GENRE STUDY: BIOGRAPHY
By Brianne Young, Pinckney, Michigan
C Level (Basic Understanding): 5 Points Each. Choose
any 8, for a total of 40 points.
1. Write a poem that relates to your person.
2. Make a poster advertising your book/person.
3. Make 20 vocabulary flash cards; include definitions on the
back.
4. Find a website that relates to your book/person, print out
the information and be prepared to share it with class.
5. Make a puppet of your person.
6. Place 5-10 major events from the book on an illustrated
timeline.
7. Would you like to be friends with this person? Give several
reasons.
8. Describe the educational background of this person.
9. Explain why a book was written about his person. What were
this person's special talents or skills?
10. Make a chart showing the major obstacles this person had
to overcome and their major accomplishments.
B Level (Application of Knowledge gained in C Level):
10 Points Each. Choose any 3, for a total of 30 points.
1. Write an essay discussing your opinion about the likelihood
of becoming a famous person and having someone write a biography
about you. What is the possibility of this happening? Are biographies
written about just anyone? What qualities do you think a person
must demonstrate to become famous? What skills, goals and/or
accomplishments do you feel are worthy of recognition?
2. Interview a classmate as if you are the author of their
biography. Write a one-page biography on that person.
Make sure you hand in the notes, plan, rough draft and final
draft of their biography.
3. Write 6 diary entries to your person. For each entry,
pick a different topic from the book.
4. With two other classmates, act out your two favorite
scenes from the book.
5. Investigate 3 other famous people from the same time period.
Cut out pictures from magazines that are symbolic of your person
and the three others. Create a collage.
6. Use a diagram or chart to show some similarities and major
differences between you and the person you read about. Include
positive character traits and negative character traits.
7. Does this book remind you of anything in your life? Tell
about it.
A Level (Critical Thinking and Analysis of Real World
Issues): 15 Points Each. Choose any 2, for a total of 30 points.
1. Produce a "Fact File" on your person. Include many facts.
2. Design a questionnaire about your person. Ask the questions
to as many classmates as possible. Graph your results.
3. Identify 10 Cause and Effects from the book. Chart your
results.
4. Hold a debate on a controversial issue present in your biography.
5. Identify a major theme in your biography; include evidence
from the book to support your idea. How is this theme evident
in your life?
6. Describe how your life would be different if you were this
person.
Dr Kathie Nunley
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