Biography Writing Resources
Step-by-Step Guide for Teaching a Middle School or Early High School Biographical Report Project
A biographical report project is a great way to help students develop research, organization, and writing skills while learning about influential people. Here’s a simple guide to help teachers introduce and support students through the process.
Step 1: Introduce the Biographical Report Assignment
Explain Project Requirements
Share the structure of the report with students. The report will have four paragraphs:Introduction – Who the person is and why they are important.
Early Life – Key details about where they grew up and important influences in their childhood.
Main Events – Major achievements or life events.
Awards/Achievements – Specific accomplishments, honors, or contributions.
Provide Writing Frames and Note Pages
Give students examples to guide them through each paragraph type:
Example 1: Biographical Report Writing Frame (to scaffold paragraph structure).
Example 2 & 3: Biographical Notes Pages (to help organize research).
Step 2: Research and Resource Collection
Provide a List of Research Websites
Share reliable websites where students can safely research, such as:Biography.com
National Geographic Kids
PBS LearningMedia
Library of Congress (loc.gov)
Create a List of Research Subjects
Work with students to generate a list of people they’re interested in studying, covering a range of backgrounds and fields (scientists, artists, activists, etc.).
Step 3: Organize Research with the Biographical Organizer
Explain and Distribute the Biographical Organizer
Introduce the organizer, a tool to help students track important information and details for each paragraph.Model the Process
Paragraph 2 (Early Life): Model how to use notes and resources to write a cohesive paragraph.
Paragraph 3 (Main Events): Pair or group students to collaboratively complete this section using their research.
Paragraph 4 (Awards/Achievements): Students work independently to write about the awards or achievements of their chosen person.
Step 4: Turn the Organizer into a Draft
Guide Students in Drafting
Show how to take information from the organizer to form sentences and paragraphs in a draft format.Revise and Edit
Have students complete a self-edit of their drafts, focusing on organization, clarity, and grammar.
Provide peer editing opportunities, or checklists, for final adjustments before submission.
Independent learning is always the goal. Biographical reports each year mark one of the first big projects where the gradual release of responsibility actually happens. Biographies are more than about choosing a person that seems interesting, it is about giving students the ability to show interest and make choices in what they are learning. The goal of all teachers should be to teach our students to go find the answers that they seek. A natural curiosity is what drives the passion behind real learning. There is always a moment with this project that I step back, listen to the fingers clicking and clacking on keyboards, see the focus in eyes on screens and books, and the drive to write down facts, and I think to myself: “Learning looks like this.” This post outlines my entire process from directions to the beginning of assessment for biographical report writing in my middle school English Language Arts classroom.
Before we begin the project, students are guided through practice paragraphs. It is always interesting to me where teachers think students should and should not be in terms of writing ability when they reach middle school. Year after year, the review of paragraph writing is one of the critical elements in moving forward into larger projects later on in the year. I start by finding 4-5 articles that are about interesting people. They are specifically high-interest people to start gaining traction with the project before we begin. The first people I grabbed this year were Serena Williams, Bethany Hamilton, Helen Keller, and Nina Simone. We take notes on paragraph writing, watch video clips, hear audio clips, and then practice writing a biographical paragraph together. After that, I assign clockwork partners and release them to practice on their own with other classmates.