In order for students to properly understand each character in a narrative, they will need to analyze each character separately. One type of character graphic organizer contains a person in the middle with lines extending from the character to four boxes in the top right, left right, right bottom and left bottom of the page. In each box there are lines for students to write on. The top right box is titled "says," the left "actions," the bottom left is "description" and the bottom right is "feelings." The teacher together with her class will fill in important statements that the character says, character actions and character description, as well as the way the character feels. Each character will have his own sheet so that students can analyze each character separately.
In a narrative there are characters, some of whom are similar and others of which differ from one another. In order to see the differences and similarities between characters clearly, a student will need to use a character comparison graphic organizer. One type of character comparison organizer has the names of the characters at the top of the page, one on the top right side of the page and the other on the top left of the page. A box below the two names is titled "Similarities." Here, the teacher and students will come up with characteristics that the two characters share. Underneath the "Similarities" box are two boxes, one on the right and one on the left, where character differences can be written. The box on the right is for a description of character 1, and an arrow after it points to the box with the contrasting characteristic of character 2.
In order for a student to understand the role that character traits play in a narrative, she will need to be taught using a graphic organizer. One such organizer contains the character names in a box in the middle of the page. Four lines extend from the names to four boxes, two boxes on top and two on the bottom. Each extended box contains an event and a character trait that was the cause of the event.
A teacher needs to make sure that the students understand the connection between a character's personality and actions. A character Action Graphic Organizer has two columns, one that lists the actions of the character and the other for recording what the actions say about the character. The students together with the teacher will discuss the character's actions and write down the main points in the organizer.