Summarizing information is an important postreading and prewriting activity that helps students synthesize what they have learned. This tool allows students to develop an outline of a person whose biography or autobiography they have just read; it can also be used before students write their own autobiography. Specific prompts ask students to describe a person’s significance, background, and personality. The finished printout can be folded into a fun cube shape that can be used for future reference.

Visit this interactive tool at: http://readwritethink.org/materials/bio_cube/.

ReadWriteThink Lessons That Use This Tool

A Biography Study: Using Role-Play to Explore Authors' Lives (9-12)
In this lesson, eleventh-grade students read biographies and explore websites of selected American authors. They collaborate in teams to design creative projects and role-play as the authors in a panel presentation. They then synthesize their knowledge into essays about their authors.

Author Study: Improving Reading Comprehension Using Inference and Comparison (3-5)
Fourth- and fifth-grade students read picture books by an author/illustrator, make inferences about the author based on the works, compare two biographies of the author finding discrepancies between them, study the work of another author/illustrator, and compose their own brief author biography.

Biography Project: Research and Class Presentation (6-8)
Students improve their comprehension in this biography project through the use of graphic organizers, rubrics, and cooperative learning. They each research a famous person, make a graphic organizer (a web), present main aspects of the person's life to the class, and give feedback to one another throughout the project.

Gaining Background for the Graphic Novel Persepolis: A WebQuest on Iran (9-12)
To prepare students for reading the graphic novel Persepolis, this lesson uses a WebQuest to focus students’ research efforts on finding reliable information about Iran before and during the Islamic Revolution. In groups, students research and then present information on aspects of Iran such as politics, religion, and culture.

Getting to Know You: Developing Short Biographies to Build Community (3-5)
Learning thrives when we develop classroom communities in which students feel understood, respected, and free to take risks. In this lesson, designed for the beginning of the school year, students will learn about each other’s lives and interests by conducting interviews and developing simple biographies using the interactive Bio-Cube.

Great American Inventors: Using Nonfiction to Learn About Technology Inventions (3-5)
In this lesson, students read several biographies focusing on American inventors who made significant contributions to the development of technology. They then collaborate, research, and develop presentations that highlight how these inventions from the past impacted the future.

Guided Comprehension in Action: Teaching Summarizing With the Bio-Cube (6-8)
Biographies can engage and motivate students in the classroom, helping them make personal connections to figures both past and present. They can also be used to teach students information about research and summarizing. In this lesson, students use websites to research self-chosen biography subjects and complete an online summarizing tool.

Investigating the Holocaust: A Collaborative Inquiry Project (6-8)
As students progress though this inquiry project, they explore a variety of resources—texts, images, sounds, photos, and other artifacts—as they learn about the Holocaust. Working collaboratively, they investigate the materials, prepare response to share orally with the class, and produce a topic-based newspaper to complete their research.

My Life/Your Life: A Look at Your Parents’ Past (6-8)
When students have opportunities to connect their life experiences with reading and writing, they grow as literacy learners. In this lesson, students explore their parents’ experiences as middle school students, create imaginary diary entries, and develop dramatic skits.

Paul Revere: American Patriot (3-5)
In this lesson that allows curricular integration, students explore the life and legend of Paul Revere. Websites that describe Paul Revere’s life, his well-known ride, and his occupation are investigated and discussed. Information from these sources is then used for center activities and projects.

Sonic Patterns: Exploring Poetic Techniques Through Close Reading (9-12)
Students will gain a deeper appreciation for the art of poetry as they develop close reading skills connecting sound with sense in the frequently anthologized poem “Those Winter Sundays” and write an original text that reflects their new learning.

Storytelling in the Social Studies Classroom (3-5)
This lesson invites third- to fifth-grade students to explore their personal and cultural histories by becoming super storytellers! Students begin by telling personal stories about themselves and their families before moving on to stories about famous Americans.

Strategic Reading and Writing: Summarizing Antislavery Biographies (3-5)
Students discuss the strategy of summarizing and why it is essential for making meaning from text. Using a graphic organizer and the Bio-Cube tool, they read and summarize short biographies about antislavery heroes and then present their heroes in mixed-ability jigsaw groups.

Writers’ Workshop: The Biographical Sketch (3-5)
This lesson, which is targeted specifically to fourth grade, gives students the opportunity to practice writing short biographical sketches in a workshop setting. The classroom exercises help students develop critical writing skills and complement their content area learning.

Zines for Kids: Multigenre Texts About Media Icons (3-5)
Using ReadWriteThink.org online tools, students write short pieces in a variety of genres about a favorite media icon. After working with each tool, students print out their work and assemble the documents into their own zines.