ASSESSMENT AND SUPPORT

Creating a character

Assessment Criteria and What A Good One Looks Like

Below you will find the Skill Check assessment criteria for this skill, and underneath you will find an example of what a good one looks like, with a brief explanation of how it fits the criteria.

Assessment Criteria for Creating a character

minus
any of these things

Very little written

Very poor written expression, or lots of accuracy errors

Simply tells who the character is (name, age, physical description) but doesn’t fit it into any kind of narrative action

The character has no thoughts, feelings or personality

equals (just) to plus (secure)
all of these things

Reasonable written expression and accuracy

Starts the telling of some kind of story while introducing the character

Conveys the core details about the character (name, age, gender)

Gives the character some thoughts, feelings or personality – more than just the core details

star
all of these things

All the = criteria

General writing style is somewhat effective

Creates a character with some personality through thoughts and feelings – not just a totally generic stereotype

Doesn’t pointlessly describe the character’s physical appearance in lots of detail (e.g. her shimmering hair)

What a good one looks like

Example task

Write the opening of a story in which you introduce the protagonist to the reader. Your character needs to be sad about something. You don’t need to worry too much about plot – just focus on creating a believable character who has some individuality. Try to use ‘show don’t tell’ where possible. Aim to write around 6 sentences.

Example response

Billie looked out of her bedroom window as the midday sun lit up the garden of the AirBnB she was staying in with her mum. It was, she knew, a perfect summer’s day — something her mum had tediously said several times that day already — but for Billie there was nothing ‘perfect’ about it. In fact, there had been nothing even good about the entire summer holiday, not since she’d seen Trent’s post on Instagram. Why would he do that to her? It was as if a black cloud had settled over Billie then, and no summer sunshine, no homework-free evenings, no holiday with her mum to Dorset could dispel the gloom — not even the particularly effective evening she’d had playing Apex last night. Trent — that wretched little toad — had ruined everything, she thought while stabbing her pencil repeatedly on the gnat that had foolishly landed on her desk.

Notes on this response

  • It’s 6 sentences long

  • It involves a character who is sad about something

  • It starts to tell a story through Trent’s mysterious Insta post

  • It establishes the core details of the character: Billie, female, school age

  • It includes plenty of Billie’s thoughts and feelings about what has happened and creates some sense of Billie as a person, through her thoughts, her family situation, the free-indirect narration (e.g. “that wretched little toad”) and her playing of Apex Legends (a videogame)

  • Uses some ‘show don’t tell’ with the gnat at the end

  • It uses varied and complex sentence structures accurately

  • It doesn’t pointlessly describe Billie’s hair