The Art of Biography

Activities/Lesson Plans

This unit was created for fourth graders, but can be easily modified for fifth and sixth graders. Indeed, just choosing higher-level biographies, will increase the reading and writing levels for these lessons. Each of the ten lessons will take about 45 minutes. Flexibility is built in so that lessons that are not completed can be continued in the next lesson.

Lesson One

Once you have decided to complete the unit or at the beginning of the school year, begin using Art Authority in your classroom. This website provides over 15,000 pieces of art, including portraits and is perfect for iPads and Smart boards. In Philadelphia, teachers also have access to ARTstor, which is available to teachers by creating an account at ARTstor.org. Students should be introduced to the site and have an opportunity to look around. Model looking at a portrait and asking students to discuss what they see. Focus on clothes, hair, eyes, expression, colors, mood, background objects or scenes, and shapes. Discuss the term "an arm and a leg", an idiom used to describe the high cost of goods or services. One possible source of the phrase came from 18 ^th century artists who were paid for portraits by how much of the subject was included in the painting. To add the arms of a subject cost extra and to paint the entire body cost even more. Another source says the phrase came from veterans after World War II, when the term was used for how much was sacrificed (losing an arm or a leg) during the war. Finish the lesson by choosing another portrait and have students work in pairs to write about the subject. Ask them to look at the portrait using the criteria you have established. Once completed, pairs can share out in the class followed by reading the background information of the portrait given on the website.

Lesson Two

This lesson looks at the elements of autobiography. Begin by choosing two short stories that fit this genre. Examples would be: Drawing from the City, based on the oral stories of Tejubehan from India, Warriors, Warthogs, and Wisdom: Growing Up in Africa by Lyall Watson, and Knucklehead by Jon Scieszka an author of children's books. For the longer books, I would choose parts of the story. Drawing from the City is short enough with incredible drawings to read in one lesson. After reading, discuss with students what elements make the story an autobiography. Chart responses and create a finalized list of elements. Post the list in the classroom. Have students create a timeline of their life from birth to the present. Introduce the concept of selection-by asking what events they would choose to add to their timeline and why they were chosen. Ask students to keep these for future writing.

Lesson Three

This lesson looks at the elements of memoir. Define memoir as a part of an autobiography that usually focuses on a specific event or events. Model memoir with one that you have written on your life for the class. Discuss what elements of the story make it a memoir and chart responses. Post a list of elements in the classroom along side autobiography and have students discuss in pairs the difference between the two. Share out students' thinking in class. Ask students to think about an experience or event that stands out in their lives. A prompt can be used such as, "One thing I will never forget is the time…" First have students draw their story on a six-block storyboard. Once completed, have students write their memoir using the storyboard illustrations. Allow time for students to share throughout the day.

Lesson Four and Five

These two lessons will look at the fugitive slave narratives. A background of slavery in America would be beneficial to students before this lesson. You may choose one to four narratives from this unit depending on your time constraints. Begin by showing a photograph or illustration of the author. (See websites below.) Ask students to write about the subject using the same techniques for portraits. Tell the narrators story in your own words either orally and/or typed for the Smart board or overhead projector. Discuss the story and answer questions (there will be many!). Ask students to describe what the narrator did while hiding or escaping. Ask what they would see, how they would feel, what they might hear, smell, taste, and touch? Have student imagine what a day would look like. Ask students to use a 6-block storyboard to draw a day during the slave's escape, and then write a story either in paragraph form or as captions for each illustration. Repeat this lesson for each fugitive slave narrative.

Lesson Six

This lesson looks at biographies and how different they can be depending upon the focus, theme, and author. Ask students what they think the difference is between autobiography and biography to create a definition of biography. Read two versions of Frederick Douglass, for example, Words Set Me Free: The Story of Young Frederick Douglass by Lesa Cline-Ransome and a Picture Book of Frederick Douglass by David A. Adler. Chart with the class differences and similarities of the two stories. Focus on what the author included and excluded in each story. Discuss how biographers select what to put in a biography and what to leave out. Point out how each biographer has a purpose for writing the biography and discuss what these authors may have intended. In groups, have a set of biographies for students to read and discuss together. Ask them to chart similarities and differences for each set. Suggestions are biographies on Harriet Tubman, Rosa Parks, Jackie Robinson, President Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Jr., Benjamin Franklin, and Langston Hughes. Post students responses and allow time for sharing.

Lesson Seven

This lesson continues the biography process by focusing on time, space, scale and sources. Begin by reviewing elements of biography, and then introduce the concepts of time, space, and scale found in the background information above. Use examples of each and ask students for examples from stories the class has read during the year. Next, ask student how biographers get their information and discuss different types of research, including primary documents, articles, books, and interviews. Ask students if they were writing a biography of a classmate, what questions would they want to ask. Brainstorm a list of questions to ask the subject keeping in mind questions that are revealing, tell about character, tell what is going on in the area during this time, and what is the intention of the biography. Chart together an agreed upon list of questions for the interview. Model interviewing a subject and assign students into pairs to practice the interview process.

Lesson Eight

This lesson will continue Lesson Seven and may need more time then 45 minutes. Model how you would like students to write their biographies. Keep it simple, for instance, your direction could be write three paragraphs (beginning, middle and end) about the subject using the interview questions and any additional information they uncover. To further explore the concept of selection and intention, assign students into groups of four. Explain that two students will write independent biographies using the questions as prompts-without interviewing the subject assigned in the group. A third student will interview the fourth student (subject) in the group using the same questions. The fourth student will write an autobiography using the same questions while the other three are writing. Once a draft is completed, have groups read their pieces to the class. Discuss the differences and similarities of the three biographies. Finally, have the subject in each group read their autobiography, confirming or denying information found in the group's biographies.

Lesson Nine

This lesson will look at different types of biography and sources. Introduce graphic biography by reading Satchel Paige Striking Out Jim Crow by James Sturm and Rich Tommaso. Discuss elements of a graphic biography, including what they noticed about the scenes and dialogue. Introduce the importance of sources by asking where the author may have found information on Satchel Paige. Create a list of possible sources and where they can be found including the Internet, books, articles, letters, photographs, and diaries. Introduce students to the biography assignment, which will be to write a biography of a family member. Have students create a set of interview questions and possible sources for information to write a short biography. Give students time to complete their research, as some family members may not be easily accessible.

Lesson Ten

This lesson will look at creating a graphic biography and may take longer than 45 minutes to complete. Students will use the information and documents from their biography assignment. Begin by reviewing elements of a graphic biography. Review the principle of selection by modeling a graphic biography you have completed of a family member and discussing how you decided what information to include and exclude. Ask students to create a graphic biography, with dialogue written at the top of each scene and information at the bottom. Distribute large paper for students to use with the blocks preprinted to save time. A rubric for grading the biography can be created together with the class, which will guide their creation of the graphic biography.