The BEST Elementary Biography Project
Looking for a fun, new research and writing project for your elementary kiddos? This living wax museum is a great way to tie together reading, writing, social studies and speaking and listening skills all in one fun project. I have done this project with second through fourth graders and they have all loved it.
Start this project off by having your students select what famous figure they want to research, or by assigning them a famous figure. My ABSOLUTE favorite books for us to conduct our research are the “Who Was” Series by Jim Gigliotti. They are perfect for on-level/higher second graders, and are most appropriate for third and fourth grade students.
Typically, I will introduce the project, show the students my example, and then briefly introduce all of the famous figures that they can pick from. I then let them go one by one and pick which person they want to research.
For my second graders, I always have one group (my lower level readers) that work together to collect our research all on the same person, but then I release them to each write their own reports.
We spend about one week reading our books and researching our influential figure. While they work, they take notes on important aspects of that person’s life. There are also a ton of great books on Epic ! that students can use for additional research and ideas.
After our notes are compiled, students begin writing their drafts for their research reports. I have students write 6 total paragraphs about their famous figures. We do an introduction, a paragraph about their early life, a paragraph about why they are famous, fun facts, a paragraph about a character trait that best describes them and why, and then a closing.
We spend about 1-1 & 1/2 weeks working on our writing. We write about a paragraph or 2 per day, then take our writing through the revising/editing/publishing process. I then give students a good 2-3 days to spend a TON of time publishing their work to the best of their capability, using their best handwriting and best pictures that they can.
Wax Museum: Speaking & Listening
We end this project by inviting parents and other classes to come watch us present our reports. This is a fun time where the students get to dress up like their famous person, bring in props and practice speaking in front of an audience. We always get amazing feedback from the parents and from other classroom teachers. This component is totally optional, but completely worth it!
I always send home a student letter at the beginning of the project so that parents have ample time to help students gather materials for their costumes and to help them get a good understanding of who their influential figure is.
Distance Learning / Digital Learning :
Is your school closed for an extended period of time due to this crazy virus? This project is a GREAT way for students to continue learning at home. Simply send the PDF to parents to print at home (or print at school if you still have access), and send students to Epic or your local online library to find biographies on the person of their choice. Then, add a digital component by having students upload their videos to Google Classroom, SeeSaw or the digital platform of your choice. This is a great way to provide a few weeks of reading/writing plans to parents, while incorporating choice in student learning still.
Recommended Resources :
Snag everything you need for the biography research and writing reports in this Biography Writing Resource .
Click here for a compilation of all of my favorite “Who Was” characters to research for this project. These books are the perfect level for 2nd-4th graders, and are really affordable (between $2-4 each by following my Amazon affiliate link.)
Emily - The Mountain Teacher
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Living Well + Learning Well
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100+ Beautiful Biographies Your Kids Will Love
73 95 100+ Biographies for Kids
This post was originally posted in 2014 with 73 biographies and there been TONS more biographies for kids published since then. As I added to our library, I updated this post again in 2018. I gave this post a THIRD revision in 2020 to add in even more amazing biographies for kids! Here’s the updated list, categorized for easy searching and saving.
Biographies for Kids: Scientists + Mathematicians to Admire
- The Boy Who Loved Math: The Improbably Life of Paul Erdos by Deborah Heiligman
2. Manfish: A Story of Jacques Cousteau by Jennifer Berne
3. The Watcher: Jane Goodall’s Life with the Chimps by Jeanette Winter
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4. Rosie Revere, Engineer by Andrea Beaty
5. Who Says Women Can’t be Doctors: The Story of Elizabeth Blackwell by Tanya Lee Stone
6. Odd Boy Out: Young Albert Einstein by Don Brown
7. Electrical Wizard: How Nikola Tesla Lit up the World by Elizabeth Rusch
8. Timeless Thomas: How Thomas Edison Changed our Lives by Gene Berretta
9. Snowflake Bentley by Jacqueline Briggs Martin
10. On a Beam of Light: A Story of Albert Einstein by Jennifer Berne
11. Summer birds: the Butterflies of Maria Marion by Margarita Engle
12. Blockhead: The Life of Fibonacci by Joseph D’Agnese
13. The Boy Who Drew Birds: A Story of James John Audubon by Jacqueline Davies
14. Hidden Figures: The True Story of Four Black Women and the Space Race by Margot Lee Shetterly
15. Caroline’s Comets: A True Story by Emily Arnold McCully
16. Step Right Up: How Doc and Jim Key Taught the World about Kindness by Donna Janell Bowman
17. Look Up!: Henrietta Leavitt, Pioneering Woman Astronomer by Robert Burleigh
18. The Girl Who Thought in Pictures: The Story of Dr. Temple Grandin by Julia Finley Mosca
19. Women in Science: 50 Fearless Pioneers Who Changed the World by Rachel Ignotofsky
Artists + Musicians to Learn About
20. When Marian Sang: The True Recital of Marian Anderson by Pam Munoz Ryan
21. Mr Cornell’s Dream Boxes by Jeanette Winter
22. Ella Fitzgerald : The Tale of a Vocal Virtuoso by Andrea Pinkney
23. The Iridescence of Birds: Henri Matisse by Patricia MacLaughlan
24. A Splash of Red: the Life and Art of Horace Pippin by Jen Bryant
25. Duke Ellington: the Piano Prince and his Orchestra by Andrea Davis Pinkney
26. Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker by Patricia Hruby Powell
27. Henri’s Scissors by Jeanette Winter
28. Becoming Bach by Tom Leonard
29. Viva Frieda by Yuyi Morales
30. Prairie Boy: Frank Lloyd Wright Turns the Heartland into a Home by Barb Rosenstock
31. Dancing Hands: How Teresa Carreño Played the Piano for President Lincoln by Margarita Engle
Biographies for Kids: Heroes from History
29. Thomas Jefferson: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Everything by Maira Kalman
30. To Dare Mighty Things: The Life of Theodore Roosevelt by Doreen Rappaport
31. The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, and the Fall of Imperial Russia by Candice Fleming
32. Amelia lost: The Life and Disappearance of Amelia Earhart by Candice Fleming
33. The Lincoln’s: A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and Mary by Candace Fleming
34. Rosa by Nikki Giovanni
35. What to do about Alice? by Barbara Kerley
36. Elizabeth Leads the Way by Tanya Lee Stone
37. Joan of Arc by Diane Stanley
38. Leif the Lucky by Ingri Daulaire
39. Columbus by Ingri Daulaire
41. George Washington by Ingri Daulaire
42. Benjamin Franklin by Ingri Daulaire
43. Buffalo Bill by Ingri Daulaire
44. Abraham Lincoln by Ingri Daulaire
45. Bard of Avon:William Shakespeare by Diane Stanley
46. Leonardo Davinci by Diane Stanley
47. Good Queen Bess by Dianne Stanley
48. Peter the Great by Dianne Stanley
49. Cleopatra by Diane Stanley
50. Along Came Galileo by Jeanne Bendick
51. Joan of Arc: Warrior Saint by Jay Williams
52. Thomas Jefferson Builds a Library by Barb Rosenstock
53. Now and Ben: The Modern Inventions of Benjamin Franklin by Gene Barretta
54. Eleanor by Barbara Cooney
55. A Boy Named FDR by Kathleen Krull
56. Alexander the Great by John Gunther
57. George Washington’s World by Genevieve Foster
58. The World of Captain John Smith by Genevieve Foster
59. The World of Christopher Columbus and Sons by Genevieve Foster
60. Augustus Caesar’s World by Genevieve Foster
61. Abraham Lincoln’s World by Genevieve Foster
62. Louis and Clark: Explorer’s of the American West by Steven Kroll
63. Encounter by Jane Yolen
64. Picture Book of Daniel Boone by David Adler
65. The Secret Subway by Shana Corey
66. Abraham by Frank Keating
67. Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom by Carole Boston Weatherford
68. Brave Clara Barton by Frank Murphy
69. Teedie: The Story of Young Teddy Roosevelt by Don Brown
70. The Poppy Lady: Moina Belle Michael and Her Tribute to Veterans by Barbara E. Walsh
71. First Mothers by Beverly Gherman
72. Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer: The Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement by Carole Boston Weatherford
73. Nurse, Soldier, Spy: The Story of Sarah Edmonds, a Civil War Hero by Marissa Moss
74. Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt by Deborah Hopkinson
75. Before She was Harriet by Lesa Cline-Ransome
76. Martin’s Big Words: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. by Doreen Rappaport
77. Nelson Mandela by Kadir Nelson
78. Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History by Vashti Harrison
Biographies about Writers
79. The Boy on Fairfield street: How Ted Geisel Grew Up to Become Dr. Suess by Kathleen Krull
80. Louisa: the Life of Louisa May Alcott by Yona Zeldis McDonough
82. Noah Webster and his Words by Jeri Chase Ferris
81. Going Solo by Roald Dahl
83. The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus by Jen Bryant
84. Planting Stories: The Life of Librarian and Storyteller Pura Belpré by Anika Aldamuy Denise
85. The Power of Her Pen: The Story of Groundbreaking Journalist Ethel L. Payne by Lesa Cline-Ransome
86. Balderdash!: John Newbery and the Boisterous Birth of Children’s Books by Michelle Markel
87. Malala’s Magic Pencil by Malala Yousafzai
Biographies for Kids About Amazing Athletes
88. Ali an American Champion by Barry Denenburg
90. Brothers at Bat by Audrey Vernick
91. The William Hoy Story: How a Deaf Baseball Player Changed the Game by Nancy Churnin
92. Charlie Takes His Shot: How Charlie Sifford Broke the Color Barrier in Golf by Nancy Churnin
93. Women in Sports: 50 Fearless Athletes Who Played to Win by Rachel Ignotofsky
Too Cool for Categories: Everyday Folks Who Made a Extraordinary Impact
94. Mr. Ferris and his Wheel by Kathryn Gibbs Davis
95. Iggy Peck, Architect by Andrea Beaty
96. The Story of Johnny Appleseed by Aliki
97. The Fairy Ring: Or Elsie and Frances Fool the World by Mary Losure
98. The Great and Only Barnum by Candice Fleming
99. Bon appétit! The Delicious Life of Julia Childs by Jessie Hartland
100. Daredevil: the Daring Life of Betty Skelton by Meghan Macarthy
101. Grandfather Gandhi by Arun Gandhi
102. Here come the Girl Scouts by Shana Correy
103. The Man who Walked Between the Towers by Mordecai Gernstein
104. Balloons over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy’s Parade by Melissa Sweet
105. Pocket Full of Colors: The Magical World of Mary Blair, Disney Artist Extraordinaire by Amy Guglielmo
106. Manjhi Moves a Mountain
107. Alice Waters and the Trip to Delicious by Jacqueline Briggs Martin
108. Courageous World Changers: 50 True Stories of Daring Women of God
109. Pies from Nowhere: How Georgia Gilmore Sustained the Montgomery Bus Boycott by Dee Romito
110. The Oldest Student: How Mary Walker Learned to Read by Rita Lorraine Hubbard
My hope is that, as a result of this big ol’ list, you and your children will discover amazing people whose stories should be continued to be shared. Most of all, I want my kids to know that reading and continuing to read will keep expanding their world!
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24 Comments
I love this list and have referenced it many times!!! Has anyone made an excel file of these to check off? Also my daughter loves to listen and so I’m wondering if anyone has found any of these on audiobooks?
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Great list!
Additional picture book biographies that we’ve enjoyed: Thank You, Sarah: The Woman Who Saved Thanksgiving by Laurie Halse Anderson Small Wonders: Jean-Henri Fabre & His World of Insects by Matthew Clark Smith The Noisy Paint Box: The Colors and Sounds of Kandinsky’s Abstract Art by Barb Rosenstock Shark Lady: The True Story of How Eugenie Clark Became the Ocean’s Most Fearless Scientist by Jess Keating Pippo the Fool by Tracey Fern
This list is fantastic! I order the biographies for our library and we were missing several of these. You know it’s a good list when the library already has most of the books and they are regularly checked out!
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This looks like an awesome list! However please note that Rosie Revere Engineer is NOT a biography. It’s a wonderful book about a little girl who wants to be an engineer, but it is NOT about Rosie the Riveter. There is an implication that the character’s great great aunt is the riveter but this is not a biography. Thank you very much for this list, it’s super helpful!
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Thank you so much! I love getting my kids biographies! Great looking list!
This is a goldmine! Thanks so much for compiling this list Alicia! My little bookworm will thank you for this. xo emily
This is incredible! I am always on the hunt for book list and adding in some biographies would be such an excellent learning tool. Like you, life fascinates me and I love reading about them!
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My daughter's class does a book report a month. She has done mysteries, but this month she will be reading the story of olympic gymnast Shaun Johnson. Callie is a gymnast as well (a newcomer)and I love that she will be reading about one of her heroes. You have compiled a great list. Makes me truly miss teaching reading.
Love this list! I'm looking for books to steer my kids to. 😉
Oh how I nerdily love this list! My girls have been reading a lot of biographies about people in the Revolutionary War and they have been loving them! Hooray for raising future biography nerds!!
Love love love this post! Thank you!
What a fun list'. We haven't really done much biography reading at all. This list will be a great place to start!
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