Animal Characters

Core Idea

Many stories have animals that talk, wear clothes, go to school, or have adventures just like people. These animal characters let us see human feelings and problems through a fun, imaginative lens. From curious monkeys to hungry caterpillars, animal characters are some of the most beloved in all of children's literature.

How It's Best Learned

Read stories with animal characters and talk about how the animals act like people. Ask: Does this animal do things a real animal would do, or is it acting like a person? Draw your own animal character and give it a personality.

Common Misconceptions

• Thinking animal characters are meant to teach facts about real animals; they usually represent human feelings and situations.
• Believing animal stories are only for very young children; animal characters appear in stories for all ages.
• Assuming all animal characters act the same; a bear in one story might be gentle while a bear in another might be grumpy.

Explainer

Many stories have animals as characters -- the ones doing things in the story. These are not real animals that you would see in nature. Instead, they are animal characters that act like people. They might talk, wear clothes, go to school, ride bikes, or have feelings just like you do. A cat might be nervous before the first day of school, or a bunny might be sad that their friend moved away.

Why do authors use animals in stories? Because kids love animals! Animals make stories fun and exciting. Plus, when animals do things people do, it helps us understand our own feelings and problems. If you are scared about something, reading about a little bear who is scared too can help you feel better. You might think, "That bear is brave even though being scared is hard, so I can be brave too!"

The cool thing is that animal characters are not meant to teach you real facts about animals. A real bear does not wear a dress or go to school. But in a story, a bear character can do any of these things! Each animal character is unique. A bear in one story might be friendly and kind, while a bear in another story might be grumpy or silly. That is what makes stories fun -- the characters have personalities just like real people do.

When you read a story with animal characters, pay attention to what they say, how they feel, and what they do. These things tell you about the character's personality. And sometimes, you might see a little bit of yourself in an animal character, and that can make the story feel extra special.