Characterization
grades 9-12 
Educational Objective: The students will demonstrate and realize the importance 
of specific characterization by doing an activity as another person or 
character.
Materials Needed: A piece of gum for everyone, tape of Eddie Murphy on The Best 
of Saturday Night Live, or clip showing imitation.
Hook: Watch a few short clips of Eddie Murphy doing imitations on Saturday Night 
Live. Stop tape after each clip and ask what Eddie Murphy did that was so 
convincing, why was he so good, and so much like the person he was imitating.
Step 1: Pass out a piece of gum to everyone. Ask the students to get with a 
partner and watch each other chew the gum like: 1. a cow 2. a Chihuahua 3. like 
a nervous person 4. a person with an attitude 5. like a person they know, etc. 
Then we asked for volunteers to come up and demonstrate different ways of 
chewing.
Step 2: Have them write down a situation that their parents would yell at them 
for. Turn in their papers and get with partners again. Each group must then pick 
a piece of paper and one will play the role of parent and the other will play 
the part of child. The one acting as the parent will have a clearer grasp on an 
objective. So it is much more vague for the child-part. But either role can be 
played in a variety of ways.
Step 3: Give them a few minutes in their groups to come up with things. Go 
around to groups and see if they need help. Explain that the more specific they 
are with what they choose, the better. Have them perform their scenes.
Step 4: Discuss why they were able to act like their parents so well. They've 
studied their parents characters all of their lives without even knowing it. 
They know their parents, (and the characteristics of them) and that was why they 
could imitate them so well- or didn't have a hard time thinking of things to 
say. Tie in Eddie Murphy part - review what was said about that, and the chewing 
gum part, etc. In upcoming monologues, it is important to study and know 
character. You will be able to tell by their voice, facial expressions, body 
posture and movement, what they say, etc.