Creating a Character Wheel

A character wheel is one way to show the complexity of a character you have gotten to know in your reading. The wheel is essentially a collage (though you can draw it if you like) that shows the character you have chosen from several different points of view. Here are the parameters.

What You Need

  1. A large circle cut out of a piece of poster board (about 2 feet in diameter)
  2. Markers/Colored Pencils/Paint
  3. Magazines/Newspapers
  4. Odds and ends (objects such as photos, ribbon, bits of cloth, old coins, cards, badges, etc.) that could be used to help reveal information about your character
  5. A typed explanation of your character wheel

What to Do

  1. You will choose at random one of the stories we have read this year. You need to place one of the characters from that story in the center of your wheel. You can handwrite the name, use letters from a magazine, or come up with some other creative expression. How you present the name may help to reveal something about the character.
  2. Divide your wheel into six sections. The most obvious configuration is a pie, but you do not need to confine yourself to this design. Each section will be a different visual representation of your character. Here are the six sections, in whatever order you choose:
  3. The character’s physical appearance
  4. A special object that represents the character
  5. A quote from the book that represents the character
  6. A picture that represents the character’s most significant conflict
  7. A picture that represents the character’s transformation throughout the book
  8. A picture that represents a significant relationship the character has (with another character)
  9. As you are working on each section, think closely about what you want to show. On the back of the poster, where each section appears, glue the typed explanation of what each picture shows. You need to explain your thinking behind each visual representation.

Rubric

Here is what I’m looking for as I assess your character wheels:

1. An excellent project (A)

  • demonstrates a clear, in-depth understanding of the character’s personality, relationships, and actions;
  • encourages the audience to think and ask questions about the character;
  • uses a variety of materials and makes creative use of each of the six sections of the wheel;
  • provides thoughtful, detailed explanations of why you created each of your images.

2. A successful project (B range)

  • demonstrates a clear, literal understanding of the character’s personality, relationships and actions;
  • encourages the audience to remark on the images and wonder about the reading;
  • uses the materials thoughtfully and makes complete use of each of the six sections;
  • provides clear, detailed explanations of each image.

3. An adequate project (C range)

  • depicts characters conscientiously but without clear reflection or sense of purpose;
  • interests the audience but doesn’t provide clear connections;
  • makes limited use of materials and space in each section;
  • includes written information on character but does not clearly present or explain what each picture represents

4. An ineffective project (D range)

  • provides visual representations that appear hasty and poorly thought-out or disinterested;
  • leaves the audience wondering about the focus and purpose of the project;
  • makes indifferent use of materials, perhaps drawing in pencil or using a single apparently random picture or object;
  • provides little or no written explanation of what the reader wanted to accomplish with the piece.