![](./pressrel2_files/image001.gif)
Writing: Storymaking
Can Character
Today's Snack: Empty a CAN of tuna into a bowl. Stir in
a little mayonnaise with some chopped celery and onion. Spread on crackers or
whole-wheat bread. Mmmm! Enjoy with a glass of milk.
--------------------
Supplies:
Tin can
(washed out with soap,
and sharp
pieces bent down or taped down)
Googly
eyes
Felt
Yarn
Tissue
paper
Pipe
cleaners
Fabric
scraps
Rubber
bands
Wire
Steel wool
Buttons
and beads
Any and
all other scraps
Hot-glue
gun and adult supervision
Lined writing
paper and No. 2 pencil
The better job you do of describing the characters in
your stories, the more captivating your writing will be.
Your
task is to bring your characters to life. Even though you write in two
dimensions, you need to make your characters seem to your readers to be 3-D -
alive!
People
love people, with all their strengths and all their flaws. And some of the most
memorable "people" in stories aren't people at all! They are animals, machines,
trees, candlesticks, and all other kinds of "things."
The
variety of characters is truly endless. So be sure to make your characters
memorable, distinct and delightfully different. Then your story will be all
those things!
Make
the reader want to spend time with your characters, even if they're "bad guys,"
just because they're interesting.
Make
them interesting by "designing" them even before you write. Make a character
sketch - which is just a list -- describing what they do for a living, if they
are adults, or what their favorite hobbies, activities, sports or classes are if
the characters are younger.
There
are a lot of details that you can "mine" for your story based on the kinds of
activities and vocabulary that pertain to different kinds of jobs.
Don't
forget what they look like, what they wear, how they speak, how they move, what
things they have in their pocket or room. . . .
Write
so that the reader knows that character well enough that the reader wouldn't be
surprised if the character came alive and walked into the room.
As
you develop your characters, it's a great idea to be a little bit of a copycat.
Make your characters fresh, new and unique, but use parts of other people or
things or characters to "build" your own.
To
do that, listen in on conversations wherever you go. What kinds of things do
they say? Maybe your character could use that exact expression.
Pay
attention to how people use their bodies when they talk to one another. Do they
lean in when they're asking a question? Do they put a hand on a hip when
they're irritated? Do they tug at their clothes? What exactly do their mouths
do? Mouths move the most of any facial feature, so you can show a lot of a
character's feelings by describing what his or her mouth does at some crucial
point in your story. You can use these gestures to show emotion and underline
the words and actions in your story.
Now take a plain, empty tin can, and create a character
out of it! Make sure to give him, her or it a name, and maybe a special power
or interest that might be of use in a story.
Your
can character doesn't have to be human. You can make the can just the
character's head or other body part, or the whole body. You can turn it
sideways or whatever you want to do. You can invent an unusual way for your can
character to communicate or move. Whatever you'd like to do . . . you CAN!
Use the hot-glue gun to attach features, since regular
glue probably won't hold to the metal.
Once you're happy with your character, write a story
about him, her or it.
Then when everybody's finished, present your stories and
characters to the other students. This makes a fun activity to present to
parents and families, too.