Name _____________________
5th Grade Famous (Mostly) American Biography
Your Biography will be written about :_______________________________________________________
FINAL Due Date: _________________
Time Line for Project:
2/24-3/2 Decide on Person (think of top 5 preferences from the list)
3/5- 3/11 Gather Research Items (3 sources minimum) Due in Class on the 12th
3/12-3/16 Work Time in Class (Take notes on from resources, do research)
3/26- 3/30 Work Time in Class (Work on biography article)
*complete all other parts of the project at home that you are unable to complete in class
FINAL PROJECT IS DUE APRIL 16, 2012
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Resources
You will need to use at least 1 NON FICTION Library Book (class, school, public) and at least 2 of the following resources to obtain your information:
*Internet (reputable websites-see links on my blog)
*Social Studies Textbook
*Encyclopedia
*Magazines
*Documentary
Report Contents
(Please label each section of your report)
Section I: Title Page:
*Name of Famous Person
*The time period they were alive (date of birth-date of death)
*Your name
*Date
Section II: Contents Page
Labeled “Contents”, lists sections and the page numbers they begin on
Section III : I Come From Poem:
*Write an “I am Poem” from the perspective of your famous person. See hand out for details/ideas.
Section IV: Two Page Biographical Article: (handwritten or typed 5 paragraph minimum)
*Introduction
*Family history (when and where they were born, what their childhood was like, interests they had growing up, any important information about their family or any hardships they had to overcome)
*Why, how, when and where they became famous. What should we remember this person for? What was the result of their actions/work? Why are the important? How did they make a difference?
*Is there any interesting information we should know about your person?
*How/when did they die? Are there any memorials, celebrations honoring them?
* Conclusion
Section V: Visuals
*Please include a photograph, drawing or painting of your famous person and an image related to why they are famous.
*You may include additional maps, guides, inserts, drawings or pictures that relate to your famous person and his/her life for Extra Credit. Please Label this section Extra Credit.
Section VI: Bibliography
List (alphabetically by author) all resources used for your research.
Sample Bibliography
"Abraham Lincoln." New Encyclopaedia Britannica. 1997 ed.
“Article Title.” http://www.websiteused.com
Cross, Charles R. Room Full of Mirrors: A Biography of Jimi Hendrix. New York: Hyperion, 2005.
Harcourt School Publishers. Reflections: The United States: Making a New Nation. Orlando, FL.: Harcourt, Inc. 2007
Thomas, Cathy and Tim Padgett. "Our First President." Time 19 Sept. 2005: 28-33.
Section VII: Presentation/Artistic Demonstration
Choose from the following or create your own method of expressing the theme, essence or main accomplishment of your person and prepare to present to the class in a 3-5 minute presentation. Be creative and try to have some fun with this area.
model diorama skit
poem rap or song food to share trivia/board game TV/radio broadcast interview
*Write an “I am Poem” from the perspective of your famous person.
I am Poem Format
Be sure to include important information about their life and achievements.
A final copy of this poem will be included just before your two page essay in the report.
You will be graded on thoughtfulness, creativity and information given about your person.
| I am | (name of your person)
|
| I wonder
| (something the person is likely to be curious about) |
| I hear
| (what would have been sounds that your person heard) |
| I see
| (what might your person have seen) |
| I am | (two or three special qualities the person has)
|
| (SPACE) |
|
| I pretend
| (something the person might have actually pretended) |
| I feel
| (an emotion, be sure to include why they felt that way) |
| I worry
| (what was something that your person might have worried about?) |
| I cry
| (what was something sad or difficult that happened to your person. If there was nothing sad… perhaps describe an extremely happy moment that could have brought them to tears.) |
| I understand
| (something the person knows to be true) |
| I say
| (something the person believes in) |
| I dream | (what was a dream of your person)
|
| I try
| (something the person made an effort to do) |
| I hope
| (something the person hoped for) |
| I am
| (you may repeat the person’s name or qualities or think of new ones to add) |
Research Notes:
Family History (when and where they were born, what their childhood was like, interests they had growing up, any important information about their family or any hardships they had to overcome)
What did this person do? Why are the important? How did they make a difference?
(Why, how, when and where they became famous. What should we remember this person for? What was the result of their actions/work?)
Interesting Facts/Information about person
How/when did they die? Are there any memorials, celebrations honoring them?
Famous Person Report Check-Off
| Check off | Components | Points | Make sure to include the following in each section… | ||||||||||
| _ | Title page | 10 | Name of famous person, time period they were alive, your name, due date | ||||||||||
| _
| Contents Page | 5 | Labeled Contents, lists sections and the page numbers they begin Ex. I am poem………………......……p. 3 Essay …………………...………….p. 4 Photograph of ___ ……….……p. 6 Drawing of Invention………..p. 7 Extra credit ……………………..p. 8 Bibliography ……………………p. 9 | ||||||||||
| _ | I am Poem | 15 | Thoughtful, creative, informative, accurate, correct spelling, neatness | ||||||||||
|
_
| Essay __Introduction (This grabs the readers attention and tells them who you are writing about)
__Body Paragraphs (Paragraph 1 about the person’s childhood, interests and experiences growing up, family, when/where they group up. Paragraph 2 about the person’s talents and accomplishments. What was important about their life? What goals has this person achieved? What problems did they overcome? Why, how, when and where did they become famous? Other Paragraphs may give more details about the life/work of your person. Interesting information? How this person is remembered and/or they are important. How did this person impact the lives of others? What can we learn from them? What should we know about their death, tributes, legacies?)
__Concluding Paragraph (This should retouch upon the life’s accomplishments of your famous person and why they are important to learn about. How can learning about their life/work inspire or encourage others and make a positive difference.) | 35 | Informative, accurate, strong vocabulary, variety of sentences used, the reading flows, it’s organized, neat, and uses correct spelling, punctuation, capitalization, grammar. | ||||||||||
| _ | Visuals | 10 | All visuals are labeled, They are relevant and meaningful, They enhance understanding of the person, their life and/or their accomplishments. | ||||||||||
| _ | Bibliography | 10 | Labeled Bibliography, Listed in alphabetical order by authors’ last names (when possible) or by article title (if no author stated). | ||||||||||
| _ | Presentation/ Artistic Demonstration | 15 | Shows effort, reflects knowledge about the person, their life and accomplishments, well prepared | ||||||||||
| _ | Extra Credit |
| Extra visuals that are labeled and enhance the understanding of your person/their life/their accomplishments. | ||||||||||
| | I checked my writing for misspelled words. I checked my writing for errors in punctuation. My paper is neat. I checked that my writing makes sense.
Name_________________________________
Planning your Biographical Article
Introduction (grabs the readers attention and introduces them to who you will be writing about)
Body Paragraph on childhood/family: (when, where they grew up, family, childhood and interests, experiences growing up)
Body Paragraph on why are they important: (how/why they became famous. What should the person be remembered for? What were the results of their actions. How did they make a difference)
(optional) Body Paragraph on other interesting information: (is there anything else we should know… or you can elaborate on what they are remembered for if you needed more space to do so)
Body Paragraph on the end of their life: (how/when did they die? are there any memorials or celebrations honoring them?)
Conclusion: (sum up the important info and leave readers with a big idea. big idea can be a call to action, a warning, a recommendation or can sometimes try to convince readers to think or feel a certain way)
*note: you have to have 5 paragraphs… if your person is still alive…use the optional paragraph instead of the death paragraph *remember you have a choice in the format of your writing (newspaper/magaize article, essay, book style) you want to write in the way that will best teach someone about your person | ||||||||||||
