Grade 6 — English Language Arts: Writing Historical Biographies

Overview

Students write biographies about interesting historical figures or scientists in connection with a content-area subject being studied. Students research to find information and use elements common to biographies to write and share their information using an appropriate presentation tool.

Activate

Students browse a variety of biographies of historical figures or scientists being discussed in the content-area subject. They ask how and why questions about biographies in general and the figures. [Plan and Question] Using refined searching techniques and multiple electronic sources, students make notes (e.g., LAPS or Cornell method), in their electronic journals. [Gather and Make Sense]

Teacher Tip:
Students should be able to identify that special character traits of an individual are linked to his/her achievements.
Students browse several biographies to become aware of a figure they would like to research for their own biography.

Acquire

Using class-established criteria and based on characteristics of biographies, students look up one person’s biography from a video, a website, and a print or electronic encyclopedia. [Produce to Show Understanding] They note information about that person and record which source it came from [Gather and Make Sense]. Using a Compare and Contrast Frame, they compare the information gleaned. In their electronic journals they record their conclusions about sources of information [Gather and Make Sense]. They note which source they feel provides the best information and explain why [Reflect].

Teacher Tip:
Students might notice that the age of the person researched might affect their conclusion about the suitability of a resource. For ex., a past historical figure can easily be researched in print material while a late 20th century scientist will probably be researched using electronic sources such as a website.

Support File:
Background Information on Biographies and Autobiographies

Using electronic resources, students research biographical information on a chosen biographical subject. [Gather and Make Sense] Students refine searches and analyze whether information is sufficient and/or suitable for their purposes. [Gather and Make Sense] Students make notes and keep bibliographic information, electronically, using a suitable application [Gather and Make Sense, Produce to Show Understanding].

Teacher Tip:
Discuss with students appropriate categories for their notetaking. Review characteristics of biographies with them.
Use this LE to research a person associated with a current curricular topic for grade 6.

Students evaluate their original inquiry questions to assess whether they have been answered [Plan and Question]. They email experts about their chosen historical figure to ask further questions and gather additional information. [Gather and Make Sense] Remind the students to use safety guidelines and show responsibility when emailing [Ethics and Responsibility].

Suggestions for Assessment:
Work Sample: Verify that students recorded bibliographical information about their email. [Gather and Make Sense]

Apply

Students select an appropriate electronic application to communicate the information they found about their figure [Communicate, Produce to Show Understanding]. They write the biography, add sound, graphics, video clips or animation where appropriate to bring to life the unique character traits or achievements of this person. [Produce to Show Understanding]

Teacher Tip:
Students should select an appropriate tool to share their information such as Multimedia presentation, web page, brochure created electronically, concept map. They need to explain the reason for their choice and how it has affected their work. [Produce to Show Understanding, Reflect]

Suggestions for Assessment:
Self-Assessment: Students reflect in their journal on the process they followed and the use of ICT to create a final product [Reflect].
Work Sample: Verify students’ understanding of the characteristics of biographies through their presentation and whether they have appropriately highlighted the character traits that make their researched person unique.