The Biography Inquiry project for our Adversity unit is an opportunity for students to exercise choice in their learning. Students will choose a famous person, from past or present, who has overcome adversity. Like each of our inquiry projects, we will follow our four main steps: Questioning, Researching, Project-Building, and a Presentation of Learning.

The project has two components: a biography about the person of their choice with information about their childhood, their struggles and the adversity they faced, and how they overcame these obstacles to achieve success. The second component is an item, artifact, creation, or costume that celebrates the person they've chosen to research.

Examples of artifacts can include a wide variety of creations and I am always open to hearing new ideas. This is not an exhaustive list:

• costume-outfit as the person of interest

• an artwork - painting, drawing, sculpture, model, needle-point, etc. celebrating the person of interest

• a song about the person of interest and their life

• a model of something that the person of interest built, designed, invented, etc.

• a demonstration of a skill the person of interest is famous for (ie. dance style, famous trick shot, guitar riff, etc)

• a collage of the person of interest using magazine clippings, photos, and words

• a dramatic skit created in-person, or on video that depicts a major life event of the person of interest

The criteria for choosing a person of interest to research is:

• must be famous for something, past or present

• must have gone through adversity that aligns with global issues of inequity. Examples include racism, sexism, classism, poverty, homophobia, child labour, human rights issues such as lack of access to clean water, education, sanitary conditions, safety, lack of identity, war, refugee-status, women's rights, caste system, etc.

The people provided below and the links to resources about them are here to help you make a good choice. You do not have to choose someone from this website, but you will need to show Mrs. S three quality research resources you found in order to choose someone else.