Describes "character maps," an activity that draws upon the reader's prior knowledge of people to understand a book's characters. Includes a brief list of additional activities and extensions to reinforce comprehension through characterization. (RS)

Examines how undergraduate readers monitor and evaluate the concerns of characters over the course of a narrative. Discusses what kinds of evaluation the reader makes, what the reader evaluates, the functions that these evaluative inferences serve in comprehension, and the multiple perspectives (character, narrator, or presenter) taken by the…

Acknowledging that the literary quality of children's stories strongly affects reading comprehension and interest in reading, a study examined how inside view (the insight an author provides about a character's thoughts and feelings) affects the presentation of character beliefs and plans. The study was based on the following premises: (1) basal…

The abilities of 37 children in grades 2, 4, and 6 to recall and answer questions concerning motives of characters in fables were examined when motives were implicit or explicit with regard to text, or implicit with regard to script. Overall, children had difficulty in comprehending characters' motives. (SLD)

Analyzes how two groups of eighth graders and their teacher create literary texts during small group discussion, and suggests the importance of talk as a means of constructing meaning. (NKA)