Integrated Thematic Unit Plan Biography Project
Choose: Choose a person who interests you. This person may be an explorer, a past president, an inventor, a sports figure, a musician, or anyone who is admired and whose accomplishments are recognized. You may not choose someone who is alive today.
Read a Biography: Select a biography on the person you have chosen. Before you begin reading, have the person and biography approved. You must have at least two other sources for this. Keep a word document of all sources used.
Diary: Create a diary or journal for the person you have chosen (you must have a minimum of 4 entries.
Each entry should be at least two paragraphs in length. You may choose to record a significant time in the person’s life, or you may include entries spaced throughout the person’s life.
Birth Certificate: Design a birth certificate for your person that shows the date and place of birth, parent’s names (if known), etc. Be creative. You might be able to get ideas from your own birth certificate, but remember to take into account when your person was born. For example, a birth certificate for Julius Caesar would not look the same or have the same information as one for John
Kennedy. Think about when typewriters and computers were invented.
Timeline: Make a list of at least twenty historical events that happened during your person’s lifetime.
These events may not be your person’s accomplishments or about your person. They should be historical events that happened during their life.
Biography Bottle: Bring your person to life by creating a bottle person using a two liter bottle for the body. There are some really neat ideas at: https://www.pinterest.com/rickatra/biographybottles/
Newspaper Article: Write an article that might have appeared in the newspaper during the lifetime of your person. Write about events that your person made happen or was involved with, make it look real.
Picture: Create a collage of small pictures that will represent his/her life or a portrait.
People Poems: Write a poem about the person. The poem should feature qualities that make the person unique, facts relating to the person’s life, and other details. You may include the name of the individual or share your writing and have others guess the identity.
Obituaries: Write an autobiographical obituary that celebrates the life and achievements of the person you are studying. Put this obituary on a gravestone.