How to Write a Biography for School
Whether in elementary school, middle or high school, chances are that a student will receive an assignment to write a biography at some point in their academic career. Amelia Earhart, Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln are only a few of the historic American figures whose stories students choose to chronicle in biographic reports. Guidelines vary depending upon a student’s grade level--an elementary school student may include illustrations, while a high school student will be expected to draw solid conclusions after creating a thesis. However, certain elements are present in all school biographical reports.
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Instructions
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Choose a subject who has made significant contributions to society. Make sure that the person has enough accomplishments to fuel an entire report. Review the teacher’s guidelines for which kind of figures you can cover.
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Research the subject of your biography. Begin with a cursory Internet search for relevant books and other published scholarship about and written by the biographical figure. Borrow several books from the library to read and/skim. Take notes along the way. Gather more than enough sources to use in the report.
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Determine how to organize the report and develop a focus. Create a timeline of significant events in the life of the biographical figure. While an elementary school student may only follow a simple chronology of events in the life of the report’s subject as they occurred, junior high and high school students may organize their paper based upon the person’s major ideas or social and political attributes, with added analysis to defend a thesis statement. Students in higher-grade levels might also compare and contrast the expert opinions found in the sources they have gathered.
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Write a draft. The biography’s format should begin with an introduction. Give a basic overview of the biographical figure and students in higher-grade levels will introduce a thesis statement towards the end of the introductory paragraph or paragraphs. Use the body of the paper to summarize significant events and accomplishments in the life of the biographical figure and feature analysis. End the paper with a conclusion about what we can learn from the biographical figure and revisit the ideas brought forth by the thesis statement.
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Edit the report thoroughly for grammatical and spelling errors and organization of ideas. Write a final draft of the report. Reread the report once completed to determine an appropriate title.
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References
- Photo Credit homework image by Ivanna Buldakova from Fotolia.com
