Character Split Portraits

I have seen split self portraits and thought why not use the same technique for characters from a favorite book! We just finished reading the book Twig by Elizabeth Orton Jones. This book hooked my little readers from the first chapter. The fantasy elements draw you right in. Fairies, elves and a magical miniature world come alive right in her backyard.

The storyline takes place throughout a single Saturday afternoon. The book follows an ordinary little girl down the steps of her apartment building to her backyard. A few strewn items spark her imagination as the fantastical adventures unfold. The story concludes as she ascends the stairway back to her home.

Internal vs External:

The kids have been learning about internal vs. external characterization. This book provided the perfect opportunity to discuss events that were happening internally vs externally. The moment they realized the majority of the story takes within her imagination was priceless. They were so excited to make the connection. From there on out we were comparing what may be happening externally vs the fantastical storyline from within her imagination.

After reading we decided to create a split portrait to represent the internal and external features of the story. Madelyn (8) used the cover illustration to help her sketch the main character. She filled half of the face with typical facial features. The second half of the face included elements from Twig’s imagination. This activity provided a great opportunity to retell the story as well. We added in collecting items from around the house to symbolize the story. This is where the props came into play. While the story provided so much excitement, the activities provided a way to deepen comprehension. The best part is they weren’t “work” but rather sparked creativity and further enjoyment