Students should be encouraged to choose someone they find interesting to write a biography about. This could be a family member, someone famous, or a hero. You should encourage students to pick a positive role model to write about and then to decide where to go to research the needed information. Is it someone they can interview? Someone historical they can find information about in the library? Or is it someone from pop culture where the Internet would be a top source?
Gathering important facts about the subject's life is the next important step. A graphic organizer or list can help students ensure they have the most important facts. The subject's birth and childhood, education, work, family, and important accomplishments are all important to include. It is also good to encourage students to keep in mind the length of the essay and to get enough information, but avoid details that will bore the reader, such as too many details about locations, conversations, and facts that are not significant to the subject's life. Anything funny, unusual, or particularly interesting about the person should be included as well, as these things stick in the reader's mind and help him get to now the subject, such as George Washington's famous cherry tree anecdote regarding his honesty, or Abraham Lincoln's infamous hat.
Pay attention to the essay length as you write and encourage your students to talk about all the important details without spending more time in one particular section. Many fourth graders will start out biographies giving every small detail about the subject's childhood and only write one sentence about why they are important or their contributions to the world. Encourage students to be balanced in what is included in their biography so it may interesting to the reader.
Have your students read their biography out loud to themselves in order to see what revisions need to be made. Most major revisions needed can be self-caught this way. Peer editing or assistance from you can help them get ready to publish their work. Students can write out their final copy or type it on a computer. It is encouraged to have students present their finished work to the class so everyone can learn about interesting and important people. At the end of a presentation, taking a moment for students to ask questions can be beneficial to those that want to learn more as well as guiding the writer towards information he may want to include next time.