External and Internal Characteristics
By Caroline Wyman
Objective: The students will learn the difference between external characteristics and internal characteristics and how it enhances writing and makes writing sound better. Grades 3-5
Initiation: The teacher will read a story to the students that really has good character descriptions. The Miss Nelson books are good for this. Explain to the students that good writing has many descriptions in it so that we, the reader can have a visual picture of the characters.
Development: Ask the class to raise their hand and give some words that might describe how Miss Nelson looks. Have a chart ready with half a person sketched out on one side of the chart paper and half a person sketched out on the other side. One side will be labeled external and the other side internal. While the students give you descriptions as to how miss Nelson looks, witch like, large nose, long stringy hair...list those. As soon as someone says strict, or nice, friendly explain that those are characteristics that you can't see, so they are internal characteristics. Have the students list some more while guiding them until they have a clear understanding between the two. Go ahead and extend the lesson to other well known people, i.e.. the President of the United States, Martin Luther King Jr....
Closure: Repeat the importance again of writing using characteristics that external and internal. Stress how much it improves one's writing and how it gives the reader a better "picture" of the person.
Extension: Continue the lesson by having the students give external and internal characteristics of someone in their family for homework.
Materials: Book to read, chart with person sketch.
Time: 30-40 min.
Caroline Wyman has a degree in Sociology and a Masters in Elementary Education and is the administrator for TeacherNet.com.