1. Have an oral discussion (brainstorming) by asking students to share what they know about biographies and autobiographies. Try to make connections to any texts that have been covered in class. 
   
   
2. Explain the concept of “alphabiography” with the class by writing it on the board. Invite students to share their reactions to the term, encouraging them to break the word into two parts to determine its meaning. 
   
   
3. Tell students that they will also be crafting their own alphabiographies, writing about a person, place, thing, or event for each letter of the alphabet. Everything has to be connected to their own lives.
4.  Explain that after the entries, students will sum up the life story by recording life lessons (what they have learned from the experiences). 
5. They will research for the meaning of their names and interview their parents of how they got the idea of naming them that way.
6. They must include pictures of at least three different stages in their lives, such as a newborn, first day at school, religious events, first Christmas, or first school picture
7. Create a timeline of their lives, starting with the day they were born
8.  Complete sentences with their interests, following a strict alphabetical order. 
9. Check their work by asking: “What should be included in each entry?” and “What should we do if they cannot think of anything for a letter of the alphabet?” 
   
   
10. Record the requirements and tips on the board and use the information to create the students’ self-assessment checklist to be shared at the next session. 

STUDENT ASSESSMENT/REFLECTIONS

Review the work that students complete during this project on an on-going basis for the thoroughness and completeness. As students work on their entries, talk to them and observe their work. Pay particular attention to the connections they make from their life to their writing. Collect completed self-assessments when collecting the finished alphabiographies, and use the checklist to provide feedback on students’ work. As you review the artifacts, look for evidence that students’ assessment accurately reflects their performance in the alphabiographies. Focus feedback on places where students’ understanding of the requirements seems lacking and/or where their performance does not match the assessment they completed.

Common Core Standards

1. Students apply a wide range of strategies to comprehend, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate texts. They draw on their prior experience, their interactions with other readers and writers, their knowledge of word meaning and of other texts, their word identification strategies, and their understanding of textual features (e.g., sound–letter correspondence, sentence structure, context, graphics).

2. Students adjust their use of spoken, written, and visual language (e.g., conventions, style, vocabulary) to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences and for different purposes.

 3. Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audiences for a variety of purposes.

 4. Students apply knowledge of language structure, language conventions (e.g., spelling and punctuation), media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss print and nonprint texts.

5. Students participate as knowledgeable, reflective, creative, and critical members of a variety of literacy communities.

 6. Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information).