Gifted or Goof Off

Part of Nancy Polette's Fact or Fiction Series
Texas Legacy Award Winner 2005
Use one of the collages in the Gallery of Celebrities with your students as a motivator to guess which famous people you’ll be reading about. Get a glimpse of the early life of well-known people in different professions. What do the experiences of these people tell us about persistence, perseverance, resolve, determination, achievement, accomplishment, victory and success? Enjoy the humor of Steele’s caricatures – writers, entertainers, musicians, sports figures, inventors, scientists, presidents, and military and world leaders, and discover how life experiences influenced their successes. Was Steven Spielberg REALLY rejected from film making school? Did over 25 publishers REALLY turn down Dr. Seuss’ first book? And JFK was class president at Harvard . . . wasn’t he? Were Cher’s first records REALLY flops? Was Winston Churchill REALLY last in his class? And Henry Ford invented the automobile . . . didn’t he? What struggles did Tom Cruise and George Patton have in common? Walt Disney, Lucille Ball, Elvis Presley, and Clint Eastwood all share an early experience that may have helped them become famous. What was it? What common school experience did Bill Gates and Orville and Wilbur Wright all share?