Teaching article
What does the character want? Read the action in context
Connect a character's goal to an observable choice in an original or appropriately selected text.
Two characters can make the same choice for quite different reasons. Looking at what happens before and after the action helps children build an interpretation instead of treating one behaviour as a permanent character trait.
Separate what the character wants from what the character does. The same action can support different interpretations depending on context.
A character searching for shade chooses a tree instead of a sunny bench; that action supports the stated goal.
Put the evidence beside the interpretation
Name what the character wants. Find an action related to that goal. Explain a different choice the character could make.
Do not infer a real child's motives from their drawing. Which action supports the proposed interpretation?
Offer two fictional action pictures.
Resources
- Six-Panel Comic Challenge — Use the panels when a visual story sequence supports the task.
Further reading
Read next
- A setting that changes what can happen
- Compound words: do the parts form a meaningful whole?
- Rhyming words can look different on the page
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