Boston Public Schools
What's in a Biography?
Reinforce research skills, close reading, teamwork, and biographical writing skills with one collaborative lesson. Groups create slide shows detailing the elements of a biography through a presentation on a famous American person. Based...
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My Antonia: Body Biography Book Report
Examine the characters in Willa Cather's My Antonia with a group project. Small groups illustrate their chosen character on a large piece of paper and choose quotes from the text that tell about the character. Where learners choose to...
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Multimedia Book Report
Young readers plan and draft a book report focusing on the five key components of a novel: plot, character, setting, conflict, and theme. After completing a story board, pupils then prepare a PowerPoint book report that is shown to the...
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Author's Day
Have your learners choose an author to study. One resource link gives a list of approved authors. Scholars read at least three works produced by that author and produce three separate book reports as well as a two-page author report....
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Biography Book Report
Students read a biography of someone of their choice and write a book report about it. They create a cover page with illustrations to accompany their report. They are graded on the rubric included in the lesson.
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A Pixie Biography Report
Learners practice biographical writing after completing research on the subject. In this journalism lesson, students read a story of an important person's life and discuss the important moments along the way. Learners utilize their...
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Houdini Report
Students write a biography after thy have found facts from the Houdini website. They complete a report using the organizational trait. Students use the internet to complete their fact sheets on Houdini. They discuss organization and...
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Biographies in a Box Come to Life
Students use the Internet to research someone's biography.
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Building Biographies: A Research Unit
Students explore the fundamental principles involved in completing a research project. Several handheld technical pieces of equipment are utilized to complete this lesson.
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Writing: Narrative, Expository, Persuasive, and Descriptive
If you are interested in having a basic framework for teaching expository, narrative, persuasive, and descriptive writing, this resource may help; however, you will have to find information on the different forms of writing to share with...
Encyclopedia Britannica
Election Topic Deep Dive
Researchers go beyond the surface of an election issue to craft an objective report on the history of the issue, factors surrounding the issue, and factors in a candidate' biography that may influence a candidate's position on the issue....
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Annotated Time Line
Students write biographies and timelines of famous people. They research a famous historical figure and his associated events. They write a two-page biography of the figure and create a timeline detailing the events of his life. They...
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Meet the Press
Students give their book reports as oral "Meet the Press" type interviews. They team up with another student "reporter" and answer questions about main idea, details, and the point of view.
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Research Paper
An outline for a research paper assignment lists the expectations, grading rubric, and due dates for an extended research writing project.
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African-American Musicians
Students research three African-American musicians and compose a report based upon their research in this Music Appreciation lesson for the middle level classroom. The lesson could be adapted for various student levels and abilities.
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Great Questions
Fourth graders research and create questions about a famous person. They create questions in a game format, create a computer generated brochure, and develop rubrics for their finished projects.
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Getting To Know Famous People
First graders use the internet to research a famous American. Using the information they collect, they write a paragraph noting their accomplishments. They find a picture of the person they are researching or dress up like them to...
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A Famous Artist -- A Noted Musician
Learners are introduced to new vocabulary associated with an artist. Using this information, they use the internet to create a report on the artist along with a visual or audio aid. They present their material to the class and answer...
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Biographical Research Paper
Students choose a subject for a biographical research paper. They use books, the Internet, encyclopedias and articles to gather information on a determined subject then follow a rubric to write a research paper.
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Who are Our Leaders?
Students discuss and identify current state and national leaders, and relate two specific details about them.
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Da Vinci's Renaissance
Students study the Renaissance through an examination of the life and accomplishments of Leonardo Da Vinci.
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Composer/Musician Study
Middle schoolers research a musician or composer of their choice and present their research through a written paper and free choice activity. This lesson can be done over the course of five to six classes with some homework. The paper...
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Olympic Dream Makers
Tenth graders describe the philosophies behind the Olympic Games, identify historical facts related to the Games, and discover "up close and personal" facts related to an Olympian of their choice.
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Exploring with Cartography
Pupils are introduced to the topic of cartography. Using the internet, they research the paths and goals of early explorers. They create a PowerPoint presentation of the information they collected. They also develop a "fill-in-the-blank"...