their bodies have
to get used to not having
all those chemicals in their
body, so they get cranky
Mr. Sir is a bully
He has a rattlesnake tattoo He probably has a scary
snake tattoo to try to
scare other people into
being afraid of him
Mr. Sir is disgusting
He eats a ton of sunflower
seeds
He stopped a really gross
habit, but he just replaces it
with another one
Pause to review!
Our evidence for Mr. Sir’s character was all
about what he does.
 Can you and your face partner name two
other kinds of evidence about a character?

How about another example?
Read this final excerpt from Holes.
 Think about how to SEE.

What statements about Stanley can you make?
 What is your evidence?
 How would you explain the connection?


Write down your answers and be ready to
share with the class.
How about another example?
Stanley and his parents had tried to pretend that he
was just going away to camp for a while, just like rich
kids do. When Stanley was younger he used to play
with stuffed animals, and pretend the animals were at
camp. Camp Fun and Games he called it. Sometimes
he'd have them play soccer with a marble. Other times
they'd run an obstacle course, or go bungee jumping off
a table, tied to broken rubber bands. Now Stanley tried
to pretend he was going to Camp Fun and Games.
Maybe he'd make some friends, he thought. At least
he'd get to swim in the lake.
'Holes' - Louis Sachar
Check your work!
Statement
Evidence
Explanation
Stanley is very lonely
Stanley played games all by It doesn’t say he had any
himself with his stuffed
friends to play with, and the
animals
toys seemed like his friends
Stanley can make a bad
situation seem okay
Stanley thinks that maybe
he can have fun and make
friends at camp
The camp he is going to is
a prison camp, but he still
imagines something good
could come out of it
Ticket out the Door
What does SEE stand for?
 Why do we SEE?
