Biographies

Aim:
IWBAT compose a biography of a community leader using information gathered in a personal interview.

 

Tasks:
1. Do Now: Identifying Parts of Speech (a seventh grade standard)

• Activity 1: click here
• Activity 2: click here
• Activity 3: click here

2. BrainPop: Biographies

• Answer questions to the quiz on Socrative

3. Writing Thesis Statement to Describe My Community Leader: click here

• The thesis statement is the main point (or argument) of your biography.
• To create a thesis statement for your biography:
• look for patterns in the person's life
• focus only on the most important events
• what positive influence did your leader have on the community?
• how would the world be different if your leader had never been born?
• what adjectives describe him/her best?
• how did his/her childhood shape the rest of his/her life?

4. Preview the Format of Your Biography:

• Introduction: Introduce who your community leader is and basic information about him/her. You could begin with an interesting story, a quote from your interview, or a description of the person in his/her usual setting.
• Background: Describe what events from the past (childhood, adolescence, early adulthood, or all of these) that influenced your community leader and how things from his/her background helped shape who he/she is today.
• Today: Describe what your selected person currently does. You could describe his/her job, hobbies, and family. Focus on what is most significant--probably what he/she does that makes him/her a positive leader in the community.
• Influence: Describe why your leader chooses to do what he/she does and how he/she influences or helps other people in the community. You could also explain how the community (or world) would be without this person, and/or what he/she will do in the future.
• Conclusion: Summarize the most important points from your biography. Describe what your community leader's legacy will be (what he/she will be known for).

5. Read Mr. T's Exemplar Biography of Teresa Goines (from Old Skool Cafe): click here

6. Draft Your Biography on Google Drive

• Title your document "The Biography of FirstName LastName by YourFirstName YourLastName"
• Mr. T's example: The Biography of Teresa Goines by Bryan Twarek
• If it is difficult for you to access the Internet at home, you may hand write your biography on lined paper.
• Remember, your biography should be five paragraphs in length.

Finished early? Learn more about Teresa Goines & Old Skool Cafe:

• Old Skool Cafe website: click here
• CNN Heroes article & video: click here
• other newspaper articles:
• Edible San Francisco: click here
• The Bay Citizen: click here
• Teresa receives FBI community leadership award: click here
• Teresa speaks to her college about her journey to create Old Skool: click here
• other videos: click here and click here

Homework: Finish Biography (due tomorrow)