Pathfinder: Biographies

Step 1: Define your task: Look at the assignment/essential question.

Step 2: What materials might be useful for the project? Books, Encyclopedias, Online Encyclopedias, Websites.

Step 3: Find the material.

• Books about individuals - Use the Online Catalog ..
• Biographical Encyclopedias: Look in the 920s in reference and the general collection.
• Encyclopedias: World Book Encyclopedia: R 030 Wor. A great source of information about people.
• Online Encyclopedias: Grolier;s Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia and Encyclopedia Americana include basic information about many different people.
• Online Databases: Gale’s Student Resource Center Gold and Biography Resource Center include information about many individuals.

Websites: The best free websites with biographical information are simply subsets of the Biography Resource Center, which is far more complete. The two sites listed below are useful as well:

• A&E’s Biography.com http://www.biography.com/
• Information Please Biography http://www.infoplease.com/people.html

Step 4: Use the material. Read it and take notes. CITE YOUR SOURCES!!!

Step 5: Synthesize the information: Prepare and present the skit, poster, power point, song, poem, or other approved product. PREPARE YOUR BIBLIOGRAPHY.

Step 6: Evaluate: Does the project address the essential question? Have you met the requirements for the assignment?

"This web page contains links to one or more web pages that are outside the FCPS network. FCPS does not control the content or relevancy of these pages."

Web Curator: Les.Jones@fcps.edu

Last Update: 11/18/05

Web Page Designer: Kathy Noble