Assignment #6 Chapter 7 Biographical writing

Biographical writing is considered to be a very interesting and favored genre to children, because children can write about what they know the most –themselves, and also present audience their unique experiences, personal traits and talents. It means that children have a lot to express in their compositions. Teachers can support their students to do biographical writing by offering exemplary biographies of well-known authors, autobiographical books and model compositions that their previous students have made. On assessment of children’s biographical writing, I think it’s recommendatory to specifically measure the coherence of the story, the detail and evidences of given experiences and events of children’s life.

There are three organized categories in biographical writing; personal narratives, autobiographies, and biographies. In writing these biographical essays, it’s also needed to develop the writing according to the writing process of prewriting, drafting, revising, editing and publishing. Children can use cluster, graphic organizer and drawing to get episodes and ideas in the stage of drafting, and polish the writing in their writing groups getting feedback and having open sharing and talk to classmates. Especially children create new ideas while listening and reading others’ drafts. When writing about the late historical figures and respected personalities still living alive, children can accumulate know-how to gather and organize valuable information, and also can attain wide span of knowledge in the process of reading extra materials. At a viewpoint of that teachers and students utilize various types of biographical writing, like a life box, poster, advertisement, map and simulated journal and so on, not with only type of conventional formal writing, there is fertile potential for achievements in children’s journey.

Reference:Tompkins, G. E. (2008). Teaching Writing: Balancing Process and Product. NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.

Here are some interesting articles about this chapter.
http://www.suite101.com/content/writing-a-biography-part-one-a125245

Response to Achimisul Park:
She spread three categories of biographical writing. Personal narratives, autobiographies, and biographies. And she said, personal narratives are used to increase the interests in writing by choosing a topic by themselves, biographies and autobiographies can be grafted onto social studies or science thematic units to make self-awareness high through gathering and organizing information. I also agree with this paragraph. I think that is clear purpose and organization.