Character Study Exploration

Grade Level

7th Grade

Duration

45 minutes

Unit

Voices of Resilience (Lesson 3 of 5)

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Lesson Title

Character Study: Voices from the Past

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Lesson Overview

This lesson focuses on examining the experiences, struggles, and acts of resilience of specific individuals from Holocaust literature. Students will create detailed character maps to deepen their understanding of how personal stories contribute to the larger historical narrative of the Holocaust. This activity builds critical thinking, reading comprehension, and empathy.

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Common Core State Standards (CCSS) Alignment

Reading Informational Text

• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.7.3
  Analyze the interactions between individuals, events, and ideas in a text (e.g., how ideas influence individuals or events, or how individuals influence ideas or events).

Reading Literature

• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.7.3
  Analyze how particular elements of a story or drama interact (e.g., how setting shapes the characters or plot).

Writing

• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.7.2
  Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts, and information clearly.

Speaking and Listening

• CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.7.1
  Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions with diverse partners on grade 7 topics, texts, and issues, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly.

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Learning Objectives (I Can Statements)

• I can analyze a character’s experiences and emotions using evidence from Holocaust literature texts.
• I can create a character map to organize and present a person’s struggles and acts of resilience.
• I can discuss how individual stories connect to and deepen my understanding of historical events.

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Success Criteria

• I can identify key events and emotions from the text about the individual.
• I can organize my ideas clearly in a character map with supporting evidence from the text.
• I can share my character map in small groups, listening and responding respectfully to peers.
• I can explain how this character’s story shows resilience during the Holocaust.

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Materials Needed

• Copies of selected excerpt(s) from Holocaust literature featuring diverse individual stories (appropriate for 7th grade reading levels, dyslexia-friendly font versions provided)
• Character Map graphic organizers (large print, dyslexia-friendly versions included)
• Chart paper or whiteboard and markers
• Pencils, colored pencils or markers
• Sticky notes for exit ticket reflections

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Vocabulary Pre-Teach (5 minutes)

• Resilience
• Perseverance
• Oppression
• Survivor
• Empathy

(Read aloud each term, provide kid-friendly definitions, use visuals, and include a brief check for understanding.)

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Lesson Procedures

1. Introduction (5 minutes)

• Activate prior knowledge by asking: “What does resilience mean to you? Can you think of a time when someone showed resilience?”
• Briefly explain how we will look closely at individuals from the Holocaust to see their personal struggles and resilience.
• Share the learning objectives and success criteria using “I can” statements.

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2. Guided Reading and Discussion (10 minutes)

• Distribute the dyslexia-friendly excerpts.
• Read aloud the text passage(s) together, or have pairs read if preferred (to support differentiated reading needs).
• Pause periodically to ask comprehension and inferential questions related to the character’s experiences (e.g., “How do you think this character felt when…?” “What challenges did this person face?”).

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3. Character Map Creation (15 minutes)

• Model filling out a character map together on the board/chart paper: Main traits, struggles, acts of resilience, and quotes from the text.
• Students then work individually or in pairs to complete their own character maps using their selected individual from the text.
• Provide sentence starters on the board for those needing support (e.g., “One struggle this character experienced was...”, “This character showed resilience by…”).

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4. Small Group Share & Discussion (10 minutes)

• Organize students into groups of 4-5.
• Each student shares their character map and explains one example of resilience from their character.
• Encourage active listening and ask students to make connections between characters in the group.
• Teacher circulates to facilitate and support discussion.

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5. Exit Ticket Reflection (5 minutes)

• On sticky notes, students write one thing they learned about resilience from the characters studied today or one question they still have.
• Collect exit tickets for formative assessment.

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Differentiation Strategies

• For diverse learners:

  • Provide dyslexia-friendly versions of texts and graphic organizers.
  • Use paired reading to support fluency.
  • Give sentence starters and visual cues to guide responses on character maps.
  • Check in with students who may need help summarizing or identifying key text details.

• For advanced learners:

  • Challenge students to compare two characters’ resilience strategies and discuss differences.
  • Invite them to write a brief paragraph that connects the character’s resilience to a modern-day example of perseverance.

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Extensions

• Create a digital or artistic version of the character map using multimedia tools such as Google Slides, Canva, or poster-making activities.
• Research and present on a real-life Holocaust survivor’s story to connect literature with historical fact.
• Write a journal entry or letter “from the character’s perspective” reflecting on their personal struggles and hopes.

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Teacher Reflection Notes

• Monitor how students are engaging with challenging historical content and support emotional processing as needed.
• Note which students need more support with text comprehension or expressive skills for future lessons.

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End of Lesson