Unit Overview

Unit Title: Anecdotal Biographies

Developed by: Matthew Glista Subject: Language Arts Genre: Biography

Grade: Middle School (6th-8th) Length/Time: Approximately 3 weeks

Desired Results and Learning Outcomes

Prerequisite Skills:Students should be familiar with what a biography is and how they are traditionally written and formatted. For this reason, I recommend beginning this unit with students taking a trip to their school library and examining a biography of some famous person who interests them. Furthermore, students should have some experience with quoting and citing sources.

Key Vocabulary in this Unit:Biography – a detailed description or account of a person’s lifeAnecdote – a short, interesting account of a particular incident or eventChronological – following a progression of time from past to present

Materials: (e.g., internet resources and supplies) Word Processing Software Library access (for initial biography analysis) Access to the individual that each student wants to document

Texts: (e.g., mentor texts) Each student needs access to a biography on someone who interests him/her

Unit Summary: In a few sentences, describe the topic(s) and key activities that the students will engage in during the unit.

This unit will give students an opportunity to write a brief biography 4-5 double-spaced pages on someone they know personally, such as a family member or friend (who is at least as old as the student). The first step of the project will involve students finding published biographies and inspecting their layout/format/presentation for ideas to use in their own project. Various lessons will take place throughout the process to improve the organization of students’ work and prevent them from procrastinating. It will also allow the instructor to conference with students periodically, just to touch base, check on progress, and answer any particular questions about students’ projects. The finished product may come in a variety of forms from a standard word-processed document to a more presentation-based format. Use of multimedia such as photographs or illustrations is highly encouraged, but not mandatory.

Targeted Standards:CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.8.2a Introduce a topic clearly, previewing what is to follow; organize ideas, concepts, and information into broader categories; include formatting (e.g., headings), graphics (e.g., charts, tables), and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.8.2b Develop the topic with relevant, well-chosen facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples.

Objectives: Understand the general format of a biography, especially that they are usually

written in chronological order Conduct informal interviews and use anecdotes to support writing Write a short, meaningful biography on someone known personally (optional) Meaningfully integrate multimedia into the biography

Enduring Understanding (Big Ideas): Biographies document milestones

within a person’s life. These major events collectively shape the character of each person.

How does one decide on whether an even is significant? How does the author’s perspective influence a biography vs. the subject’s perspective?

Essential Question(s)--overarching and topical:

What is the value (emotionally and historically) of documenting one’s life? What kind of legacy has the person you’re documenting left behind or plans to leave behind?

What lessons can be learned from reading and writing biographies? How do authors make biographical subjects and their experiences relatable to our own lives?

As the result of this unit, Students will know… (concepts)

That biographies can be sources of both entertainment and information. They are a unique subset of non-fiction that capture the life and times of various people.

That most biographies (whether written or presented through film) are chronological, progressing from the past to the present or less distant past.

As the result of this unit, Students will be able to… (skills)

Effectively use an interview to support their writing.

Understand how an author’s opinion may skew the presentation of biographical information.

Write expository texts using evidence they compile from various sources, including multimedia.

Assessment

Performance Task(s):

(a)What will students do to demonstrate their learning?

Write a 2-4 page biography on someone they know personally.

Other Evidence (preassessment, formative, summative):

Formative: Conferencing, Mini Lessons with intermediate due dates

Summative: Rubric for final evaluation

(b) What criteria will you use to assess student performance? (Attach checklist, rubric, etc. or explain criteria)

I will use a rubric to evaluate each biography by the same criteria.

How will students reflect and self-assess their own learning?

Through 1-on-1 conferences, I will monitor students’ progress and make suggestions of ways that they could improve their work.

As you prepare, think about…

How will you hook students at the beginning of the unit?

What events will help students experience and explore the big idea(s) and questions in the unit? How will you equip them with needed skills and knowledge?

How will you cause students to reflect? How will you guide them in rehearsing, revising, and refining their work?

How will you help students to exhibit and self-evaluate their skills, knowledge, and understanding throughout the unit?

How will you organize and sequence the learning activities to optimize the engagement and achievement of all students?

Learning Plan

1. Students check out biographies from the school library that interest them and analyze these to get a sense of how to format their own projects. (Week 1)

2. Students choose a person they know personally to write the biography about, and begin brainstorming interview questions to ask them. (Week 1)

3. Students each interview the person they have chosen to write about. (Week 1)

4. Students formulate a list of significant events to be included in their biographies and order these chronologically. (Week 2)

5. Students elaborate upon each event, possibly including photos or illustrations to accompany them. This step will result in an outline to work from while writing. (Week 2)

6. Students begin writing their biographies, developing rough drafts. (Week 2)

7. Students submit their rough drafts to the instructor to read and edit for grammar. (Beginning of Week 3)

8. Students each have a brief 1-on-1 conference with the instructor, then proceed to make any suggested changes. (Week 3)

9. Students turn in their final product along with a rubric on which they have evaluated themselves. (End of Week 3)

10. Students present their biographies to peers. (Week 4)

Meeting the Needs of All Learners

How will you…

differentiate instruction (e.g., flexible grouping, self-selection of product)?

Every student should have at least one person whom they admire and can interview for this project, but there are exceptional circumstances under which I would allow students to write about a recently deceased relative or friend. Either way, each student should end up with a unique piece of writing that holds personal significance; something they can look back on and take pride in. Furthermore, the option of including photographs and illustrations allows students with special artistic talents to use these skills to enhance their presentation.

accommodate students with special needs (e.g., use of assistive technology)?

The length requirement will be flexible to accommodate those with literacy/writing impairments, and the finished product does not need to be word processed, giving all students an option of whether they prefer to write or type. If a student is physically impaired to the extent that he or she is incapable of typing or writing their biography, I would arrange for the student to use interpretive software or record themselves dictating the biography.

provide culturally responsive instruction to English learners or dialect speakers (e.g., scaffold instruction, comprehensible input, multicultural texts)?

If a student has little to no abilities reading or writing in English, I would allow him or her to complete the assignment in their native language. I would use translation software to obtain a readable version of their project and grade based on content and effort as opposed to grammar (since this will be difficult to judge post-translation). If the student is ESL/ELL, I would strongly encourage them to write their biography in English, even if they feel more comfortable writing in their native language at first then translating.

Lesson Plan Day 1

Grade Level: 8 Number of Students: 24 per period Instructional Location: School Library

Length of Instruction: Whole 40-minute period

Standard(s) Addressed (Common Core)CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.8.2a Introduce a topic clearly, previewing what is to follow; organize ideas, concepts, and information into broader categories; include formatting (e.g., headings), graphics (e.g., charts, tables), and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.8.2b Develop the topic with relevant, well-chosen facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples.

Content Objectives Students will be able to explain that the general layout of most

biographies is in chronological order. Students will be able to describe the kinds of illustrations and

graphics used to enhance biographies.

Language Objectives Students will be able to spell and define the word

“chronological”, explaining that it means to order events from the most distant past to the present.

Students will know and apply the word “biography”.Mentor Texts:Title: Lou Gehrig: The Luckiest Man Genre: BiographyTitle: When Marian Sang Genre: Biography

Strategy Focus:Students use mentor texts as guides to how they can format the biographies they write and how to incorporate illustrations.

Materials: Mentor texts Any books from the biography section of the school library

(Students may each choose their own books to research)

Vocabulary:Chronological – placed in order from least to most recent; ordering events based on the date and time when each occurred

Add any relevant information that is essential to understanding the context of your lesson:The lesson is relatively self-explanatory and student led. They will have freedom to choose biographies of people who interest them or biographies that are just uniquely appealing in some way. The teacher will specifically present the aforementioned mentor texts to the class.Prerequisite Skills:Students should all understand that a biography is a non-fiction book written to document the history of someone’s life. They are usually about famous people but can be written about any person alive or deceased.Enduring Understandings (Big Idea):

Biographies are most commonly presented in chronological order from a person’s birth till his or her death or present whereabouts. There are numerous strategies to make biographies unique and interesting, such as the inclusion of illustrations of historical graphics. Biographies do not detail every event in a person’s life, but instead focus on the major, life-changing experiences that he or she endures.

Essential Questions: In what order are the events in a biography usually chosen? How can one go against the chronological structure commonly found in biographies to emphasize certain events? Besides text, what features of a biography add to its depth, variety, and richness of information?

MINILESSON

Setting the Purpose:We want the biographies we write in class to be interesting, informative, and professional-looking. What features are present in most quality biographies? By exploring biographies that we enjoy reading, we can generate ideas for our own projects.

Connect to prior learning:Students should be familiar with non-fiction writing, therefore biographies should be explained to them as a piece of non-fiction that documents and describes the major events in someone’s life.

Procedure:1. The class will visit the school library to explore various biographies of interest.2. Once the class is present in the library, begin by introducing each of the mentor texts to the class as examples of great biographies.3. After these books have been presented, let the students search the biography section of the library for any other books that interest them

personally or simply catch their eyes for some reason. Each student needs two biographies to complete this activity.4. Once each student has found two biographies that interest him or her, instruct them to all fill out their “Biography Brainstorming” activity

sheet. This sheet will serve as a helpful tool to help students plan out their writing.5. Gather the class to share some of their activity sheet responses as a whole group. Encourage students to take notes on anything interesting

they hear from their peers that would be a good idea to include in their own biography projects.6. Have students return any biographies that have not been formally checked out and turn in their Biography Brainstorming sheets for

grading. (These will be promptly returned so that the students possess this resource.)7. Inform students that their homework to be accomplished before the next lesson is to decide upon someone whom they know personally

that would be an interesting candidate to have a biography written about him or her.

Assessment(s):Formative: Circulate the library as students are filling out their brainstorming worksheets. Have the students indeed chosen quality biographies or are they simply swayed by the subjects as opposed to the quality of information that the books contain?

How might you extend this lesson?The teacher may wish to assign students to research interesting biographies online and fill out the brainstorming worksheet for biographies in formats other than traditional print, such as videos, websites, or Flash animations.

Discuss how you differentiated instruction for your learners during this lesson?Since students are free to choose their own biographies to explore, the lesson is inherently differentiated. Students with literacy issues can stick to less complex books with lots of illustrations and context clues while more proficient readers and writers should be encouraged to choose academically challenging biographies.

Lesson Plan Day 2

Grade Level: 8 Number of Students: 24 per period Instructional Location: Classroom

Length of Instruction: Whole 40-minute period

Standard(s) Addressed (Common Core)CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.8.2a Introduce a topic clearly, previewing what is to follow; organize ideas, concepts, and information into broader categories; include formatting (e.g., headings), graphics (e.g., charts, tables), and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.8.2b Develop the topic with relevant, well-chosen facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples.

Content Objectives Students will develop an outline for their biographies,

arranging the prominent events in a logical sequence. Students will assess their peers’ frameworks, providing

constructive feedback before beginning the project. Students will brainstorm illustrations to support their writing.

Language Objectives Students will be able to spell and define the word

“chronological”, explaining that it means to order events from the most distant past to the present.

Students will use “order” words like first, next, then, last…

Mentor Texts:Title: When Marian Sang Genre: Biography

Strategy Focus:Students identify the most important/exciting events that have taken place in their subject’s life and arrange these events in a logical sequence, creating an outline for their biography.

Materials: Mentor texts Notebooks, writing utensils

Vocabulary:Chronological – placed in order from least to most recent; ordering events based on the date and time when each occurred

Add any relevant information that is essential to understanding the context of your lesson:This lesson will emphasize to students the importance of developing a solid framework for writing before embarking on the actual writing process itself. It’s much easier to write a coherent biography once the whole thing is laid out.Prerequisite Skills:Students must understand what a biography is; what kind of book specifically they are making an outline for.Enduring Understandings (Big Idea):

Biographies are most commonly presented in chronological order from a person’s birth till his or her death or present whereabouts. There are numerous strategies to make biographies unique and interesting, such as the inclusion of illustrations of historical graphics. Biographies do not detail every event in a person’s life, but instead focus on the major, life-changing experiences that he or she endures.

Essential Questions:

In what order are the events in a biography usually chosen? How can one go against the chronological structure commonly found in biographies to emphasize certain events? Besides text, what features of a biography add to its depth, variety, and richness of information?

MINILESSON

Setting the Purpose:Before beginning the process of actually writing our biographies, it’s necessary to have a rough plan of what the finished product will look like. Planning our writing with an outline helps each section flow more fluidly into the next.

Connect to prior learning:Think of the biographies you listed on your Biography Brainstorming worksheet. Which of the features that you noticed will you be including in your own biography? Consider which life experiences the biographer chose to include. What will be your criterion for whether an event is relevant enough to be included in your biography? Do the events you chose link to one another?

Procedure:1. Instruct students to take out their Biography Brainstorming worksheets and a blank piece of lined notebook paper.2. Explain the purpose of this activity: To decide which events in our subject’s life are most relevant and deserve inclusion in our

biographies, and to plan the layout of our books so that we have a structure to work from.3. Using five events in When Marian Sang, engage the class in a discussion about why these events are important and why Pam Muñoz Ryan

chose to present the events in the order she does. This is a precursor to students making the same decisions with their own events.4. Let students spend time coming up with prominent events in their subjects’ lives and deciding upon an appropriate order for them. (This

list of events will become more specific and varied after students have an opportunity to interview their subjects or conduct more research on his or her life if deceased.) Observe students’ selections and offer assistance and suggestions if asked. For students who finish first, have them use the time to consider the illustrations, photographs, and other artwork that will be included in their biographies.

5. Once each student has had adequate time to develop a rough outline, have each share with a peer. Allow time for classmates to make suggestions for improvement or ask for clarification when needed. Repeat this exercise with different pairings in order for students to get a second opinion.

6. Have students brainstorm interview questions from their outlines. What information will they have to obtain in order to elaborate on certain facets of the biography? Who or what can this information be obtained from?

7. Shortly before class ends, inform students that they will have one week to gather information for their biographies and complete detailed outlines because they will begin writing rough drafts during the following week. Distribute checklist for outlines.

Assessment(s):Formative: Students will evaluate their peers’ biography plans to decide whether the outline presents a coherent flow of relevant events.Summative: Biography outline checklist used to grade students’ finished plans. (see below)

How might you extend this lesson?Students will be asked to extend this lesson via their acquisition of information and completion of their outlines outside of class.

Discuss how you differentiated instruction for your learners during this lesson?Students who have learning disabilities or literacy issues will receive modified instructions for this assignment on an individual basis. Possible modifications include shortened length of the finished biography, less “events” required to be included, and suggestions for interview questions will be provided. ESL students may conduct their interviews in whichever language is most convenient for both them and their subjects.

Lesson Plan Day 3

Grade Level: 8 Number of Students: 24 per period Instructional Location: Classroom

Length of Instruction: Several 40-minute periods over the course of a week, to ensure that all students have conferenced with the teacher

Standard(s) Addressed (Common Core)CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.8.2a Introduce a topic clearly, previewing what is to follow; organize ideas, concepts, and information into broader categories; include formatting (e.g., headings), graphics (e.g., charts, tables), and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.8.2b Develop the topic with relevant, well-chosen facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples.

Content Objectives Students will generate a rough draft of their biography to be

reviewed by peers and the teacher. Students will make improvements to their biographies based

on feedback from others.

Language Objectives Students will be able to spell and define the word “anecdote”,

explaining that it is a short, interesting personal account of an event or incident.

Students will analyze and correct their peers’ grammar/spellingMentor Texts:Title: When Marian Sang Genre: Biography(Though not directly utilized in this lesson.)

Strategy Focus:Students submit a first draft of their biographies and make improvements based on peer and teacher suggestions/reviews.

Materials: Students’ biography rough drafts (two printed copies) Various colored pens/pencils for marking & comments

Vocabulary:Anecdote – placed in order from least to most recent; ordering events based on the date and time when each occurred

Add any relevant information that is essential to understanding the context of your lesson:This lesson is spread out over the course of a week because it is necessary for each student to conference with the teacher and receive appropriate feedback on his or her writing so that he or she may make the necessary changes before submitting the final draft.Prerequisite Skills:Students must have outlined their biography, collected information from a firsthand source or several sources, and used these resources to write a rough draft of their biography.Enduring Understandings (Big Idea):

Writing is a continuous process that usually involves multiple phases of editing and revision to ensure a quality finished product. Biographies do not detail every event in a person’s life, but instead focus on the major, life-changing experiences that he or she endures. Each reader has his or her own opinions of what is read, and collectively these can be used to improve a piece of writing for all readers.

Essential Questions: Does each student’s rough draft align with his or her outline successfully? Is the draft well-written with events presented in a logical, cohesive manner? Besides text, what features of a biography add to its depth, variety, and richness of information?

MINILESSON

Setting the Purpose:Writing is a continuous process that includes various stages of drafting, editing, and revision, all of which aid the writer in developing thorough work. Peers, as well as teachers, are excellent resources for providing constructive feedback from which we can make improvements.

Connect to prior learning:Think of a time when you’ve had a friend, parent, or teacher examine a piece of writing or other assignment for you. Did he or she catch any mistakes that you didn’t notice yourself? It’s always nice to have an extra set of eyes to ensure that writing of the best quality is submitted.

Procedure:1. The class will have spent a week and a half collecting information from firsthand sources and writing a first draft of their biographies.

These should be finished (or very close to it) at the onset of this lesson so that both the teacher and students’ peers may provide valuable feedback on the project before final submission.

2. Have the students sit in rows or at tables in groups of five or six. Students need to have two printed copies of their first draft for this lesson, one of which is submitted to the instructor while the other is passed around a group of peers and reviewed/commented on.

3. Remind students to be respectful and constructive with their comments on each other’s writing. The peer reviewed copies of each draft will be submitted to the teacher for inspection before being returned to the student. This is to ensure that each member of the class was participating by providing feedback and that the feedback was helpful and appropriate.

4. While students are reviewing each other’s work, individual students are pulled out from their various groups one at a time to conference with the teacher and discuss potential changes from the draft to the submitted copy.

5. After receiving feedback from all sources and completing the necessary reviews of peers’ work, students may begin revisions and the production of their final drafts.

Assessment(s):Formative: Upon inspecting the peer-reviewed copies of each biography, how much feedback was provided from each student and to what extent was this feedback helpful to the writer? Was there a legitimate effort made to find areas to improve in each other’s writing?Self-assessment: Students will fill out an official rubric form as though he or she were grading a “finished copy” as it now reads.Formative: The teacher will present a filled-out assessment rubric of the student’s current piece of writing long with suggestions of how to improve the biography and boost the scores of areas that are lacking. The latter comments will be made on the conferencing form.

How might you extend this lesson?Suggest to students that they arrange to have an intermediate draft of their biography reviewed again by peers who made particularly insightful comments or by the teacher. It is never a bad idea to receive feedback while editing and revising a piece of writing.

Discuss how you differentiated instruction for your learners during this lesson?If there is a significant disparity between the reading and writing levels of students within the class, form groups that contain a wide spectrum of proficiencies. This will provide struggling students with models of good writing from peers and it will allowed the more skilled writers within a class to offer great feedback to students who need help the most.

Lesson Plan Day 4

Grade Level: 8 Number of Students: 24 per period Instructional Location: Classroom

Length of Instruction: Whole 40-minute period

Standard(s) Addressed (Common Core)CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.8.2a Introduce a topic clearly, previewing what is to follow; organize ideas, concepts, and information into broader categories; include formatting (e.g., headings), graphics (e.g., charts, tables), and multimedia when useful to aiding comprehension.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.8.2b Develop the topic with relevant, well-chosen facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other information and examples.

Content Objectives Students will verbally summarize their biography to peers,

mentioning key information and highlights Students will reassess the “final draft” submission of their

biographies, noting the most significant changes made

Language Objectives Students will provide a concise description of their biography to

classmates, spending approximately one minute providing an overview and mentioning highlights/interesting parts.

Mentor Texts:No mentor texts are needed in this phase as students have each completed their own biographies.

Strategy Focus:Students have an opportunity to share their work with peers and undergo one final self-examination of their own project.

Materials: Each student’s biography (one printed copy) Biography Self-Assessment Rubric

Vocabulary:Synopsis – A brief summary of (in this case) a piece of literature

Add any relevant information that is essential to understanding the context of your lesson:The intention of this lesson is for students to take pride in their work and produce a biography that they are eager to share with peers and refer back to as an exemplary piece of their own writing. Students are also provided a final chance to reflect on their process of completing the project. Also, students will have been informed that they will be providing brief summaries of their projects ahead of time, therefore it is safe to assume that they will have a brief speech prepared, possibly with written notes to guide their presentation.Prerequisite Skills:Students must not have an intense fear of speaking in front of their peers and should be able to decide which information is worthy of sharing.Enduring Understandings (Big Idea):

Writing is a continuous process that usually involves multiple phases of editing and revision to ensure a quality finished product. Biographies do not detail every event in a person’s life, but instead focus on the major, life-changing experiences that he or she endures. Writers should take pride in their work and feel compelled to share it with others.

Essential Questions: Have significant improvements been made since the initial draft? (Was feedback taken seriously and considered when revising?) Is the biography well-written with events presented in a logical, cohesive manner? Can students effectively present their work in an appealing manner that encourages the audience to want to read each other’s biographies?

MINILESSON

Setting the Purpose:In addition to writing well, authors should possess the ability to advertise their work and explain it to others. If one truly takes pride in what he or she has written, this should come naturally as opposed to being a “forced” process.

Connect to prior learning:While proofreading and commenting on your peers’ biographies, which parts stood out to you? Does your biography contain similar points of interest? Identify the parts of your own work that you believe the class will find most interesting and present these.

Procedure:1. The teacher will have pre-determined a random order in which students will present their biographies. The spontaneity factor will ensure

that students are engaged in their peers’ presentations because of the prospect of having to present next.2. Each student will present his or her biography project to the class to the best of his or her abilities. This activity will not be graded on a

spectrum, but simply whether or not students successfully presented their work.3. At the conclusion of each presentation, the presenter will choose two questions to field from his or her peers about the project.4. Once everyone has had an opportunity to present their work, students will spend time conducting a final evaluation of their work with

special attention to the entire writing process. They will be focusing on how they utilized feedback to make improvements.5. Upon completing their self-analysis sheets, students are free to share their biographies with peers who have also finished.

Assessment(s):Formative: Are students able to successfully present their projects to the class?Self-analysis: How has the biography improved from the first draft to the final submission? Which feedback was utilized/most valuable?Summative: Teacher grades each biography with the same rubric presented to students while writing their first drafts.

How might you extend this lesson?Students may choose to leave their biographies on display to be read by peers or even “checked out” as in a library situation. This will allow students to read their classmates’ work whom they found particularly interesting during the presentations.

Discuss how you differentiated instruction for your learners during this lesson?Because this project focuses on writing and not public speaking, there will not be an emphasis on the charisma used to present one’s biography. Furthermore, students who are particularly shy or lack English-speaking skills may opt to present for a shorter period of time.

Name______________________________ Date____________ Period____

Biography Brainstorming

Book One

Title: _______________________________ Subject: _________________________

Author: __________________________ Illustrator: ______________________________

What do you think makes this biography particularly interesting or unique?

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

If you had to change any elements of this biography, which would they be and why?

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

Book Two

Title: _______________________________ Subject: _________________________

Author: __________________________ Illustrator: ______________________________

What do you think makes this biography particularly interesting or unique?

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

If you had to change any elements of this biography, which would they be and why?

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

Name ______________________________________ Date ________________ __ Period # _____

Biography Outline & Research Checklist (4 points)

Format & Organization

Uses logical outline format, using correct headings and lettering/numbering to represent ideas _____ / 1

Clear organization: logical pattern of main points (headings) and supporting details _____ / 1

Content

Pertinent, related, factual events chosen _____ / 1

Evidence of research present and represented in outline _____/1

TOTAL SCORE: _____/4

Interviewee (Print Name): __________________________________ Signature x________________________________ Date: _____________

Name ____________________________ Date ___________ Period # ____

Rough Draft Conference Form

Biography title & subject:

_____________________________________________________________

The reason I chose this subject is because…

_____________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

My goal/purpose in writing this biography is…

_____________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

The aspects of my biography that I am most proud of so far are…

_____________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

The aspects of my work that I believe still need the most attention are…

_____________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________

Teachers’ Comments:________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Biography Evaluation Rubric (24 points)(Adapted from http://teacherweb.com/CO/FrontierCharterAcademy/FifthSixth/biographyrubric.pdf)

Biography Rubric

Points scored

Ideas & ContentLively, interesting, & memorable writing keeps the reader's attention.Ideas are supported by details

OrganizationIntroduction is inviting.Ideas & important details & paragraphs fit where placed. Transitions used effectively between ideas & paragraphsEnding is effective

VoiceThe reader feels the author's emotions. Writing sounds real & has personality

Word ChoiceWriter uses appropriate descriptive vocabulary

Sentence FluencyThe writing flows. Writer uses different beginnings & lengths for sentences

ConventionsThe writer shows a clear understanding of capitalization, punctuation, spelling & grammar

4 pointsExceeds the

standard

•Writer knows topic really well• Early Life, Significant Events, Contributions, Char. Traits & Conclusion all included.•Many interesting details

•Carefully organized with varied transitions•Lead grabs reader's attention•Conclusion works well•Details & paragraphs are in right order

•Writer's personality comes through in a special way•Writer's voice is lively & confident

•Has a variety of strong words•Words create vivid pictures in reader's mind

•Has creative sentences of different kinds & lengths•Sentences flow, making the writing enjoyable to read

•Has FEW or NO errors in capitalization, punctuation, spelling & grammar•Writing is easy to read

3 pointsMeets thestandard

• Early Life, Significant Events, Contributions, Char. Traits & Conclusion all included.•Writer knows the topic•Most details fit & are interesting

•Has some transitions•Most parts of paper fit together.•Most details & paragraphs are in right order

• Most of the time the writer's voice & personality show up in the writing.

•Writing has some strong words•Some words create pictures in the reader's mind

•Sentences are different lengths•Sentences have varied beginnings•Sentences fit together well

•Has FEW errors in capitalization, punctuation, spelling & grammar•Sounds correct when read aloud

2 pointsIn Process

•Missing ONE of the following: Early Life, Significant Events, Contributions, Char. Traits & Conclusion•Writer doesn’t know enough about the topic•Needs more details

•Few transitions used•Too many details are out of order

•Sometimes the writer's voice comes through•Writing does not draw the reader in

•Too many dull, ordinary words•Some words just don't fit

•Sentences are too short or too long•Same beginnings used over and over•Reader is confused & has to re-read for meaning

•Too many errors in capitalization, punctuation, spelling & grammar make the writing difficult to read•Editing needed

0 pointsIncomplete or

Missing

•Missing multiple sections, biography is incomplete

•There is no logical flow to the biography

•Writing is very bland or plagiarized

•Several incomprehensible passages exist

•There is no logical order to the sentences in each section

•Grammar conventions completely ignored

TOTAL SCORE: _____ / 24 points Evaluated by _________________________ Date _____________

Name ___________________________ Date ____________ Period # ____

Final Project Self-Analysis & Reflection

Score yourself on the following statements: (Be honest, this section will not influence your grade)

I completed my biography in a timely fashion 3 2 1 0

I planned thoroughly before beginning each draft/revision 3 2 1 0

I effectively utilized feedback from my peers 3 2 1 0

This project helped me understand the process of writing 3 2 1 0

Think back to our day in the library, our day spent developing an outline, your time spent interviewing, our time spent offering feedback in class, your time spent discussing your first draft with the teacher, and your time spent making changes before your final draft.

Which of these lessons and activities did you find most beneficial to your project? Why?

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Which of these lessons and activities did you feel were of the least value to you personally?

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If you were teaching a class how to write biographies, what would you have done differently?

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Critical Reflection

While planning this unit, my primary consideration above all else was whether or not students

have engaged in this kind of writing assignment before where they go through each step of the process

one-by-one in class. I have had some teachers in the past who embrace the notion of developing an

outline, then drafting, then editing and revising, and these teachers will offer feedback throughout the

process. In fact, some of these instructors seemed more concerned with the process than the product.

On the other hand, I have had just as many teachers who simply assigned a writing task and expected

perfection from the first draft. They either placed no value on the writing process or simply expected

us students to implement it on our own. The trend I have noticed is that the older students get, the less

time teachers spend on the actual process of writing. That is why for this eighth grade lesson I would

focus on completing this project at a very comfortable pace with plenty of checkpoints along the way

where students will evaluate their own progress and have it evaluated by others to suggest methods of

improvement.

Of all the projects that I completed in middle school, one of my favorites was writing a

biography on someone who I knew personally. Our only criteria for selecting a subject to write about

were that he or she was older than us and obviously interesting enough to produce a good story. As a

descendent of Cuban refugees, I chose to interview my Grandfather and document some of his

incredible stories about escaping the Communist regime of Fidel Castro that had overthrown the Cuban

government during the late fifties. It is a project that I still hold very near and dear, and I would love

for my students to have the same kind of experience with this biography assignment. Despite the

modern push for students strictly gaining content knowledge and meeting Common Core standards, I

believe that teachers still need to consider the intangible benefits that students receive through projects

of this nature. After all, aren’t students going to ultimately learn more and take more pride in their

learning if it holds personal significance? While I am concerned with students gaining practice with

the writing process and producing academically impressive work, I am equally interested in students

really creating something worth remembering. In order for students to develop an appreciation for

writing, teachers need to prove its benefits. This project has the capability to educate students on the

technical aspects of writing while also offering an opportunity to produce something that holds

personal significance.

What I found most challenging about the planning process was deciding which four lessons to

specifically elaborate upon. Ideally this project would be a continuous, ongoing activity as opposed to

a sporadic series of isolated lessons, but the format of this writing unit made it challenging to illustrate

the sequence I had in mind. Nevertheless, I feel like I capitalized on the key points that I would like to

emphasize to students and provided several opportunities over the course of these lessons for planning,

collaboration, peer review, conferencing with the teacher, and self-evaluating. The “Writing Unit

Guidelines” document was very helpful in guiding me through the process of this unit’s development.

I thought it provided me with as much information as I needed without restricting my creativity or

demanding anything that I did not feel was a valuable addition to the project. I can absolutely envision

myself implementing this lesson in a future classroom should I end up in a middle school language arts

or social studies position. There would definitely need to be more detail added and more tailoring to

my specific classes, but I feel like I have developed a very reasonable outline to realistically teach this

unit. Reflecting on the process of its development has helped me realize the value in continuity and

consistency between lessons. With writing units especially, it is important to scaffold the activities in a

sequence so that students may put their new skills to practice and gain firsthand experience with them.

I am disappointed that my placement this semester did not afford me the opportunity to actually teach

this unit because I think it would have been very informative and fun for both the students and me.

Student Assessment

Begin here…

1. Student Assessment: Create different assessment measures to include as part of your unit (include in your Appendix).

Include the following:

Informal assessment Assessment conference--form(s) (include goal, teaching points, specific prompts,

teacher comments, etc.) 2 different (original) rubrics Self assessment-prepare and consider how students will self-assess

Write a 3-4 page descriptive paper detailing:

How the assessment are appropriate and tied to the unit standards, objectives, and instruction

How criteria were selected How the assessment can be used to evaluate students’ learning both through a

formative and summative lens