I love Character Analysis. It is kind of like acting. We get to dive into another person’s (or character’s) world and try to understand them. I’ve always considered Character Analysis one of the most real-world, transferable skills that I teach. Think about it. Kids deep-dive into understanding someone else-their motivations, goals, why they act the way they do, etc. Character Analysis at its core teaches empathy, selflessness, and compassion.
If your students are anything like mine, they like to peruse various social media apps. They interact with a lot of people from many different places. They are exposed to different cultures and ways of living, and they get to take in a range of opinions (the good, the bad, and the downright ugly). Character Analysis (even though it is typically thought of as a reading skill) can teach our kids so much more than just reading comprehension skills. So, by golly, I want them to remember it when I’m done teaching it.
I have a pretty awesome foundational unit for teaching Character Analysis in my classes. I have an informational PowerPoint with definitions and images, bell ringers, a gallery walk activity (complete with posters), a Character Analysis workbook for students to take notes in, and all the resources align with an essay as the final assessment. I’ve got this unit in the bag, but one little part of it always trips me up.
To do a good job teaching Character Analysis, I need good examples, but my examples keep becoming outdated! Content is being produced at an alarming rate. Books are being published without publishers, Fan-fiction sites are popping up left and right, and books are being printed by the millions. Not to mention other forms of narratives, such as movies, TV shows, podcasts, YouTube shows, etc. All of which provide valuable examples of Character Analysis. How can a teacher possibly keep up? Also, have you noticed that kids keep getting younger, and we keep getting older? It is hard to keep up with the new trends in books, literature, and stories to use as legit, interesting examples when talking through points with students. I remember the day I realized The Hunger Games was no longer a good example to use in the classroom. It was a sad, sad day; therefore, as any dutiful educator would, I looked for a way to fix this problem.
So, I stopped teaching Character Analysis.
In researching new, educational trends, I came across the idea of the Protégé Effect? Basically, the whole idea is that one of the best ways to learn new information is to teach the information. It’s a psychological thing, but it works!
So, I stopped teaching Character Analysis, and the students started teaching it instead.
The funny thing is that I didn’t change the PowerPoint I used or the notes I gave, I just gave it all over to them instead of direct-instructing on the information like I normally would.
The process was actually pretty simple.
I started by printing off pages 4-22 of my PowerPoint slides on full sheets of paper (these were given to the students who “won” those pages in the “lottery.” I also printed off the same slides in a “notes” version (with more than one slide per page) to give to each group to look at ahead of time.
Then, I put my students into pairs/groups. I gave each group a copy of the “notes” version of the slides, and I asked them to look through it with the intent of being able to make a decision based on the information. I’ve found that my kids needed a lens to look at the information through, and telling them that they would have to make a decision is just enough guidance to get them to focus a little more than they normally would.
After they finished the first read-through, I told them about their upcoming lesson. They were going to teach us about the information on one of the slides AND provide interesting up-to-date examples.
Once they found out about the lesson they were going to have to teach, the students were eager to return to the notes and figure out which pages they would focus on; some even came up with examples as they moved through the notes. Happy teacher moment! Not only were they eager to pick a slide to focus on, but I also just got the students to look at the notes not once, but twice, through different lenses each time.
After the students reviewed the notes and hastily scribbled their top choices onto a piece of paper (asking over and over if they could pick first), I started the “lottery.” I drew names out of whatever bowl or hat-like object I could find, and the student whose name was drawn got to pick their group’s slide. It's amazing how much class excitement can build up over choosing slides for an assignment!
Then, I gave them their timeline. Sometimes this was a little bit of time each day (10-15 minutes each day for a week); sometimes it was two full class periods in a row with presentations on the third day.
When presentation day came around, the students presented to the class and me about their slides using their examples. I asked them questions and encouraged other students to ask questions (because the presenters were now the experts). Honestly, it is awesome to see them take on that leadership role and to see what they come up with as examples.
Although this strategy works just as it is, I have found that having students run their presentations by me in advance seems to take a lot of stress and anxiety off the students. Knowing they can ask any questions they have in advance and clarify any misunderstandings helps them to feel like they have my “stamp-of-approval” before presenting to the class.
I love this Protégé Effect twist on teaching Character Analysis for lots of reasons. This activity, once completed, has put the Character Analysis terms, explanations, and numerous, student-centered examples in front of the students several times, and I have some good examples to build on as we continue to lean into the other activities in the unit.
After this activity, students have the solid foundation needed to dig deeper into Character Analysis. They are prepared to further develop their understanding by transferring it to characters in their books, and eventually, they will transfer the empathy and compassion they’ve gained to others in their class, their parents, political figures, influencers on social media, and even their own personal development.
