Junior Lesson Plan #4

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Beginning of the year autobiography

GRADE LEVEL
Grades 1 to 6

CURRICULUM
Language Arts, Journalism, Social Studies

OVERVIEW OF LESSON PLAN
This lesson plan is built around the first few weeks of school when teachers are focussed on getting-to-know-you activities. The lesson plan integrates language arts into getting-to-know-you activities. The lesson has children write and publish their own autobiographies using the model provided by the teacher.

MATERIALS AND PREPARATION

• SNN Writing Guide (for reference)
• Autobiography of the teacher: family, interests, hobbies, childhood, early school years, etc

 

ACTIVITIES/PROCEDURES

1. On the first day of school, talk to your class about autobiographies--the stories that people write about their own lives and that others read to find out about them.

2. Read your autobiography to the class as a way of introducing yourself.

3. Kick-off your writing program by having the children begin write their own autobiographies using yours as an example and using their best writing skills. Introduce them to the five Ws of journalism - Who, What, When, Where, Why. These five Ws should be in the first paragraph of a descriptive article. Discuss with students the SNN Writing Guide.

4. Have students do a first draft of their autobiography. Young students in grades 1 through 4 can do a simple story about themselves telling:

• who they are
• when they began attending this school
• where they live
• what they like to do (classes, sports, reading, etc) and why

Then in the second paragraph they can expand a little of a favourite activity. The number of words can range between 25 and 65 depending on the grade level.

In higher grades students can develop a 75- to 125-word article in more detail using the SNN Writing Guide.

5. After finishing their first draft, students re-read their article and make any change they feel necessary. Students can also include drawings, photos, etc with their article.

6. WRAP UP/HOMEWORK: Students complete their article and submit it to the teacher. These articles can then be placed in a booklet for the classroom. By the time Open House arrives a few weeks into the school year, students and their parents already "know" each other and the interests that they share!

 

 

 

 

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