Making Inferences About Character

During the week before Winter Break, and all this week, we have been working on the strategy of making inferences about character. In December, students completed a character web, describing characteristics of the protagonist in their novel, and providing evidence of these characteristics. We discussed that inferences come from looking at what characters SAY, what characters DO, and what characters THINK. If we pay attention to those clues in the text, and we use the background knowledge we have about people, we can make informed conclusions about these characters. This week, we read a story called "Act of a Hero" and we reviewed inference making, using the character George as our focus. Next week, we will have a quiz on inference making about characters, where students will demonstrate their ability to make accurate, supported inferences about a character in a story they read in class.