Finding the theme may be one of the trickiest concepts to teach in reading! I like to tackle it using a variety of teaching tools and using biographies to teach theme is one of my favorites! Here are a few tips for teaching theme or the central message using biographies: 1. Use Picture Book Biographies With upper elementary students, I like to use picture book biographies, instead of chapter books for teaching theme, especially in the beginning. There are several reasons for this: Picture book biographies are usually "quick reads" and can be read in a single setting, which means that multiple biographies may be read over the course of a week. Picture books are less intimidating (and seem like less of a chore) for most students, so buy-in is greater. Picture books are usually very focused, so the theme of a person's life story should be evident. Picture books are often plentiful in classroom or school libraries. If that's not the case with y......