Neat-O Ideas for biographies

Neat-o? 
Oh, I said it and I stand by it.  

I asked my Twitter colleagues if they had any ideas for how to do the infamous biography report with my students in creative ways and they delivered.  I am finally taking the time to scour them and get my students ready to research and share their findings in creative ways.  Here are the ideas that were shared with me: (In no particular order.)

1.  From @BradyVenables
Co-create a template with the kids so they can decide what important facts are for bios!

I so often have to be reminded of including my students in the planning.  It's the whole it-is-easier-if-i-do-it-myself mentality that creeps in so easily.  (I am reminded of when I let my young sons help me cook...)  And I get it.  Sometimes it is best to just plop it out there with three easy choices.  But I commit right here and right now to letting my students help sculpt our direction.

2.  From @joliboucher (also suggested by @MrsErinFisher)
Here is a succinct Google Slides Template shared by Joli Boucher.  What I love about this layout is that Joli not only gives students a template, she also coaches them in her descriptive text boxes on the side.  Thank you so much for sharing this, Joli!

3.  Michele Eaton @micheeaton shared this idea: 50 Ways to Tell a Story from @AZYearbookGiant.  I love this because it gets me out of my default ideas and gets me thinking about new ways to think of information.  Thank you, Michele and Jen Crutcher.

4.  Matt Miller of Ditch that Textbook shared this Time Magazine Google Slides Template from Ryan O'Donnell @creativeedtech.  I am in awe of this template!  It is not just a template.  Ryan gives different tips and resources along the way. He guides the learner in making a visually appealing and well-structured project.   It is like having  a coach within the slides.  The visuals and humor in these slides make it highly appealing as well.  What I like about these slides is that students have a structure, but then they can make it their own.  

5.  Kasey Bell was generous enough to point me towards her article on Fake Instagram accounts.  Carly Black @teachmomrepeat made a Google Slides template to use with her students.  Here is a guest blogpost by Carly on Kasey's Blog Shake Up Learning.  Click on the picture below to find a link to Carly's template.  Thank you Kasey and Carly!