Mr. Brumfield Lawnton Elementary Biography…Biography Mr. Brumfield Lawnton Elementary

What is a Biography? Just what is a biography? The story of someone's life? A tale of accomplishment? A tale of woe? Or is it a boring list of facts that nobody cares about? A good biography brings the person to life . . . makes us care about what she or he did with time and opportunity. Who wants to read another boring biography? Who wants to write one? Certainly not you!

Simply Speaking… A biography is a written record of another person’s life. Usually biographies are written about people who are famous or who have accomplished something important.

How can I write a Biography? Just follow these steps and you will be finished in no time!

Some Guidelines (or Rules) Step One There are billions of interesting people in the world. You need to select one person to research. Some Guidelines (or Rules) Choose a famous American Your subject should be a role model Find somebody who contributed to American history, not sports or entertainment.

Step Two Internet Resources Find a resource that contains information about your subject. You can use the library and the internet to help you. Here are a few helpful websites. Internet Resources http://www.ala.org/ala/alsc/greatwebsites/greatwebsitesbiographies.htm http://www.biography.com/ http://www.infoplease.com/people.html http://www.imahero.com/education.html (Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Edison, Ben Franklin, Florence Nightingale, Sacagawea, & Ulysses Grant)

Step Three Plan your introduction. You will want an interesting beginning to your biography, so you should think of an attention-grabbing hook. You might ask a question or give a surprising fact about your subject. Some Ideas Ask the reader a question about history or your subject Give an interesting fact or detail about your subject Build or describe the background about your subject or the time when he or she lived.

Some Questions to Answer Step Four 1st Paragraph Plan your first paragraph. You will need to introduce your subject and build some background for the reader. You will want to provide some general information and facts. Some Questions to Answer What date and period of time was your subject born? Where did your subject live or grow up? What was your subject’s early life like? Did your person overcome any hardships? What events shaped your subject’s life?

Some Questions to Consider Step Five 2nd Paragraph Your second paragraph will begin to describe the accomplishments of your subject. What did he or she do that was special of helpful to the community? Some Questions to Consider What qualities did your subject demonstrate? (courage, strength, leadership, caring, creativity) What did your subject do that was important? Why did your subject do these things? How did your subject help other people?

Some Questions to Consider Step Six 3rd Paragraph In your conclusion you need to describe why your subject is a role model to other people. How has he or she changed the world and what can we learn from him or her? Some Questions to Consider Why is your subject considered a role model? Why do people still learn about your subject? How has he or she changed the world? What lesson can we learn from your subject?

Planning Your Essay You may use the 4 Square outline to plan your essay. Each square will represent a paragraph, so each square should include three or four ideas. You will turn your planning ideas and facts into complete sentences when you write your first draft.