Our biography unit is one of my favorite units in our classroom! This is the first time students experience an independent report, use technology, and have to synthesize information from various sources. That can be a difficult task for second graders!
How have I helped my second graders be successful when researching a person? It takes a lot of modeling and scaffolding.
Here is the basic process that I use when teaching our biography unit.
Also available are the QR Codes for Biography Research that you see in this blog post and Biography Report for ANY Person.
We usually begin our biography unit in January, around Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. I use MLK as my biographical hero and we read several books about him. I model taking notes and locating information in a text.
During this time, we also read books about other biographical people and focus on what made that person a hero or what made him/her an important person. I read all kinds of books, even books that students will use in their research. Studying an individual person is such a new concept for most students that we need to set the stage for why the person is important or why we study important people.
Along with reading the texts, we also create an ongoing anchor chart where we add the person, date, and why the person did what he did that was important. The chart looks a little different each year but generally includes the above information.
One of the most difficult things when teaching how to do a biography report is finding information for students to read that is written at students’ developmental and reading levels. Most biography text is so dense and difficult for even adults to read! Over the years, I have gathered a ton of resources to make this information-gathering process easier.
The books above I purchased from eBay. This is a similar listing. They’re easy readers with just the right about of information for my second graders.
I have also scoured TpT for text on biographical people. This Reading Comprehension Bundle has been a good resource. The text is a little high for my students, but still accessible for most of them. We only use the text in it, though, not the questions.
Other good resources with a range of reading levels include Celebrating Black History Month and 8 Famous African Americans.
I basically pull grade-level text from as many sources as I can to give students multiple resources and exposure to the information from multiple points. Each packet above has 1-4 pieces of text for students to use.
To create even more buy-in for the research reports, I let students choose their biographical character. At least, students think that they have a choice in who they study, even if it’s not a direct choice.
On a small piece of paper, I have students list three or four people that they would like to study. If I have done a good enough job setting the stage, they will have heard of several biographical heroes and will be able to write down more than a just the presidents!
How do I choose which biographical person a student gets?
Several factors go into that decision. Each student gets a different person. I assign my low readers a person that is easy to understand and for whom I have enough information. Although most students choose a president, the presidents are the hardest to gather information and report about. They generally don’t have a central thing that they did, beyond being president. The inventors tend to be the easiest.
I also factor in gender. I want my girls to feel empowered by the person that they are reading about and know that they too can do great things. So, I tend to assign girl heroes to girls and boy heroes to boys.
Once I’ve figured out who is reporting on which biographical person, I create individual packets for students. I fold a piece of large construction paper in half, put the student’s name and person at the top. Each folder has the articles and books from above as well as a recording sheet and a sheet with QR Codes on it. I’ve blocked out the student names below, but you get the idea.
The QR Codes that students use from my Biography Research Reports (also on TpT) product. You can read more about how I use QR Codes in the Classroom in this blog post. I also have a FREE Martin Luther King, Jr. QR Code, as well. What I love about the QR Codes is that even my lowest readers can watch the videos and write down facts that they learn. They’re not getting bogged down with so much text when listening and watching the videos.
Are you interested in some QR Codes to jump-start your students Biography Research? Click below for some FREE QR Codes for Martin Luther King Jr.
During this time, students spend about a week, researching their individual person. Students read the books and articles and use their iPads to watch the videos and look at the websites. They’re basically using as many resources as they can to gather information about their person.
One key thing to note is that students don’t have to go find their resources. I have provided all the resources. In the past, so much time was wasted finding the resource instead of reading and researching. It finally occurred to me that my objective was to have students read and research, not locate resources, so I took that step out of the process.
The following graphic organizers and reports can be found in my Biography Report for ANY Person resource.
I have students fill out a graphic organizer while researching that includes basic questions and prompts. Most students are able to find enough information to fill out the graphic organizer. From there, they move onto a scaffolded report, that includes sentence frames, and then a final report.
For the final report, students develop a full biography report using my The following graphic organizers and reports can be found in my Biography Report for ANY Person resource. You can see detailed examples in this blog post.
Students use the craft during their oral reports in front of the class. By scaffolding the writing and providing students with the sentence structure, even my lowest readers and writers can participate in the oral reports.
For second graders, I use the most scaffolded versions of the “report”. For older students, I increase the expectations and require more writing and deeper thinking.
If you’d like to purchase the QR Codes, they’re available in my store and on TpT. I have a main packet that contains the following people:
Political Leaders: George Washington, Abraham Lincoln
Woman Leaders: Helen Keller, Susan B. Anthony, Betsy Ross, Amelia Earhart, Bessie Coleman, Sally Ride, Clara Barton, Harriet Tubman
African American Leaders: Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Thurgood Marshall, Booker T. Washington, Frederick Douglas, Ruby Bridges, Sojourner Truth
Inventors & Scientists: Alexander Graham Bell, Garrett Morgan, Thomas Edison, George Washington Carver, Benjamin Franklin, The Wright Brothers
Athletes: Jackie Robinson, Jesse Owens
I also have an additional set of 32 Women Leader including: Helen Keller, Susan B., Anthony, Betsy Ross, Amelia Earhart, Bessie Coleman, Sally Ride, Clara Barton, Harriet Tubman, Jane Goodall, Gabrielle Giffords, Hillary Clinton, Malala Yousafzai, Margaret Thatcher, Mother Theresa, Oprah Winfrey, Anne Frank, Princess Diana, Queen Elizabeth II, Eleanor Roosevelt, Rosa Parks, Ruby Bridges, Sarah E. Goode, Sojourner Truth, Marie Curie, Annie Oakley, Althea Gibson, Dolores Huerta, Juliette Gordon Low, Mae Jemison, Maya Angelou, Sacagawea, Pocahontas.
Some of the women heroes are in both packets.
I have MANY biographies available for a wide range of important people.
These biographies include reading passages and comprehension activities include resources for students to learn about famous Americans and people from around the world. These biographies of famous people are specifically written for kids to learn the life story of influential people, including presidents, leaders, inventors, women, civil rights activists, and more.
Each biography includes:
Do you need more engaging and high-interest text for elementary students to read that can be used across content areas?
Are you looking to scaffold your Biography Report Unit?
The Biography Collection has over 47 kid-friendly biographies and comprehension resources and includes:
How do you teach biographies in your classroom? Have you figured out any tips or tricks that help your students synthesize information from multiple sources? I’d love to hear about it in the comments!
Are you interested in some QR Codes to jump-start your students Biography Research? Click below for some FREE QR Codes for Martin Luther King Jr.
We love your bio buddies! They are perfect for us as we start introducing books across genres. Thanks for sharing! 🙂 Tamra and Sarah
firstgradebuddies2.blogspot.com
YES! I just uploaded a resource for Biography Reports for ANY Person. You can check it out here: https://whatihavelearnedteaching.com/biography-research-report-for-any-person/
Marilyn Pharr says:I have enjoyed your reflection on teaching biographies! I would like to encourage you to remove the chart you used in your classroom as ‘heroes” is spelled incorrectly. It can be spelled “heros” when using it to specify sandwiches or submarines.
Jessica Boschen says: Thanks for the editing! I’ve corrected the image 🙂
Welcome! I'm Jessica.
My passion is making learning accessible to all students. I love scaffolding teaching, breaking down concepts, and building them up so students can see all the connections.
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