Character Traits: Details That Show Instead of Tell

Using details that "show" rather than "tell" improves essays and stories.  I am a stickler about this whenever I teach writing because this writing skill closely relates to the reading skill of closely reading text.  I am back with a freebie and helpful tips.

What does it mean to "show" rather than "tell"?  Details that show describe a character's actions.  A reader is supposed to use these details to infer what a character is like, infer a character's emotions, and determine additional text details.

Example
Jean lowered her head and walked past the crowd.  If she could become invisible, she would have done so.

Explanation
A reader can infer that Jean feels uncomfortable.  One clue is that her head was lowered.  Plus, she wished that she was invisible.

**Free Show Rather Than Tell Chart**
Click Here To Access It

This freebie is part of my brand new Writing Lessons (Differentiated Lessons) document. It contains differentiated lessons that teach students how to write powerful introductory paragraphs, strong transition words, the different types of details that are used during writing and when to use them.  It also includes refreshers about capitalization and punctuation.  These are just a few of the lessons that are included with this file.Click Here To Access It

 

Click Here to Access Character Analysis Task Cards