Presentation
Students can use the chart on the back of this page to choose their preferred method to present their biographies. I recognize that the students in my class learn most effectively in various ways and therefore they need different options for demonstrating their learning. My hope is that this project enables your child to find a fun and engaging way to share their knowledge with their peers. If you child wants to “think outside the box” and come up with another innovative way to share their knowledge for their presentation, please let me know and I will do my best to support their choice.
The choices on the chart below are based on Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences, which states that certain parts of a person’s brain may be more highly developed than others. Stated simply, your child may have a preferred “intelligence” in one of 8 areas summarized below.
1. Verbal linguistic- loving to read, write and tell stories.
2. Math/Logical- strong problem-solving and reasoning skills.
3. Spatial- the ability to create visual-spatial representations (a builder or creator).
4. Musical- have a sensitivity to rhythm and sound.
5. Kinesthetic (body)- gravitate towards athletics and tactile learning.
6. Interpersonal- love cooperative group situations and are skilled at communicating.
7. Intrapersonal- understand one’s emotions, goals and motivation.
8. Naturalist- students who love all things nature (plants & animals).
I tried my best to develop a project that would be conducive across the various multiple intelligences listed above in order to appeal to the different types of intelligences that I see in my classroom. Your child needs to pick only one of the methods listed to present their information.
Bottle Buddy
Bottle buddies are made from basic plastic water bottles, emptied out and cleaned. Please note that sand, small beads or rocks on the bottom of the bottle will help them stand up since they fall over easily. Please make sure the bottles are completely dry before using them because I have had bottles grow mold inside them in the past. The bottles should be decorated to look like your child’s biography subject. Bottles must be completely covered and they can be decorated with items that the biography person used during their lifetime. (For example a small kite with Benjamin Franklin or a small model light bulb with Thomas Edison).
Here are some suggested items you may want to use to help you: water bottles, Styrofoam ball (for head), scissors, glue, felt, paint, yarn, cloth, construction paper etc.
I usually buy Styrofoam balls in bulk for the heads since they are rarely sold individually. I ask students to bring in $1.50 to cover the cost of the Styrofoam ball if they would like one. This is total voluntary and up to each individual student.
To see some examples of past student work please visit the webpage at http://mrsnunez.weebly.com/social-studies.html
Just be creative and have fun!
Biography Presentation Ideas- Choose one of the boxes below or come up with a different idea!
1. Choose a major event in your biography person’s life. Choose another person in the class and role play that event using props and dialogue.
Bodily/Kinesthetic
2. Use your computer to summarize your person’s life on your computer at home. Type out your own article and print enough copies for the class. If you would like include a quiz or worksheet to go with it.
Verbal/linguistic
3. Create a poster board or comic strip that highlights 3 important life events of your biography person. Make sure the pictures are labeled and detailed with facts or dialogue.
Visual/Spatial
4. Design a campaign ad for your biography person and present the campaign as a commercial. Try to convince others what a great person you researched.
Interpersonal
5. Create song lyrics to a music track to tell about your person. Make copies of the lyrics and teach the class your song.
Musical/rhythmic
6. Create a shoebox diorama of a specific setting or location in your biography person’s life. Be sure to include real items from outside. Make sure you create a presentation that explains why this setting was important.
Naturalist
7. Write a letter to your biography person. Make sure to summarize the person’s life. Also be sure to include any questions you would have asked that person if you could send them the letter. Include enough copies to share with the class.
Intrapersonal
8. Make a visual time-line sequencing 10 important events that happened to your biography person. Make sure to add details so others can learn as much about your person as possible. The timeline can be on poster board or created digitally on the computer.
Logical/mathematical
9. Create a 3-5 minute video of an event in your biography person’s life. Record the video and bring it in to show the rest of the class.
Multiple intelligences
The chart above has some examples of ways your child can present their biography projects that are categorized based on multiple intelligences. Students can be as creative as they like and present their information in another way if they wish and they get advanced approval. Here is a list of some additional ways students presented in the past:
· Dressed up as the biography person and delivered a speech.
· Created a newspaper article or graphics brochure on the computer about their person.
· Wrote a fictional narrative story from the point of view of the person and shared with the class.
· Created a collage of the person’s inventions, books etc.
· Created a presentation and a crossword puzzle activity.
· Worked with a friend to perform a pretend interview with the person.
· Created a mobile of major life accomplishments.
As you can see your child can be as creative as they want for this project. They have already gathered most of the information in class that will be required tom complete this project. Please make sure they keep their lapbooks until their presentation so I can grade all of the pieces together at that time. Projects are not due until after winter break (the official due date is January 22, 2016). These projects are designed for students to work on various parts of the project over an extended period of time. Please do not wait until the last minute! Starting (and finishing) early is a good skill for the students to learn! The presentations will count towards the Speaking and Listening grades on the report cards.