Students will
If you have chosen to do the biography activity suggested in the Preparation section (see Step 1), do so before beginning this session.
1. | Ask students what they know about biographies and record their responses. Have students brainstorm a list of the types of people usually profiled in a biography, including some common characteristics that biography subjects share. Encourage students to brainstorm their own short lists of contemporary or historical figures, reminding them that a biography might explore the life of a president, musician, author, athlete, scientist-or any real person. Ask them to recall figures from social studies topics or books they have studied in class and to consider any contemporary newsmakers they know something about. |
2. | Explain to students that they will be writing very short biographical sketches and that they will need to concentrate on providing the most interesting and significant information about their subjects. The goal is to write something informational that others will enjoy reading. This sketch is to be no more than one page in length, and it should begin with a clear and engaging opening paragraph. Discuss the elements of a good introductory paragraph, tailoring the detail to your students' needs. Stress that the paragraph should: |
3. | Explain to students that a writers' workshop is a great way to experiment with their own writing and to give and receive valuable writing feedback. Mention that the biographical sketches they write will be shared with each other and eventually published in class. Explain that the workshop will consist of class discussions, in-class writing periods, readings and evaluations of individual works, and the publishing of each writer's sketch. |
4. | Label a piece of chart paper or a list on the chalkboard "A biographical sketch should..." and have students discuss and reach agreement about the elements a sketch should include. Responses should include some form of the following: You may wish to conduct a brief review about what constitutes a reliable source, emphasizing encyclopedias, printed biographies, and-of particular interest for use with this lesson-the websites you have screened and recommended for students (see Resources and Preparation, Step 4). Remind students that they will share their sketches with the class, so their peers are the audience. Tell them to keep in mind the types of things their classmates or other kids their age would most like to read about their subjects. |
5. | Share one or two selected examples of short, student-created biographical sketches from the website (see Preparation, Step 5). Highlight examples of clear writing, interesting information, major topics covered, accuracy, good writing style, proper use of grammar and mechanics and funny or surprising tidbits. Be sure to also point out a few excellent models of an engaging opening paragraph. |
1. | Have students use the biography websites to select a contemporary or historical figure. Encourage them to look up two or three people that interest them and select the one they are most interested in writing about. You will want to provide students with guidance about how to select a subject. For example, you can briefly discuss tips such as choosing a person about which they are really interested in learning, a person that others will find intriguing, a person that most people have heard of, a person who is lesser known but unique in some way, and so on. Each student should report his or her chosen subject to you and then enter the selection on the posted in the room. (Allow duplicate subject selections at your own discretion.) You will want to briefly meet with any students having difficulty making a choice and offer ideas based on your knowledge of those students' interests. You can also refer them to the . You may also wish to make the list available to all students, either by distributing copies or posting it in the room. |
2. | Introduce students to the and walk them through the steps of filling it out. Prompts within the tool ask students to name a subject and then describe the person's significance, obstacle faced, background, and personality. There is also a prompt to add any famous quotations attributed to the subject. Show students the completed Bio-Cube you created in preparation of the lesson (see Step 3). |
3. | Students should spend additional time before the next session researching their subjects using the online websites recommended. They should summarize what they have learned-and what they want to write about-using the online Bio-Cube tool. Encourage students to focus on including the main points they want to cover in their sketches. The finished Bio-Cube printout should be cut out and folded into a cube shape to be used as a quick reference tool during writing exercises. |
1. | Spend a minute or two inviting students to discuss their research. What did they learn about researching biographies using the ? What did they learn about what makes an interesting biography subject? |
2. | Invite two or three volunteers to share their completed Bio-Cubes in class. Ask them to explain briefly how they chose the information they recorded and what they liked about using the Bio-Cube to organize their facts. |
3. | Discuss the writing process and establish the purpose for the writers' workshop. First, tell students that they will be writing their first drafts using what they remember from their research and the information on their Bio-Cube outlines. Then remind them that this is a writers' workshop. That means they will share their writing with others to receive feedback. It also means that they will need to be ready to give feedback on others' writing. Explain that many professional writers engage in this process both as they learn their craft and as they continue to improve their skills throughout their lives. |
4. | Discuss some basic expectations for the biography sketch with students: writing to the appropriate audience; providing interesting, relevant information about their subject; and writing to an agreed-upon target length (suggest a length of approximately one lined notebook page). Distribute the sample so that students can refer to it as they write. This rubric reinforces the discussion about writing goals and the elements of a biographical sketch, and it allows students to self-assess their work. |
5. | Model the writing process by beginning to draft a short biographical sketch of your own. Refer to your Bio-Cube, and think aloud as you write your draft on a transparency. Reread as you go and explain any changes you make. Reasons for making changes may include: Remember to keep the writing short-this is just the beginning of the writing exercise. Suggested time for this portion of the session is 10 minutes. |
6. | Start the in-class writing time so students can write first drafts of their biographical sketches. As students write, walk around the classroom and provide feedback to individuals on the content you see. These miniconferences should take just one or two minutes each; use the time to quickly assess progress and offer encouragement and focused help. Comment on particularly interesting tidbits, ask leading questions as appropriate, and prompt students to refer to the rubric as necessary. Suggested time for this portion of the session is 20-30 minutes. |
7. | Bring the writing time to a close. Assure students that they do not yet need to have their sketches complete. Have them share their work with a partner, and instruct each listener to tell two things he or she likes about the partner's sketch and also tell one thing he or she would still like to know about the subject. Model this type of feedback before students begin sharing. |
8. | When everyone has shared, ask a few volunteers to talk about what they liked about the session. Then encourage students to reflect on what they might like to accomplish during the revision process. Tell them to think about it on their own and be prepared to share goals at the beginning of Session 4. |
1. | Begin this session by modeling the process of editing and revising a draft using the sketch you wrote during Session 3. Display your draft using the overhead projector. Read aloud your writing to students. Reread it a few times, stopping to make changes (and explaining them as you go, using the same think-aloud technique from Session 3, Step 5). Make your revisions to create a new draft that is close to final form. |
2. | Have students begin revising their sketches. Tell them to reread their drafts, pick up the writing where they left off, incorporate their partners' feedback, complete the writing, and then reread and revise until they are satisfied that the writing is clear and the sketch meets all the criteria on the . Ask them to check off each item on the rubric list as they prepare their final drafts. As students work, conduct another round of miniconferences to help guide and encourage them. Suggested time for this portion of the session is 30 minutes. |
3. | Bring the writing time to a close, and model for students how to give positive and supportive feedback on others' compositions. Briefly comment on two or three student pieces, being sure to pick out elements from which everyone can learn. For example: "Listen to the first line of Ben's biographical sketch of Christopher Columbus-it will really catch your attention." Or, "Kaylee gave a great description of Jeff Gordon's childhood." For each element on which you comment, be sure to ask the student author to read aloud the corresponding line or passage. |
4. | Have each student select and read aloud a favorite line or short passage from his or her sketch. After each reading, invite one audience member to offer positive feedback. |
1. | Tell students that this session will be spent proofreading and publishing final versions of their biographical sketches. |
2. | Emphasize how important proofreading is to the writing process and that it must be completed before they can publish their final drafts. Distribute copies of the so students understand the tasks. Explain that they need to read through their sketches looking for the types of minor errors listed on the sheet. They should note corrections on their drafts. Tell students that you are available to answer any questions they have as they proofread. Have students turn in their checklists as they complete them. |
3. | Show students how to publish upon completion of the proofreading process. This entails neatly writing their biographical sketches on heavy writing or construction paper. Remind them that their published works will be displayed in class and hint that they will also use them for the final workshop session. |
Homework: Before the next session, students who did not complete the publishing process should finish. Also, all students should conduct a practice reading of their finished sketches.
1. | Welcome students to the final session of the writers' workshop. Ask students whether they have ever seen an author reading at school, the public library, or a bookstore. Have a few volunteers briefly share their experiences. Explain that each "author" in the class will give a reading of his or her published biographical sketch. |
2. | Have each student read aloud his or her sketch to the class. For the readings, consider arranging students' desks in a circle and having the authors present from behind a podium. As time permits, allow audience members to pose a question or two to each author. Be sure to encourage applause at the end of each author's reading. |
3. | Once all authors have given readings, post the published sketches in the room. You may wish to invite a younger class to come in and view your authors' work. |
4. | As a final reflection, have students complete the . |
What did you learn from this workshop? What was the most enjoyable thing about our workshop? What was the most surprising thing? If you could change one thing about the workshop experience, what would it be? How did using the Bio-Cube help with your writing? Why is it important to start a piece of writing with an interesting opening paragraph? Why is getting peer feedback on your writing helpful?
Bio Cube is a useful summarizing tool that helps students identify and list key elements about a person for a biography or autobiography.
The interactive Cube Creator helps students identify and summarize key elements. It can be used as a prewriting or postreading activity.
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I've been writing my response like a narrative-type Common App essay, but I just looked up "biographical sketch" and it seems like it might describe more formal writing (like listing my accomplishments.) How would you interpret this prompt? What is the scholarship committee looking for? I don't want to sound too informal or like I misread the prompt, but I also don't want to sound boring and void of personality. For context there are two other prompts "describe educational, professional, and other goals" and "list and/or describe participation in extracurricular and leadership activities" and they all have a 3000 character count.
Yeah, for scholarships, it’s definitely more cut and dry. It’s not a fun writing activity—I find it to be the worst writing task. It’s more so an opportunity to flaunt your resume—you aren’t trying to stand out beyond what you’ve done. I’ve written nice ones that say why I’m deserving with a story, then I’ve written ones that just are near bullet points of accomplishments/contributions. Got nothing for he first, but too many scholarships for the latter (I had to write them to reassign scholarships to someone else). I think when it’s reviewed they want to just side past successes you’ve had as a meter of potential investment worth in the future.
depending upon the scholarship type specifically I recommend adjusting your focus. So if it’s like a community scholarship focus and highlight most time on volunteer work and community involvement. If it’s related to education, obviously academic successes, gpa, test scores, awards, etc. Regardless, I always had what my end goals are here. Ex. How will a scholarship enable me in the future to build on my success in that area. School related would be degree and career, community based could be ideas of volunteer work you want to do, etc.
Hope this helps!
Is there a place I could find an example of these types of scholarship essays? Would it be damaging to write it in that Common App style and have the others be written more formally or should I just ditch what I have? Oh, and btw these essays are for a specific school and I think the scholarships are awarded based on academic merit, but I'm not sure.
This CollegeVine blog post has some examples of scholarship essays. A Common App writing style will work, so long as you answer the prompt and make sure that important information about yourself is not lost in narrative. Hope this helps!
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Annie Armstrong (1850 – 1938)
Key Background Information: Annie Walker Armstrong was born in 1850 in Baltimore, Maryland to a family of tobacconists. Members of her family that were not in the agricultural profession were affiliated with the Baptist church, and her great-great-grandfather was responsible for its establishment. While in her early life, she was uncertain about the role that God played in her life, she had an experience at the age of 20 that caused her to accept Jesus Christ as her savior and she began to spend her life as a missionary to help the less fortunate be saved. Her focus was on helping individuals from minority groups in addition to women.
Key Ideas: Annie Armstrong was dedicated to upholding traditional Christian values in her missionary work. She became concerned when the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky spoke of implementing a missionary training school because she believed that the funds that would go to this program would be better spent supporting missionaries on the field. Furthermore, she became upset when she heard that the program would begin accepting female students, as she believed this would create a pathway for them to be ordained. She fought against this move because she was worried that it would alter the Baptist faith too significantly.
Key Events: Annie Armstrong fought hard to ensure that her traditional religious values would remain an essential component of the Woman’s Missionary Union in addition to the organizations with which it was closely affiliated. While her views were not held to be popular, it is likely that they served as a reminder of the roots and purpose of these organizations. When her opinions came under attack, she resigned from her position at the Woman’s Missionary Union but continued to dedicate her life to the mission in other ways. Despite the fact that her views were in conflict with the views held by the Woman’s Missionary Union at the end of her involvement with the organization, she provided them with monetary support so that they could continue to do good.
Key Works: To this day, people continue to donate to the missions on the behalf of Annie Armstrong. In her last days, she established an Easter Offering for North American missions. Today, many organizations give to the annual Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American missions, which allows her life cause to be supported even in death. Through her life’s charity, she has convinced churches to do more and pray more for the people who need Christ in their lives.
Key Achievements: Annie Armstrong’s commitment to the Christian faith has lived on. While Annie was committed to increasing missionary efforts in the United States during her life, she has provided many Christian groups with the motivation necessary to break boundaries by traveling to areas that have previously been untouched by such groups. Furthermore, she facilitated the need for these missions in a manner that allows the church to become more involved which is in turn increasing the success of these actions. Armstrong’s involvement in the spreading of the Christian faith is a dream that many share and continue to implement today.
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A biographical sketch (also referred to as biosketch) documents an individual's qualifications and experience for a specific role in a project. NIH requires submission of a biosketch for each proposed senior/key personnel and other significant contributor on a grant application. Some funding opportunities or programs may also request biosketches for additional personnel (e.g., Participating Faculty Biosketch attachment for institutional training awards). Applicants and recipients are required to submit biosketches
Direct specific biosketch and other support related questions to [email protected]
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Looking for some tips on writing a biographical sketch? Explore these clear and concise steps to help you create the perfect bio sketch! ... He also published two books of essays, Joy of Music and Infinite Variety of Music. His later works include the dance drama Dybbuk, the musicals Mass: A Theatre Piece for Singers, Players and Dancers and ...
To create an effective biographical sketch, it is essential to follow a proper format. Here are the guidelines to help you structure your sketch: Introduction: Start with a brief introduction that captures the reader's attention and provides essential background information about the person. Early Life: Describe the person's early life ...
Write in the third person. This means that instead of using "I" statements, use "he/she/they" statements. The information you include in your BioSketch is unique to you and your circumstances. While your BioSketch may look different from the examples below, be sure to include the important general information outlined in the paragraph ...
1. Come up with a concise thesis for your sketch. You can't include all the information about a person's life in a short biographical sketch. After researching your figure, choose a key detail for your sketch's focus. Then write a sentence that sums up the main point you want to make about your figure. [8]
Example 1. "The Untold Story of Nelson Mandela: From Prisoner to President". This biographical essay tells the life story of Nelson Mandela, a South African anti-apartheid revolutionary, political leader, and philanthropist who served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999.
Opening. The opening should introduce you and situate you professionally, by giving your name, degree (s), and current institutional affiliation. Stick to your main affiliations, but it is OK to ...
Here are a few tips, resources, and examples to help you with your biographical sketch: 1. Start by brainstorming: Make a list of important events, accomplishments, and characteristics that best define you. This can include your background, education, major milestones, professional achievements, personal hobbies, or anything else relevant to ...
Given examples are of "essay" biographical sketch solved example, you have to write an essay with the help of given clues. Here we have two solved examples: (Biosketch solved example 1): In the first example "Write a biographical sketch on Vishwanathan Anand not more than 100-120 words". (Biosketch solved example 2): In the Second ...
A biographical sketch is supposed to paint the abbreviated picture of an individual's life. It can be written about your own life or someone else's. When written about someone else's life, the sketch must explain who the person is and highlight their achievements. If a biological sketch is about you, then the same rule applies.
Create a Narrative. Another way to ensure that your biographical sketch is impressive is to write it in the format of a narrative. Instead of listing all of the facts you find in your research, try to find an interesting story to tell about the person you are featuring. Include facts and accomplishments in the narrative, or story, you tell.
Here are five ways to write an impressive biographical sketch: 1. Start with the Basics. Begin by gathering basic details about the person, such as their birth date, place, education, and significant accomplishments. These foundational elements will provide a starting point for your sketch and help you understand the chronology of their life.
Hello! A biographical sketch is a great opportunity to showcase your achievements, experiences, and personality in a concise and engaging manner. To write a successful biographical sketch, consider the following tips: 1. Emphasize your unique qualities: Begin by making a list of your most impressive achievements, skills, and experiences that set you apart.
Here are a few examples: (A) "I'm the head of digital marketing at a large New York-based agency that serves clients in the media and entertainment industry.". (B) "I am a graduate student in the history department of [UNIVERSITY]. My current research interests include 20th century American social movements.
Writing an Autobiographical Sketch (also called a vignette) With a focus on sensory details, the prewriting process provides an opportunity for you to brainstorm about the specific incident or event in your life. This is a time when you attempt to recall vivid details about the scene in your life—details that you will use in the writing of ...
Overview. While engaging in the processes of researching, writing, and evaluating short biographical sketches, students can master essential writing skills and enhance their content area learning. In this lesson, fourth grade students discuss standard elements in a biography and examine the characteristics of the genre in a workshop setting.
a (biosketch) brief summary of you or someone else's professional or educational accomplishments, publications, and affiliations. an abbreviated curriculum vitae (resumé)-meant to highlight important aspects of your training, experience, and areas of interest. a 'light sketch' of a person's life. Below is an example:
The Biographical Sketch is a standard part of your promotion packet. It is a summary of your military career, intended to highlight important aspects of your training and experience, and is the primary means by which the promotion board "meets" you. Promotion boards review the biographical sketch to determine if you are a well-rounded ...
I've been writing my response like a narrative-type Common App essay, but I just looked up "biographical sketch" and it seems like it might describe more formal writing (like listing my accomplishments.) How would you interpret this prompt? ... This CollegeVine blog post has some examples of scholarship essays. A Common App writing style will ...
Biographical Sketch, Research Paper Example. Pages: 3. Words: 872. Research Paper. Hire a Writer for Custom Research Paper. Use 10% Off Discount: "custom10" in 1 Click 👇. HIRE A WRITER! You are free to use it as an inspiration or a source for your own work. While many individuals living in the United States, Christian and non-Christian alike ...
Biographical Sketches, Essay Example. HIRE A WRITER! You are free to use it as an inspiration or a source for your own work. Annie Armstrong (1850 - 1938) Key Background Information: Annie Walker Armstrong was born in 1850 in Baltimore, Maryland to a family of tobacconists. Members of her family that were not in the agricultural profession ...
Thesis Biographical Sketch Example - Free download as PDF File (.pdf), Text File (.txt) or read online for free. The document provides guidance on crafting a compelling biographical sketch for a thesis. It discusses the key challenges students often face, including self-representation without sounding self-promotional, navigating formatting requirements, and highlighting achievements without ...
A biographical sketch (also referred to as biosketch) documents an individual's qualifications and experience for a specific role in a project. NIH requires submission of a biosketch for each proposed senior/key personnel and other significant contributor on a grant application. Some funding opportunities or programs may also request ...
Rip Van Winkle and Other American Essays from the Sketch Book, by Washington Irving. With a biographical sketch, introductions, and notes. Number 51 in the Riverside Literature Series.