Criteria+for+Selecting+Biography

What criteria should you consider when selecting biographies?
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There are three elements to take into consideration when selecting biographies for children:
 * What are the criteria for selecting a biography? **
 * 1) **Characterization**: Does the biography bring the character to life? In some good biographies the writer describes the character and some of his or her faults. In //When Marian Sang// by Pam Munoz Ryan, the reader learns about Marian Anderson through the illustrations as well as the text of the story. Her closed eyes as she sings and emotional expressions make her seem real, human to the reader. Another example is // Lives of the Writers: Comedies, Tragedies (and What the Neighbors Thought) // by Kathleen Krull in which she delivers some little known stories about the famous people she is writing about.
 * 2) **Factual Accuracy**: It is important to go beyond a good story when writing a biography. The factual information about the subject of a biography needs to plentiful and accurate. Primary sources such as photographs and copies of documents in a text are indicators of factual information. A list of sources or a timeline of the subject’s life is also a great addition to a well-written biography. There should be a balance between fact and storyline.
 * 3) **Worthiness of Subject**: The final criteria to look at in selecting biographies for children is ensuring that the subject is worthy of children reading about him or her. Asking if the person “has made a significant impact on the world that children should be aware of” is a place to start. Some choices, such as world leaders and scientists and inventors, are obvious. Odd Boy Out by Don Brown is about a young Albert Einstein, a name that most children are familiar with and it is written in such a way that children can connect their own lives to Einstein’s story. It is also important to include balanced biographies of antiheroes, such as Adolph Hitler, in a collection. When looking at biographies of pop culture icons like Britney Spears or the Beatles, it is important to think about their “significant impact” on the world, not just their current popularity. Finally biographies of little-known heroes are important to include. In I, Matthew Henson by Carole Boston Weatherford the reader learns that because Henson was an African American man his critical role in reaching the North Pole with Admiral Peary has been downplayed throughout history. Exposing children to stories such as this one is critical in our efforts to change ideas and attitudes about prejudice and discrimination.

Works Cited: Brown, Don//. Odd Boy Out: Young Albert Einstein//. Sandpiper Reprint Edition, 2008.

Krull, Kathleen//. Lives of the Writers: Comedies, Tragedies (and What the Neighbors Thought)//. Illustrated by Katherine Hewitt. New York: Harcourt Children’s Books, 1994.

Ryan, Pam Munoz//. When Marian Sang//. Illustrated by Brian Selznick. New York: Scholastic Press, 2002.

Weatherford, Carole Boston//. I, Matthew Henson: Polar Explorer//. Illustrated by Eric Velasquez. New York: Walker & Company, 2008.

Norton, Donna E. //Through the Eyes of a Child: An Introduction to Children’s Literature 7th Edition//. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson/‌Merrill Prentice Hall, 2007. Print.