Reading biographies, autobiographies, memoirs, and diaries provide people one of the most valuable lessons in life. People who write their autobiographies usually have an interesting story to tell about the trials and tribulations of their own lives. Every life has a beginning, middle, and an end, and how one has lived one’s life should be of great interest to those who are still at the beginning.
Exploring biographies through children’s literature offers an enriching experience that motivates children and adolescents to learn and critically reflect in a new way. Reading biographies not only allows them to gain valuable new perspectives, but it also encourages their own self-discovery. In learning about the life of another, they create comparisons and differences and they become familiar not only with the lives of famous scientists or artists but also with those of ordinary people with their failures, successes, challenges, feelings, and emotions.
The exposure of children to biography has been declining in many ways. However,
contemporary research emphasises that there has been a shift in children’s books towards a more innovative, historical, literary and interdisciplinary approach, offering meaningful messages also about environmental and social activism.
The aim of this conference is to investigate the shift that has occurred in both children’s fiction and non-fiction and to explore some research paths with scholars and authors that can help to expand children’s literature horizons on biographical studies.

IN-PERSON VENUE: Aula Magna, Rovigo, CUR – University of Padova

VIRTUAL VENUE: ZoomRegistration: https://forms.gle/FKvr2BGVXToCccEk9

IN-PERSON VENUE: Aula 1, Complesso Beato Pellegrino – University of Padova

Registration: https://biografie-infanzia.eventbrite.it

Contact:

University of Padova

Department of Philosophy, Sociology,

Education and Applied Psychology FISPPA

General information: marnie.campagnaro@unipd.it

Registration: chiara.malpezzi@phd.unipd.it