Third Grade Biography Project

Students will be completing a variety of activities about a famous American.*

Part 1: Folder Reports (Language Grade/Reading)

Students will be assembling a file folder report on the person they choose. The majority of this will be done at school but they may need to do some research at home. (All students follow a specific outline for this paper. Please do not work ahead on the paper until we have finished the organizer in class to ensure they meet all the requirements.)

Hand drawn picture on cover ______5 points (Reading) Timeline (inside left) ______15 points (Reading) 5 Paragraph paper ______30 points (Language)

Five Paragraph Paper Outline

Paragraph 1- Introduction Paragraph 2- Big Idea #1 (Childhood and Early Life) Paragraph 3- Big Idea #2 (How/Why did this person become famous) Paragraph 4- Big Idea #3 (Impact on Society, Later life information) Paragraph 5- Conclusion

Part 2: Presentation (Social Studies Grade) Students will need to dress up like their person. You can help your child gather something appropriate for their famous person. There is no need to spend money on this costume. An old shirt, hat, gloves, glasses, etc. work fine.

Students will present a 2-3 minute speech to the class highlighting the main information they discovered during their research. They may use notecards to help them. This part will be prepared almost entirely at home with the exception of time to practice presenting to a peer.

Points 4 7 10 Oral Presentation Could not hear or Student was able to be Student demonstrated a *volume understand some of the heard most of the well-practiced presentation *rate presentation; spoke too presentation and had and had great stage *voice quality slow/fast at times minimal problems with presence. *eye contact speech Speech Requirements Speech included some of Speech included most of Speech was very detailed, *childhood and family the details and the details and included all the *why they are famous requirements requirements requirements and *impact they have/had on society exceeded the expectations Costume and Props Some attempt at a Used a costume and costume incorporated props fully to take on the role of their famous person Part 3: PowerPoint (Computer Grade)

Mrs. Olson will be working with students during computer to assemble a Power Point presentation to share with the class.

Part 4: Prayer to Patron Saint (Religion)

Students will work on writing a prayer to the patron saint of their famous person. This will be done entirely in class. (Example- Babe Ruth would write a prayer to St. Sebastian, the patron saint of athletes).

Part 5: Quote Card (Language)

Students will find a quote spoken or written by their hero and be able to explain what it means to them.

IMPORTANT DATES:

March 9th- Details about project come home. Students should begin thinking about who they want to be.

March 13th – First day to select biography choices. Remember only one person will be assigned to each hero so the sooner you request yours the better. You need to have a BOOK on this person to show me as well. Choices must be made by March 16th.

April 3rd - Book must be completely read. (Spring Break is a great time to read!!)

April 9th- Cover of folder and timeline due

April 12th- Graphic Organizer for paper due (Once this has been checked you can start writing the rough draft. Rough drafts need to be edited here at school before a final draft can be written or typed.)

May 1st- Final Paper (Entire Folder) Due

May 1st and 2nd -Presentations in class

May 3rd - Wax Museum Day! We will have two small sessions to accommodate parent schedules. Students will be dressed as their hero and ready to teach you! Please plan to attend. Formal invitation to follow. (11:30-12:00 or 1:30-2:00) Guidelines when selecting a biography…

o You may choose a living or deceased person. o You may choose a male or female. o You should try to choose an American since the focus of 3rd Grade Social Studies is American History. (*Exceptions can be made for people who are not American but have influenced American life). o You may not choose saints (we save this for the Saint report in Junior High). o You may not choose current athletes. o You must be able to find a CHILDREN’S biography written about this person.

These are JUST SUGGESTIONS…

o Start with the classroom biography shelf. I have MANY books to choose from. o Check out the Who Was or I Am series books. They are perfectly written for kids your age and we have almost all of these available at school! o List of Heroes from American Heroes Every Kid Should Meet: Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Susan B. Anthony Lewis and Clark and Sacajawea Robert E. Lee Mary McLeod Bethune Abraham Lincoln George Marshall John Muir Jimmy Carter Sandra Day O'Connor George Washington Carver I.M. Pei Cesar Chavez and Christopher Reeve Roberto Clemente Cal Ripken, Jr. Walt Disney Jackie Robinson and Branch Rickey Frederick Douglass Roy Rogers and Dale Evans Thomas Edison Albert Einstein Franklin D. Roosevelt Benjamin Franklin Theodore Roosevelt John Glenn Jonas Salk Martha Graham Tecumseh Matthew Henson Harry Truman Milton Hershey Langston Hughes George Washington Thomas Jefferson Elie Weisel and Ida B. Wells Jackie Joyner-Kersee Wilber and Orville Wright