Organizing biography activities

Student Activities for Biographies

Essential Questions for Biographies

1. Where and when was this person born?
2. What was this person’s childhood like?
3. What kind of education did this person have?
4. What is/was this person’s family life like?
5. What are/were this person’s accomplishments?
6. What positive contributions has this person made to the world?
7. Why did I choose this person?

Why Create Biographies?

When someone has a biography written about them, it is because they have done something in their life that others consider to be quite important--important enough to learn and write about! Usually the person has done something positive and admirable and is an inspiration to others.

In order to create a biography, students will learn about the person’s early life, childhood, education, family, and accomplishments. It is also important for the student to be able to express why they chose this person, and the impact this person has made on the world or the student’s life in particular. For example, students can ask: what can I learn from this person? What mistakes has this person made that I can relate to and grow from? How has this person inspired me?

When reading about and researching a person, students will encounter at least one theme, or recurring main idea, in a biography. The following is a list of potential themes:

• Sometimes life is tough and it takes strength to keep going.
• Believe in yourself and others will believe in you.
• No matter how many times you fail, never give up.
• The most difficult times in life can inspire others.
• Always have hope and stay positive.
• Know your worth: don’t let anyone drag you down.

Students should pay attention to what they think the theme is and be able to explain how they can learn from the person they are researching. Themes also make it much easier for students to present their chosen person's life as a narrative rather than a collection of facts.

Along with being able to i

There is so much power in teaching our students about history using biographies. We can all learn from the success and failures of others. But biographies often get a bad rap of being dry and boring. It doesn’t have to be that way. In fact, through this genre, our students can practice many different reading skills and strategies. That’s why I use graphic organizers that will allow my students to recall information from the biographies in creative ways. I am excited to share these 3 creative ideas for teaching biographies using fun and exciting graphic organizers I know your students will love!

Teaching Biographies can be Exciting

When teaching biographies in my classroom I like to immerse my students into the lives of the person they are learning about. From decorating the classroom to dressing up like the person we are studying, the possibilities are endless. This really helps to “bring the person to life” and make the learning more engaging and realistic for our students.

No matter what biography you are focusing on, these 3 creative ideas for teaching biographies are going to be so fun your kids will be begging for more!

Read all about it in this year’s edition of the 3rd grade Daily Times. And that’s the hook! One of my favorite ways to immerse my students into learning is to turn them all into little reporters. At the end of our biography unit, we create a newspaper. It includes articles about each of the people of influence we focused on. I can’t tell you how excited my students get when they hear they will be writing and “publishing” a newspaper!

I like to put students in groups of 3 or 4. Then, give each one a person they will be focusing on. As a group, they must choose graphic organizers to will help them record information about their person. They can read an article that I provide, get information from a book, or resea

Want to help your students connect with their learning in any subject? These engaging biography activities will bring life into your lessons as students investigate the movers, shakers, and clever creators of our world. Spark students’ curiosity and leave them wanting more with this fun collection of biography tips and resources from some of my favorite teacher-bloggers.

Powerful Texts for Biography Activities from Carla at Comprehension Connection

Carla from Comprehension Connection enjoys celebrating people in history with biography studies. There is a plethora of fantastic biographies to choose from, so no matter what time of year, you can work them into your lessons and biography activities. In her post, 22 Diverse Texts for Black History Month and Beyond, she shares some of her favorite titles including Martin’s Big Words, Wilma Unlimited, When Marian Sang, Salt in His Shoes, and The Story of Ruby Bridges. She also has a blog post about great titles for Women’s History Month. When studying biographies, she enjoys having students write autobiographies and memoirs.

Creative Biography Activities from Susan at Keep’em Thinking

Susan from Keep ’em Thinking! loves using biographies throughout the year, not just during Women’s History and Black History Month. In her blog post, Creative Ideas For Teaching Biographies, she shares some of her favorite graphic organizers and activities for learning about achievers who have made a difference. She also has blog posts about Teaching Activities for Women’s History Month and Teaching About Lesser Known Figures in Black History.

Biography Activities for Black History Month from Janet at Fishyrobb

Black History Month is the perfect opportunity to dive into some amazing biographical studies. In her post, Black History Month Activities for Elementary Students, Janet of Fishyrobb shares some of her favorite

Are you searching for biography activities for elementary students? This guide covers how to teach biography projects with fun (free) anchor charts, book lists, and project ideas. Let’s make biography lessons fun!

1. Start by teaching the genre.

Always start each genre with an introductory lesson. To help with making biographies fun, I suggest a biography anchor chart that you can laminate and keep in your classroom throughout the unit or throughout the entire year. Below, you will see a sample anchor chart for biographies. AND I’m linking the letters and clipart for you for FREE! That way, you can replicate a similar anchor chart for your students.

(Link: Biography Header Freebie)

2. Integrate reading into students independent and partner reading time.

Utilize all the time you can with biographies. Plug them into daily centers and even book bins for students to read during downtime. If you’re giving primary students biography books to read independently or with a partner, make sure to provide them with easy readers. Biographies are tough for students to understand because sometimes they don’t have any background knowledge. So, prevent them from having more difficulty reading their biographies by giving them easy readers to get through independently. Check out these affiliate links to books I suggest from Amazon that are ideal for making biographies fun.

3. Have a weekly (free) challenge for review.

At the beginning of every week, you will give students a social studies or science clue. Throughout the week, as they read passages in folders and books at their reading centers, they will try to find out what the mystery clues are. It’s a great concept for making biographies fun for primary students. Check out my examples below.

(Link: Mystery Freebie Blog Post)

4. Tie in technology to your biography proj