Should I choose this template?

Do you have a source where you want students to make deeper connections between themselves and a character, or between characters in texts? The Character vs. Student network template provides the opportunity to make text-to-self and text-to-text connections in the following ways:

• make connections between themselves and characters from a novel, short story, or other literary work, specifically focusing on character traits.
• make connections across literary works.

Teachers who have used this type of network have found it successful for helping students to learn about character traits and make connections with literature.

When should I use this template?

When I want students to explore thematic connections between characters from one or more stories and relate them to real-world examples and personal experiences.

What sources work best?

Sources with characters displaying many different character traits–both positive and negative.

This activity is especially helpful for integrating several different readings. Used across several sources, the network can help remind students of previous characters they encountered months or weeks ago.

How should I use this template?

Network Details: What should my students and I be tracking?

Nodes (things being connected)

• Character
• Trait
• Emotion

Edges (connection types)

Relationships between the characters to thematic ideas to other works and real world experiences.

• Character — Represents the theme of — Trait
• Source — thematically connects to — Trait
• Personal Experience — thematically connects to — Trait

Edges (connection types)

• Character — Represents the theme of — Trait
• Source — thematically connects to — Trait
• Personal Experience — thematically connects to — Trait

Attributes (specific info)

• Types - Character, Work/Title, Thematic Idea, Experience, Social Issue
• Note/Citation - The thematic message is…

What’s the investment in time and effort for this network?

Time: two class periods. One to get students used to the network as they identify and enter allusions and their sources. The second class period provides time to revise/add additional allusions and discuss the patterns students see in the allusions they entered.

Teacher support: Teachers will need to

• understand the basics of Net.Create (node and edge entry). (See this basic-data-entry video!)[https://netcreate.org]
• how to use one network filter (the “Ego” filter). (See this Ego-filter video!)[https://netcreate.org]

What learning goals does this template support?

• Disciplinary goals
• State-standard-aligned goals
• What kinds of student identity are present?

What data literacy outcomes does this template support?

• Data literacy outcomes and questions (for the VFOI team)

Resources for classroom use

Teacher Resources

• Classroom management recommendations
• Network-analysis learning Resources
  • Simple Net.Create documentation
  • Videos of new node/edge, table sorting, filters, etc.
  • 5-moves-to-make video
• 1-pager lesson plan
  • “Good questions to ask” guide for teachers
  • What network-data moves (viz, tables, filters) to use as network gets big

Student Handouts

• “Good questions to ask” guide for teachers