Biography Book Report Time

My students presented their biography book reports. Biographies are not my favorite genre to read myself, but I love how excited that kids get to read them.

I have a large stock of biography books that I keep on hand for this assignment and for the excitement that ensues after they find how cool it is to learn about another person's life. The kids get to pick ANYONE to read about...They get so excited to have so much choice.

This is all the stuff they get to take home! It has a written, oral and art component. All done at home. We've done extensive studies of Martin Luther King, George Washington, and Abraham Lincoln. The kids know how to read biographies and what to look for. They now get to do that same work, but at home. One of my clever students got so excited he said, "It's just like Martin Luther King, but we get to do it all alone. We are responsible for the work now." I just love when they get so excited about the gradual release of the cognitive load don't you?

There are directions and check lists and clear expectations with take home projects. It's the key to the success of the project. I try to not break it down too much because I want the kids to be creative in their work. I want them to take responsibility and learn how to get it all done on time. This is a great lesson to learn in second grade before the consequences are huge in the older grades.

The kids bring their projects in on the last Friday of the month. They present their report to the class in a quick 1-3 minute presentation of the person they studied. They can only use their notecard. This is their first oral report with proper oral report expectations. Well...it's the first on I don't help with at all.

After, they show the portrait they drew and everyone claps. Here are some of the portraits they've created:

I love hearing the "ooh" and "ahh" sounds when kids show their art work.

Do you do biography book reports? Give it a try! If you want to use the project we have made for our kiddos, you can find it here.