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= = =Biographies and Memoirs=

**General Overview:** The following Language Arts lesson plans focus primarily on grades 2 and 4, but may also be adaptable for students in grades 1 and 5 depending on their skill levels. The assignments have elements that have been modified from Thinkfinity and also model suggestions from Annette Lamb’s “Developing Learning Environments: Planning Effective Lessons”. Each week-long unit will focus on interviewing and other activities to complete a short biography of a family member or acquaintance. The students will be using a guided level of inquiry, where they will have flexibility in their resources and activities and will create a final product such as a presentation, a poster, or a slide show.


 * Inquiry Skill:** Both 2nd and 4th grade units will focus primarily on information literacy. Callison describes information literacy as “a set of skills through which the student demonstrates the ability to recognize when information is needed and to take steps that lead to location and selection of information that can be used effectively to address the need” (Callison 15). After both of the different five-day units, students should be able to:
 * Access information efficiently and effectively.
 * Evaluate information critically and competently.
 * Use information accurately and creatively.

**Standards for learning** These two units will focus on the following standards:

Standard 1: Inquire, think critically, and gain knowledge.**
 * From Standards for the 21st-Century Learner


 * 1.1.1 Follow an inquiry-based process in seeking knowledge in curricular subjects, and make the real-world connection for using this process in own life.
 * 1.1.2 Use prior and background knowledge as context for new learning.
 * 1.1.3 Develop and refine a range of questions to frame the search for new understanding.
 * 1.1.4 Find, evaluate, and select appropriate sources to answer questions.

=Memoir or Biography - Grade 2=

Family Members ** Content area: English/Language Arts: Grade 2 ** Students discuss how writers go though different stages before they finish a piece of writing. They draw pictures of the different stages (e.g., thinking of ideas, reading, writing, revising). They summarize ideas on a section or paragraph and explain how all of the ideas within it go together. Students gather information from a variety of sources, such as books, technology, and multimedia, to write a brief report or create an informational poster on a topic of interest (animals, holidays in different countries, sports) that has main ideas and supporting details that address a school audience. Students become accustomed to speaking in class by having specific question-and-answer periods after reading stories or texts and respond to questions appropriately. They trace cause and effect in narratives. They give reports with multimedia props on a favorite topic, using descriptive vocabulary and telling what happens in proper sequence. They recite poems and sing songs that fit a particular school audience.
 * Core Standard 4: Writing—Informational, research, and persuasive text
 * Core Standard 7: Listening and Speaking


 * Student Audience:** The student audience for this lesson is best suited for a small class size of about 10 to 15 students so the teacher and media specialist can spend quality time with each student during this week long unit. The class should ideally be located in a small school, possibly a private academy, where the students have already had experience with basic spelling and display proficiency for the written word. This unit would be best suited for a gifted 2nd grade class. The biography/memoir project should be used at the end of the year in order to evaluate students’ writing, spelling, and presentation skills. Students will be given the chance to learn more about members of their family and their own family history while practicing information literacy skills and will be given the chance to use these skills and information creatively.

** Lesson Plan **
 * Biography of a Family Member **

Ages 6-7 2nd Grade Characteristics: Students are nearing the end of their 2nd grade year of school. At this point they can read and recognize small words. The individual students all come from an upper middle class neighborhood and have all shown to be exceptional in reading, writing, and math skills. Students have had experience with keyboards and computers and can navigate simple websites. This lesson will help students experience family history while further exploring different technologies and other materials available to them. They will get a chance to practice reading and writing and also will get the chance to demonstrate interviewing and communication skills. Implications: The text for written assignments must be concise and easy to read. Computer programs should be simple with little to no “bells or whistles” to distract students. Example biographies should be reading level appropriate. Standard 1: Inquire, think critically, and gain knowledge— Following this AASL standard, students who participate in this unit should, after its completion, be able to follow an inquiry-based process when partaking in future projects. This unit will focus primarily on writing, reading, revising, and speaking skills. After this unit, students should be able to: o Demonstrate writing and interviewing skills o Work together in groups to discuss biography writing o Display knowledge of working technologies o Develop an individual project in order to share their findings
 * Learners **
 * Expected Outcomes and Purpose **

This unit will incorporate the English/Language Arts: Grade 2 content area standard from Indiana Standards & Resources. It will focus primarily on core standards 4 (writing informational, research, and persuasive texts) and 7 (listening and speaking). Core Standard 4: Writing—Informational, research, and persuasive text. Teacher resources: Please refer to the following websites for sample biography lessons and resources: [] [] [] [] The first part of this unit will be taught in the school library. You will need to plan ahead to collaborate with your School Media Specialist today in order to introduce students to biography and biography writing. You will need a selection of biographies for each group of students, worksheets for each individual student, and computers with Internet access for each student to work with. Please refer to the following list of books: []
 * Lesson Technologies, Resources, and Materials **
 * Biography of Family Member **
 * Day 1: Introduction to biographies **

Student resources: Given multiple examples of biographies from the Rookie Biography Series (2 to 3 books per group), students will be broken up into groups of three or four to discuss what elements make up a biography. These books were chosen due to their short text, lower level vocabulary, and multiple photographs. Afterwards, using the provided worksheet, the students will begin to document what they think is important to know about a person’s life.

Your Name_

Who is the book about?
 * Title of book 1:**

Important fact or event #1

Important fact or event #2

Important fact or event #3

Important fact or event #4

Who is the book about?
 * Title of book 2:**

Important fact or event #1

Important fact or event #2

Important fact or event #3

Important fact or event #4

Who is the book about?
 * Title of book 3:**

Important fact or event #1

Important fact or event #2

Important fact or event #3

Important fact or event #4 Once important facts are decided upon, please refer to the online timeline resource provided by Read-Write-Think: [] Students will then enter their information into the timeline for each book in order to begin to think about what questions they would ask during their interviews. Once timelines are completed, please print each student’s for future reference. Teacher resources: Today you will be working in the classroom with the class as a whole. Bring in photographs of family members as well as any “realia” (real things) to talk to the students about. Examples can be jewelry, favorite books, a family recipe, etc., that you have borrowed or have obtained from a family member. This will help students to start thinking about whom they would like to interview and what kind of project they might want to present. Introduce ideas, such as a slideshow, a family album, a poster, or a “show and tell”, in order to allow students to think creatively about their upcoming final projects. Alert the class that each student will be responsible for a short biography, hand written or typed, about their chosen family member along with any other special product they would enjoy making. Find out from each student present if they know which member of their family they would like to focus on for this unit. Make a note of each student’s selection, along with relationship to that student.
 * Day 2: Decide on family member to interview/present information about/brainstorm project ideas. **

Student resources: Today’s lesson will focus on a “hands on” approach to learning. Allow students to look at the examples you have provided for the “show and tell” example of family history. Students will need to decide on a family member today. Teacher resources: You will need the sample interview question worksheet from Read-Write-Think provided for today’s lesson. Today you will want to introduce the idea of “oral biographies” to the students. Please read //How to Tape Instant Oral Biographies// by William Zimmerman prior to this lesson. Discuss ways in which oral biographies differ from written biographies. Student resources: Students will need pencils and the interview question worksheet today. Collect worksheets at the end of class. This lesson will assist students in reaching the goal set forth by the Indiana Core Standard 7: Listening and Speaking. You will want to make sure that students are on the right track with their interviews at this point. Find out if any students need more time, and discuss, as a group, if the students had any problems. You will want to set up a one-on-one session with each student today to discuss his or her progress. Teacher resources: Please use the provided checklist for grading. Students will be asked to present their information on their interviewed family member today. Lesson length: The lesson will take five, 30-minute class sessions. Lesson setting: A table display containing objects will be used in a demonstration on the 2nd through 4th day. Technology setup: Students will be using computers on day 1 and days 3 and 4 if needed.
 * Day 3: Interview questions/approaches. **
 * Day 4:**
 * Day 5: Presenting biographies.**
 * Learning Environment **

A student in the class interviews her grandmother, who was originally from Russia. For her presentation, the student includes two photographs, one of her grandmother's nesting dolls and one of a copy of a painting by Ivan Kulikov, and a Russian coin to share with her class.
 * Sample Presentation: **

= = =Memoir or Biography - Grade 4=

Family Member or Acquaintance

**Content area: English/Language Arts: Grade 4** Students define and give examples of different organizational patterns and practice choosing different structures for different purposes. They respond to questions about the informational texts they have read and return to the text to find details that support their answers. They skim titles and tables of contents before reading to discover information about the main topic and supporting details of a text. They create graphics, such as time-lines, pie charts, or tables, to visually show how information is organized. They examine brochure layouts, such as one from a public library or museum or park, and make inferences about what they might learn. They identify the structures of information in short magazine articles, newspapers, and instructional guides. They explain how the informational texts identify problems and give solutions. They compare and contrast information, compare the organization of data, and support their conclusions with words and facts from the text. Students identify main ideas and important details regularly when reading informational text. Students use an idea web or chart to brainstorm and remember ideas for writing. They write questions or thoughts, as those questions arise, in journals. They think of different audiences that might read a piece of writing (e.g., friends, teachers, and other students) and describe what one might say and how one might talk to each. They use a variety of sources, such as books, technology, and multimedia. They group facts into categories by outlining sections of text and finding a topic sentence within a paragraph. Students read their writing aloud to themselves or to others and revise their writing to communicate ideas clearly. Students begin to rephrase statements, and they periodically summarize what is said in class. They participate frequently in question-and-answer sessions on each subject taught and begin to appropriately ask questions, answer questions, and listen to answers. Students become comfortable speaking in front of the class by participating in a variety of activities, such as choral reading, recitations or performances of reader's theatre versions of favorite pieces, or brief informational presentations using multimedia support. Students include thoughts resulting from prior knowledge when participating in think-aloud strategies.
 * Core standard 2: Informational text--Structure, comprehension, and analysis
 * Core Standard 4: Writing—Informational, research, and persuasive text
 * Core Standard 7: Listening and Speaking

**Student Audience:** The student audience for this lesson is a class size of about 20 students. The class should ideally be located in a small school, possibly a private academy, where the students have already had experience with research papers. The biography/memoir project should be used at the end of the year in order to evaluate students’ writing, spelling, and presentation skills. Students will be given the chance to learn more about members of their family or community members while practicing information literacy skills and will be given the chance to use these skills and information creatively through technologies such as PowerPoint presentations, sound recordings, or video.

**Lesson Overview:** Students will learn about interviewing individuals through questions, photographs, artifacts, and other personal products. Through the practice of oral histories and visual information, the students will come to understand the importance of history in their families and/or communities. For this particular lesson, we will be focusing on visual literacy. According to Callison, visual literacy is "the ability to understand and use images, including the ability to think, learn, and express oneself in terms of images; the ability to interpret and communicate with respect to visual symbols in non-print media, as visual literacy in viewing television, art, and nature" (Callison 423). In this case, we will be using PowerPoint presentations.


 * Collaboration:** Working with the school’s media specialist, teachers using this unit will encourage students to adapt research ideas that go beyond report writing. Using technologies such as PowerPoint, YouTube, and other computer-based resources, students will be asked to interview, research, and report on the life of one family member or acquaintance from their hometown.


 * Lesson Comparison:** While both lessons focus on writing, research, and interviewing skills, this particular lesson will focus primarily on use of technology to present ideas. While the first grade class interviewed and reported on a family member, with or without the use of drawings or other realia, the fourth grade class will be expected to go beyond a short written report with the use of visual aids. This lesson will enable students to display a growing understanding of media literacy. The biography lesson for 2nd grade relied mostly on verbal directions from the instructor. For the 4th grade lesson, there will be more concrete, written directions and students will be given more independent study time in order to complete their assignments. We will be focusing on Indiana Core Standard 2: Informational text (Structure, comprehension, and analysis). For this particular assignment, students will be asked to pick a time period in the history of their current hometown and to choose a family or community member who lived during that time period. They will then research on both the place and person and create a final presentation using PowerPoint or, with instructors permission, a different media technology source.

=**Lesson Plan** =


 =**Biography of a Family Member or Acquaintance** = = = 


Ages 8-11 4th Grade Characteristics: Students are in a gifted 4th grade class and have already displayed proficient reading, writing, and math skills. Students have had at least two years of experience with computer software, such as Microsoft Word, and have a keen grasp on navigation on the Internet. The individual students all come from an upper middle class neighborhood. This lesson will help students experience community history while further exploring research, interviewing, and technology skills. Implications: The text for written assignments should be concise. Computer programs should appropriate to the lesson.


**Standard 1:** Inquire, think critically, and gain knowledge— Following this AASL standard, students who participate in this unit should, after its completion, be able to follow an inquiry-based process when partaking in future projects. This unit will focus primarily on writing, reading, revising, and technology skills. After this unit, students should be able to: o Demonstrate writing and interviewing skills o Display knowledge of working technologies o Create story maps o Develop an individual project in order to share their findings using technologies such as PowerPoint, YouTube, or other Internet based technologies. We will be focusing primarily on PowerPoint in order to further explore media literacy.

This unit will incorporate the English/Language Arts: Grade 4 content area standard from Indiana Standards & Resources. It will focus primarily on core standard 2 (Informational text: Structure, compression, and analysis) focusing primarily on creating graphics (story maps and PowerPoint presentations) to visually show how information is organized.

The student will demonstrate knowledge of basic PowerPoint skills. The student will create a story map to illustrate their final project.
 * Objectives:** The student will describe characteristics and provide examples of a community member and of their hometown during a certain point in history.


**Books** Taylor, Maureen Alice. __Through the Eyes of Your Ancestors__. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1999.

Hilton, Suzanne. __Who Do You Think You Are?: Digging for Your Family Roots__. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1976.

Perl, Lila. __The Great Ancestor Hunt: The Fun of Finding Out Who You Are__. New York: Clarion Books, 1989.

Wolfman, Ira, and Michael Klein. __Do People Grow on Family Trees?: Genealogy for Kids & Other Beginners : the Official Ellis Island Handbook__. New York: Workman Pub, 1991.

Casper, Gordon, and Carolyn Casper. __The Genealogist's Video Research Guide. Part One, Home Sources, FamilySearch, Published Histories, Record Keeping__. Video Knowledge, 1994.
 * Visual materials**

Depue, Anne, and Doug Keith. __Climb Your Family Tree: A Genealogy Detective's Kit__. New York, NY: Hyperion Paperbacks for Children, 1996.

__Genealogy Today - Junior Edition Searchable Surname Queries, Genealogy News, Articles, Research Tips and More__. New Providence, N.J.: Software wonders of NJ, 2000. .
 * Internet Resources and Electronic Databases**

Public Broadcasting Service (U.S.), and WGBH (Television station : Boston, Mass.). __WayBack. Family Ties__. [Boston, Mass.]: WGBH Educational Foundation, 1998. .

__Researching Your Family Tree__. Fort Lauderdale, FL: Debbie Duay, 2004. <http://www.learnwebskills.com/family/intro.html>.

Microsoft Office 2007 PowerPoint

Paper, color pencils, and pens needed for story maps. Students will be responsible for their own pencils and paper for research. Microsoft Word may be used to take notes during research.
 * Student Supplies**

45 Minutes for overview The media center, with prior approval of School Media Specialist, will be used over a two-week period for independent study and research. Family/community member interviews must be done on student’s own time.
 * Learning Environment:**
 * Lesson Length**

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;">
<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> 1. Over the next few days, find the time to interview one family member or acquaintance that has lived in your hometown most of their life. Focus on one important life fact or major event that took place during their lives.

2. Research on your interviewee’s historical fact or event. Some possible questions to think about are: a. How did this event affect the community? b. How did this event affect my family? c. Did this event have any major historical significance? d. How is my hometown different because of this person and/or event?

3. Compile and create a chart of your most important findings. Charts should be organized around the following categories: a. **Who** is the person you are researching? b. **What** historical event or fact did they talk about? c. **When** did this event take place during this person’s life? d. **Where** is your interviewee from? e. **Why** is this event and/or fact important? f. **How** did this person or event personally impact your community or your family?

4. Create a story map to illustrate your interviewee’s history. Be sure to include any and all important information from your interview.

5. You may begin working on your PowerPoint presentation at this point. Please make sure to include the following in your presentation: a. The PowerPoint must consist of a minimum of 10 slides. b. The PowerPoint must have an opening slide that includes the name of the person you interviewed, the important fact or historical event, and your name. c. The PowerPoint must include a time line of your interviewee’s life up to but not limited to the event or historical fact. d. The PowerPoint must have at least one graphic per slide (photographs, charts, clip art, etc.) e. The PowerPoint must be free of spelling and grammatical errors. f. The PowerPoint must have an ending slide that includes a summary of the interviewee’s impact on your community or personal life.

6. Upon completion, you will have an opportunity to orally present your PowerPoint presentation to the class.

The lesson will end after each student has presented his or her presentation. Please refer to the following rubric for grading the interview portion of this assignment.
 * Closure/Transition:**
 * Connection to Outcomes:**
 * Students Work:** We will take two or three days to allow each student to present his or her product. Collect student presentations on a storage device, such as a thumb drive or disc.
 * Teacher Records:** A checklist will be used to evaluate the projects. Please refer to #5 in the students’ assignment sheet for criteria.

Sample Story Map a student can use for this project: