Creative Writing: A Step By Step Approach To Writing Interest Based Biographies

This comprehensive, teacher led, five week course will guide students through the step by step process of writing biographies. Learners will choose a notable person to research. Learners may choose an athlete, artist, writer, musician, inventor, scientist, etc.. Once they make their decision, they will be asked to share their choice with the teacher prior to our first class. Here is the weekly breakdown for teaching this class.
Week 1 We will begin by learning what a biography is and how it is different from an autobiography. Students will learn that biographies are factual accounts of a person’s life. We will learn what topics need to be included in a biography. 
(Early life, education, occupation, challenges, accomplishments.) We will create a graphic organizer to guide our research and begin the process of collecting pertinent facts. Students will learn how to order facts into a chronological order. We will write an introduction paragraph the first week too.
Week 2 We will use our graphic organizers to help develop our second paragraph. Students will learn to focus their writing on one key part of their person’s life. For example, early life. The graphic organizer will help students stay focused on one aspect! 
Weeks 3 and 4 We will write and edit our third and fourth paragraphs together using facts from their research! These may include education, what they are famous for, any notable accomplishments.
Week 5 We will work on writing a conclusion. We will restate what we learned, the big ideas, and address any personal lessons we may have learned and how we can use our knowledge in our own lives. What did we take away from this writing exercise? How did they overcome adversity, face challenges, and contribute to society? What impact has this project had on my own life? After all, biographies can help us better understand people and a certain time in history.
Each week, they will learn to build the structure of a biography. I will model and guide their writing and provide feedback in each class meeting. All learners will be expected to share their writing. This encourages each other to be good listeners, as they will be taught how to provide constructive feedback to their peers. I look forward to working with your developing writer. See you soon! Jamie