Create a Character

Grade level

Grades 1–5

Time

About 20 minutes

Topic

Creating characters

Answer key

Not needed: answers vary

Kids practice

Inventing a character, Inside and outside traits, Changing walk and voice for a role, Answering questions in character

What kids do

Printed on the sheet:

1. Draw your character.
2. What they look like:
3. Their favorite thing:
4. They are afraid of:
5. Their biggest wish:
6. A line my character would say:
7. A word that describes my character:

Teacher tip

When the sheet is done, have kids walk and talk as their character and say the line from the Act it out box.

How to use it

• Keep finished characters for the scripts and storyboard sheets.
• Start with a character the class knows from a book, then let kids invent their own.
• Read the box at the top of the sheet together, then try the first item out loud as a class.

Watch for

Breaking character in the hot seat. Let kids pause and think before they answer.

Talk about it

• How does your character walk when they are happy? Scared?
• What would you try differently next time?

Take it further

Turn a finished character into a puppet.

US Letter, prints well in black and white. Free for home and classroom use: print as many copies as you need.