What a Character! : Character Study as a Guide to Literary Meaning Making in Grades K-8 - No. 563-846

Good characters, like good teachers, invite students into a text, hold their interest, and guide them to meaning making.

This collection offers perspectives of classroom teachers, researchers, and children's book authors to show you the power of character study and how to use it to help elementary- and middle-grade students create, read, and comprehend text.

Useful insights to help you implement character study include: Discussion of how good characters drive plot and keep students' interest Powerful, original examinations of character, written by some of today's best character-creating children's book authors Fresh classroom-tested strategies, developed through teacher research and practice, that extend students' understanding of character A closer look at the best character-rich books for a variety of grades, with special attention to artistry and appeal A theory of character interpretation that sheds light on the characters in children's literature across time