Exploring Biographies and Bias

Last week Fourth Grade delved into social studies by writing biographies of their classmates. Each student in the class brought in five or more objects from home that represented something important from their life. Each student revealed their objects to a partner, who then asked them questions about each object to try to illicit stories and insights about their life. Once both partners got the chance to ask questions about each other and take notes, they then used the notes they took and the information they gathered to write a short biography about their partner.

Students then shared with the class the biography they had written about their partner. We discussed how difficult it felt to write a biography. We also noticed how the biographies were incomplete, containing gaps or made-up information and how that was based on the kinds of questions partners asked each other.

Connecting this experience to the practice of reading biographies and historical texts, we discussed how these may not always be very accurate or complete, and in fact often contain bias based on the perspective of the people who wrote them. Fourth graders will continue to cultivate an eye for bias as we delve into our social studies learning throughout the year.