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1 SUGGESTED PLAN 1 WHAT MAKES A GOOD CHARACTER page 1 What makes a good character? (approx. 50 minutes). Aimed at Key Stage 2. Resources A variety of story formats e.g. books, newspaper cuttings, online short stories, comic books/strips. These can be distributed in pairs or left on a table for the children to choose which they would like to read. Resource Pack 1 (RP1): The Phoenix character panel sheet, faces panel sheet, blank panel sheet. The Phoenix Planet of The Shapes story strips (RP1). Pens, pencils, coloured pens etc. and any art materials that would add to the texture and creation of fun characters. Learning Objectives 1. Understanding literature at the end of the session, we will be able to see how characters are portrayed in different ways in different forms of literature. 2. Visual literacy we will look at how characters are created and introduced through the use of images in comics. 3. Investigating and making art and design we will use different materials and our imaginations to create our own characters, through pictures only. 4. Understanding how line, shape, form and space can be combined for different purposes (bringing a character to life in a comic). Key Vocabulary Story, book, comic, character, features, development. Starter / teacher-initiated What kind of stories do the children like to read? Whether long stories or short stories, they will all have one thing in common stories are about character/s. Explain to the children that characters can be brought to life through words or through pictures. Comics, specifically, can tell stories and bring characters to life with or without text.

2 SUGGESTED PLAN 1 WHAT MAKES A GOOD CHARACTER page 2 Explain to the children that they will be creating their own character using the comic strip template sheet provided (RP1). Main Activities Talk through what a strong character has in a story. 1. Is the character male or female? 2. Does the character have a name? 3. Does the character have any funny or quirky features? 4. Is the character special? 5. Do they have any powers, or habits? Either in groups or pairs, get the children to give you ideas for characters to put up on the board (e.g: our character is a boy called Alfie and he has purple hair that sparkles underwater.) With ideas on the board, give every child a Phoenix character worksheet (RP1). Ask them to start by drawing/bringing to life their chosen character on the template provided. Hand out The Phoenix Planet of The Shapes comic strips. Ask the children to read them. Discuss with the children how we can tell what is going on in the story when there are no words. 1. Do the characters have different facial expressions? 2. Can you read their emotions through facial expressions and actions? Hand out The Phoenix blank panel sheet (RP1) and ask the children to start to experiment with their characters expressions. Challenge them to make the facial expressions and statures tell a story without the use of words. Alternatively, if the children would prefer to follow a script, provide The Phoenix Faces panel sheet (RP1) and ask the children to match their characters expressions to the words of the story.

3 SUGGESTED PLAN 1 WHAT MAKES A GOOD CHARACTER page 3 Plenary Now that we have created our own characters, you can go on to make your own comic strips. By folding a piece of paper in half you can draw a four page adventure for your character, showing where they go and what they do through pictures. Key Questions (Assessment for Learning) What qualities does a character need to have, in order to fit into a story? (e.g. name, goals and skills). How can we come up with ideas for a character in a story?

4 CHARACTER WORKSHEET

5 CHARACTER FACES WORKSHEET

6 BLANK PANEL SHEET

7 PLANET OF THE SHAPES page 1

8 PLANET OF THE SHAPES page 2