Good Readers…
Lesson #1 2/23/15
*Analyze texts to establish a complex understanding of characters
*Recognize authors reveal characters in many ways
*Characters develop through their actions, thoughts and feelings, internal dialogue, external dialogue,
reactions to characters, other characters' reactions to them
*Make inferences about a character's personality traits and attitude
*Recognize that characters are complicated and may behave out of character, or even change
Good Readers…
Lesson #2 2/25/15
*Begin gathering important details about a character immediately
*Initial details about a character in the beginning of a text tend to be important
*Small details, such as how a character dresses or talks, may also be important
*Analyzing these things helps the reader to create a full profile of the characters in the text
Good Readers…
Lesson #3 2/26/15
*Notice how a character's external world results in the character experiencing certain pressures
*Analyze how the character's traits may affect how the character deals with situations
*Consider whether their traits will inhibit their ability to adapt to situations, or assist them
*Find evidence which indicates how character's traits have affected their decision making abilities
Good Readers…
Lesson #4 2/27/15
*Self-assess by comparing their work to exemplars or checklists
*Seek to raise the level of their interpretations
Checklist from the Literature Reading Continuum
1 point
1 point
1 point
1 point
I stated an idea about a My idea shows that I am I supported my idea with I pull from more than
character - not just a thinking about how the evidence from the text - one part of the story to
restatement of
character or characters
the evidence really
support my point.
something the
is/are complicated in
goes with my point.
character did or said,
this story.
but an idea about what
kind of person this is.
Good Readers…
Lesson #5 3/2/15
*Carefully analyze what characters do, say, and think
*Assess what kinds of people characters are based on these things
*Closely interpret their reactions to things
*Assess what kind of person would make this choice as opposed to a different choice
Good Readers…
Lesson #6 3/3/15
*Recognize that the setting also provides the reader with information about characters
*Analyze setting details at length
*Consider what it would be like to live in a place such as this
*Determine how the setting is possibly affecting the characters and what they do, say, and think
*Consider whether or not the environment has shaped who they are as a character
Good Readers…
Lesson #7 3/4/15
*Pause to think about figurative language in literature
*Consider why the author used a particular comparison
*Assess how this impacts the reader's interpretation of the information
*Consider why the author chose to talk about a character or a setting in a particular way
Good Readers…
Lesson #8 3/5/15
*Pay close attention to details about characters
*Consider what can be learned about characters through the analysis of these details
*Consider that a character's perspective may influence the reader's perspective on an event
*Recognize that different characters, due to their individual traits, may have different perspectives
regarding the same event
Good Readers…
Lesson #9 3/6/15
*Recognize when an author is telling a story from first person
*The author is setting the reader up to see the world of the story from the narrator's perspective
*The perspective of the reader is limited as a result
*Recognize that it is important to hear the voice of the narrator while reading
*Hear any accent or particular way of speaking that the author has helped the reader to hear by writing
in character
*Think about the cultural and personal information which is acquired from this voice
Good Readers…
Lesson #10 3/23/15
*Recognize when an author is telling a story from third person
*The author is setting up the reader to pay attention to more points of view
*The reader's view point is no longer limited
*Sometimes, the author still MOSTLY gives the reader one character's perspective
*Pay attention to how the reader has access to different characters’ inner lives when the story is written
in third person
Good Readers…
Lesson #11 3/24/15
*Recognize that readers continually self-assess
*Strive to raise the level of work by using all tools at hand
I tried...
Noticing external pressures or supports that affect a character characters and discussing the
character’s reactions.
Commenting on how the character’s internal traits affect how the character responds to external
situations.
Using evidence from the text to further discuss the character’s inside/outside.
Explaining how the character’s perspective is developed in the story, and how it is different from other
characters’ perspectives.
Good Readers…
Lesson #12 3/25/15
*Pay close attention to the internal thoughts of characters
*Recognize that authors incorporate a character's inner thinking to establish their point of view
*Inner thinking may be in quotes, almost like dialogue
*Other times, a reader may infer a character's internal thought process by analyzing his or her actions
*Recognize that inner thoughts are a window to a character's mind and heart
Good Readers…
Lesson #13 3/26/15
*Notice when there is a disconnect between how a character thinks and how they behave
*Recognize that character, like real people, do not always act on their thoughts and feelings
*Analyze situations when characters do not follow through with plans or feel bad, but do not apologize
*Consider the possibilities regarding what is causing this disconnect
Good Readers…
Lesson #14 3/27/15
*Strengthen understandings of characters by assessing them through a character analysis
*Consider an in-depth analysis of who the character is
*Make a claim about the character based on their actions and characteristics
*Support this claim using evidence from across the text
Good Readers…
Lesson #15 3/30/15
*Revisit stories to establish if the author has acknowledged universal truths
*Universal truths are experiences which all human beings can relate with
*Universal truths by be:
*People want to feel as though they are included
*People crave order and predictability
*What we want doesn't always come true in a way we want it to
*People don't always judge others fairly
*Life doesn't always reward hard workers
Good Readers…
Lesson #16 3/31/15
*Recognize that good literature teaches
*Pause at the end of a book to consider the life lessons which are learned through the characters'
experiences in the book
*Look back to find all the small moments which add up to a big idea about people, or the world
*Talk and write to connect the parts of the big idea
*Consider writing a text-to-self, or a text-to-world connection
Good Readers…
Lesson #17 4/01/15
*Think about the lessons that other characters have learned as a way to think about different possible
messages that the same story offers
*These may not be as obvious and require a further analysis
*Look back and synthesize big ideas from many pages of the text
*Recognize that stories have multiple lessons to offer depending on which details the reader selects,
and how they are interpreted
Good Readers…
Lesson #18 4/02/15
*Are able to assess their own work in analyzing characters and are able to provide feedback to peers
*Revisit one of the two checklists for the unit to assess progress made
*Please copy the chart below:
Checklist from the Literature Reading Continuum
1 point
1 point
1 point
1 point
I stated an idea about a My idea shows that I am I supported my idea with I pull from more than
character - not just a thinking about how the evidence from the text - one part of the story to
restatement of
character or characters
the evidence really
support my point.
something the
is/are complicated in
goes with my point.
character did or said,
this story.
but an idea about what
kind of person this is.
Good Readers…
Lesson #19 TBA
*Make sure that the theme they are tracking makes sense as a big idea
*This big idea should be applicable to both the book, and to real world situations
*Try writing about the theme in different ways
*Consider what the text is trying to teach the reader
*Establish what the characters are helping the reader to understand
*Talk or write about big ideas until a theme, which is clearly supported by most of the story or book, is
clearly supported
Good Readers…
Lesson #20 TBA
*Consider how a theme which may be true in a story may or may not ring true for most people's
experiences
*Are critical of the theme and consider its real-life relevancy
*Ask whether or not this book sets up false hope for its readers
*Assess whether or not characters learn believable lessons