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LESSON MINI

All About Me Autobiography

Grade:

3-5

Topic:

Biography

Unit:

Autobiographies Explored
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Overview

Young boy writing in notebook outdoors on grassy lawn.
© ParkerDeen—iStock/Getty Images Plus/Getty Images

In this lesson mini, students explore the distinctions between biographies and autobiographies, focusing on how each genre differs in structure and content. They discover key elements commonly found in autobiographies, such as personal anecdotes, reflections on significant events, and insights into personal growth. Additionally, they reflect on pivotal moments from their own lives, identifying events and experiences that have shaped them, culminating in the writing of their own autobiographical paragraph.

Ideas for Implementation
Science or Social Studies
Literacy
Library media
Learning centers
Intervention or enrichment
Interdisciplinary collaboration
Key Vocabulary & Definitions
autobiography (noun): a written story about someone’s own life, written by that person
biography (noun): a written story about a real person’s life, written by someone other than that person
chronological order (noun phrase): the arrangement of events in the order that they happened in time, from first to last
first-person point of view (noun phrase): the “I” perspective, or mental view, from which someone tells a story about themselves
Authentic Learning Extensions
Authentic learning opportunities for studying autobiographies involve real-world experiences and practical applications that help students understand autobiographical concepts meaningfully. Here are some examples:
Guest Speakers: Invite a guest into the classroom to share their experiences and the ways that those experiences affected their life in both positive and negative ways. Ideas for guests include community leaders, veterans, activists, adventurers, athletes, and artists.
Library Exploration Sessions: Visit a school or local library to explore age-appropriate biographies. Librarians can help students find books matching their interests.

Choose Activity

Activity 1
Activity 2
Activity 3
Activity 4
Activity 5
2
All About Me Autobiography

Activity

1:

Comparing Autobiographies and Biographies

By the end of this activity, students will be able to define both “autobiography” and “biography” and give a brief list of common elements for each.

30-40

Minutes

Materials

Preselected autobiography
Whiteboard or display
Writing utensils

Resources

Britannica School Autobiography article https://school.eb.com/levels/elementary/article/autobiography/642802
Britannica School Biography article https://school.eb.com/levels/elementary/article/biography/642800
Mini Glossary instructional strategy and graphic organizer (one per student and one for teacher display)
Venn Diagram graphic organizer (teacher display)
1
Tell students that during today’s activity they will learn the differences between autobiographies and biographies through the use of a graphic organizer and how they help us tell stories about ourselves and others.
2
Share the activity vocabulary with students, emphasizing that a biography is a story written about someone’s life by someone other than that person, whereas an autobiography is a story written about someone’s own life, written by that person. Also discuss the meanings of chronological, or time, order, and first-person, or “I,” point of view. Give and elicit examples for clarity (e.g., First, I did ___; Then, I did ___; Last, I did ___; When I was 2 years old, I did ___; When I was 5 years old, I did ____; When I was 7 years old, ___ happened to me).
3
Ask students to think of a biography that they have read. Ask what kinds of words it used to tell what happened in that person’s life (e.g., he, she, born, in [a year], at age [an age], afterward). Lead a class discussion about the similarities and differences between a biography and an autobiography using the Autobiography article and Biography article.
4
Encourage students to make connections by sharing their thoughts and giving examples of any biographies or autobiographies they may have read. As they share, scribe their responses on a whole-class Venn Diagram graphic organizer that has one circle labeled “Biographies” and the other circle labeled “Autobiographies.” Write the common elements in the middle section, where the two circles overlap. Example responses include the following:
Biography: written by someone other than the subject, often based on research and interviews, provides an outside perspective on the subject’s life, uses third-person pronouns when writing about the subject
Autobiography: written by the subject themselves, includes the subject’s own personal insights and reflections, uses pronouns such as I, me, and my (first-person narrative style)
Both: provide details about a real person’s life, describe life events in chronological order, discuss important life events and achievements, tell a true story, may include vivid descriptions and visual aids (photos, letters, documents)
5
Tell students that you will now focus just on autobiographies. Ask them to think about some important events in their own lives (e.g., birth date, new brothers or sisters, starting school, moving to a new house or town, vacations, achievements in sports or school, special family traditions, making a new friend) that might be good to include in an autobiography. Scribe their general responses on the board outside the “Autobiography” circle.
6
Engage the whole class in a Mini Glossary instructional strategy to support vocabulary acquisition, focusing on the suggested vocabulary terms and definitions above, using the “Word Associations” section as a tool to support thinking. Distribute a Mini Glossary graphic organizer to students.

Here are some examples:
autobiography: personal narrative, life story, personal history, memoir, diary, reminiscences, remembrances, journal, life chronology, nonfiction
biography: famous person profile, researched life story, historical figure report, real-person character study, life chronology, life story, nonfiction
first-person point of view: personal perspective, view from within, self-view, I/me/my/mine, outlook
chronological order: time order, sequence of events, timeline, sequential order, history, first-next-last
7
As a class, read a short autobiography of your choosing. After reading, use the following guiding questions to engage students in a whole-class discussion to wrap up the activity:
What elements of an autobiography did you notice?
Why do you think the author chose certain events to include in the autobiography?
What did we learn about this person’s life?
Is there a part of this person’s story that you relate to?
Word Banks: Provide lists of synonyms, antonyms, and related words to assist students in generating ideas independently for the “Word Associations” section. These resources ensure accessibility and aid in connecting with new vocabulary, promoting comprehension and retention.
Critical Thinking Challenges: Encourage students to analyze vocabulary words by researching their etymology, exploring origins, and discussing evolution or variations in meaning across different cultures or disciplines. This fosters analytical skills and a deeper linguistic appreciation, enhancing overall language competence.
Interactive Word Wall: Transform the Mini Glossary into a classroom word wall where students collectively contribute to a visual display of vocabulary. This collaborative approach can be expanded to include linguistic elements such as word parts, affixes, and origins, enriching vocabulary learning.
Team Teaching: For collaborative teaching and learning environments, this learning activity is well suited to a Team Teaching strategy. In this model, both teachers deliver instruction together, often alternating or integrating their teaching styles seamlessly, sometimes referred to as “tag team teaching.” This collaborative approach provides students with multiple perspectives and teaching styles, enriching their learning experience. By modeling effective teamwork and communication, this approach demonstrates how different viewpoints can enhance understanding and create a dynamic and interactive classroom environment. Evidence indicates that team teaching can enhance student engagement and provide a richer, more diverse educational experience.
Introduction and Explanation: Teachers take turns explaining biographies and autobiographies, and the key terms and definitions in the activity.
Venn Diagram Activity: One teacher leads the discussion and records student responses on the Venn Diagram graphic organizer, while the other engages with students to ensure participation, eliciting and scribing responses about types of important things to include in an autobiography.
Mini Glossary: One teacher introduces key terms related to the activity while the other provides examples and clarifications, ensuring students understand the vocabulary.
Activity Wrap-Up: One teacher reads the example autobiography aloud, while the other facilitates the post-reading discussion and helps students make connections. Both teachers lead the final reflection discussion.
All About Me Autobiography

Activity

2:

All About Me Autobiography

By the end of this activity, students will be able to identify the key features of an autobiography and create their own with the aid of graphic organizers.

>40

Minutes

Materials

Preselected autobiography
Whiteboard or display

Resources

Autobiography Timeline graphic organizer (one per student and one for teacher display)
Paragraph Outline graphic organizer (one per student and one for teacher display)
1
Tell students that during today’s activity they will study important aspects of an autobiography and create one about themselves through the use of graphic organizers.
2
Share or review the definition of an autobiography with students, emphasizing that an autobiography is a story written about someone’s own life, written by that person. Also discuss the meanings of chronological, or time, order, and first-person, or “I,” point of view. Give and elicit examples for clarity (e.g., First, I did ___; Then, I did ___; Last, I did ___; When I was 2 years old, I did ___; When I was 5 years old, I did ____; When I was 7 years old, ___ happened to me).
3
Invite students to think about how to choose what events and experiences they will include in their autobiographies. Model the completion of your own Autobiography Timeline graphic organizer to help guide their thinking. Label each section of the graphic organizer with an age range (e.g., Ages 0–10, Ages 10–18, Ages 18–22, Ages 22–present), and list important events in each section.
4
Invite students to brainstorm and share ideas with a partner about what they might include in their timelines. Circulate around the room to listen and guide conversations.
5
Distribute an Autobiography Timeline graphic organizer to each student. Have students record their ideas on their own, encouraging them to include at least two or three events that occurred during each age block. (Depending on the age of students, their age blocks could be something like Ages 0–4, Ages 4–6, Ages 6–8, Ages 8–present.)
6
As students work, remind them that an autobiography does not need to cover every detail of their lives. Emphasize that, instead, they should focus on what they want the reader to know or what the reader will find most interesting.
7
Invite students to swap timelines with a partner and circle or highlight an event from each box of their partner’s timeline that they would like to learn more about. This will help students gauge what others might be interested in.
8
Students should return the timelines to their authors. Give students a few moments to consider what has been circled or highlighted on their own timeline. Explain that they are not required to use the suggestions in their writing, but this may help them narrow down their list a bit.
9
Model how to use the information from your own Autobiography Timeline graphic organizer to construct an autobiography paragraph outline, filling out the parts of the Paragraph Outline graphic organizer. Include an introductory “hook” (e.g., What an exciting life I have had so far; or I had no idea when I was born what twists and turns my life would take; or The first thing I remember clearly is ___), at least three events, and a conclusion.
10
Distribute a Paragraph Outline graphic organizer to each student, and give students time to create their own outlines following your example.
11
Using your outline, model drafting an autobiography paragraph, beginning with the hook and moving through each element of the paragraph. (Consider having the paragraph written in advance so that you can reveal each sentence one by one, showing how you built the paragraph from the outline.)
12
Ask students to begin drafting their own autobiography paragraphs from their outlines. While they work, circulate, check in, and confer with students to help guide their work. Following the draft phase, consider doing a peer review or small teacher-student conferences in preparation for creating a final copy to publish or present.
13
To conclude the activity, invite the whole class to participate in a reflection on their learning and work by asking them to respond to the following question:
How does reflecting on our own lives help us understand who we are?
Sentence Stems: Sentence stems can support students when writing an autobiography paragraph by providing structured prompts that guide them in organizing their thoughts and details coherently. Using sentence stems supports students in overcoming writer’s block, ensures they include essential elements of their life stories, and promotes a logical flow in their writing, which is particularly beneficial for those who struggle with writing independently.
Enhanced Detail: Encourage students to elaborate and explain ideas in greater detail in a multi-paragraph autobiography in order to enhance deeper reflection, critical thinking, and more comprehensive storytelling. This process requires students to move beyond surface-level descriptions, allowing them to delve into the significance and context of their experiences, thereby developing their analytical skills and ability to convey complex ideas effectively.
Art Extension: Encourage students to enhance their autobiographies with illustrations. They can draw either on separate sheets of paper or directly above or below their written paragraph.
Technology Extension: Invite students to present their autobiographies using digital formats. Options include recording a podcast, creating a video presentation, or posting their writing on a blog or a family app.
Team Teaching: For collaborative teaching and learning environments, this learning activity is well suited to a Team Teaching strategy. In this model, both teachers deliver instruction together, often alternating or integrating their teaching styles seamlessly, sometimes referred to as “tag team teaching.” This collaborative approach provides students with multiple perspectives and teaching styles, enriching their learning experience. By modeling effective teamwork and communication, this approach demonstrates how different viewpoints can enhance understanding and create a dynamic and interactive classroom environment. Evidence indicates that team teaching can enhance student engagement and provide a richer, more diverse educational experience.
Introduction and Explanation: Teachers take turns explaining biographies and autobiographies, chronological order, and first-person point of view, providing diverse instructional strategies for clarity.
Modeling and Brainstorming: One teacher models the personal timeline and autobiography paragraph, while the other provides additional explanations and ensures understanding.
Student Brainstorming and Writing: Both teachers circulate to guide student discussions, help brainstorm events, and provide feedback during drafting.
Peer Review and Reflection: One teacher facilitates peer reviews while the other holds individual conferences, and both teachers lead the final reflection discussion on personal experiences.
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