In this workshop, learners develop their descriptive abilities for character. It is a fun and creative activity!

Activity 1: DESCRIBING SOMEONE YOU KNOW

1 Ask learners to think of three people they knew well, but have lost touch with, or don’t see very often anymore. Once everyone has jotted down three names, ask learners to pick one they’re interested to write about.

2 Ask learners to picture their character (the person they have just chosen) and to build up a picture of
who they are and what they are like by listing …;
3 x physical characteristics (things about the way they look)
3 x personality characteristics (things about their personality)
3 x things s/he keeps next to her/his bed (they can use their imagination to make this up)

3 Ask if anyone is prepared to share their description. (They can do this in pairs or small groups.)

Activity 2: DESCRIBING A MADE-UP CHARACTER

Now they are going to make up their own imaginary character.

1 Ask them to use the same list, but this time, they are making someone up:

3 x physical characteristics (things about the way they look)
3 x personality characteristics (things about their personality)
3 x things s/he keeps next to her/his bed (they can use their imagination to make this up)

2 Now they need to add the following details for their character (you can use the handout – describing character – if you want to):

Name and age:

Family life (where does he/she live, who with etc):

What is the neighbourhood in which your character lives?

Dreams/ambitions:

Fears:

Person the character loves the most:

How does this character handle conflict?

What are the main problems this character is facing? (internally and/or externally):

Best memory of your character:

Worst memory of your character:

3 Now they can write a short paragraph about their character, using some of the details above, to create a word picture. They don’t need to put in all the details they wrote previously; they can choose the ones they like the best.

4 Encourage them to share their descriptions. As they listen to each other, encourage them to say what they liked about a particular description.

Activity 3: (optional) CHARACTERS MEETING

If you have time, get learners into pairs and they can write a dialogue between their two characters!

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You can tell your learners that many writers make these kinds of profiles of their characters to prepare for writing their books, even if they don’t include all these details in the finished story. It makes the characters more three-dimensional, and also helps writers develop the character’s motivation – why they do what they do – which is critical for any story.

Download handout here