Tried something new today with Hamlet. We're winding down, having finished the cold reading of the play and now having finished watching Zefferelli's filmed version. Along the way, just to keep it interesting, I've been playing clips from YouTube that the kids have sent me (the Animaniacs version of Hamlet is their favorite so far, but I'm partial to the Gilligan's Island clip). If nothing else, they've come to understand just how pervasive Shakespeare's work is in our culture.
So what did I do new? I gave them a 3x5 card and told them to put their names on the card and then told them they had the opportunity to ask any question of any character in Hamlet. Just ask it --don't try to answer it (my goal was to get true questions...ones they really didn't have an answer for).
And true questions they gave me! From the truly perplexed came questions addressed to Ophelia (why didn't you just tell Hamlet your father was behind the arras?), and Gertrude (you knew Claudius was a murderer, why did you drink the drink when he told you not to?). From the curious came the questions to Claudius (was getting the throne worth killing your brother) and Hamlet himself (did you really love Ophelia or were you just using her?).
Of course, we have the light-hearted questions as well (to Hamlet: what's your middle name? to Rosencrantz: why do you hang around with Guildenstern all the time?). But each one shows their curiousity and ability to go deeper into the text with questions.
Tomorrow comes the fun part. Well, I think it's fun, anyway. I've typed up all the questions they asked on a separate sheet. Each student will be required to choose FIVE of the questions and give it their best shot at answering as if he/she is the character. This will (theoretically) force them to think about character motivations and desires. Once I've collected their answers, I'm planning a simple cut and paste of the answers back to each of the original questioners. It should be as if they asked the character the question...and the character answered back.
Okay, lol, that's the plan. I'll let you know if it works!
CD
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Friday, November 9, 2007
Went to a workshop today...
...and after introducing the speaker, the teacher in charge then said, "And all of you with your laptops up, put them down and listen."
And that pushed a button.
DON'T tell me to put my laptop down. Why the heck do I have it if not to take notes and make connections? Shouldn't she rather be ENCOURAGING the use of the laptops to make connections between his presentation and our own learning???? Shouldn't she be telling us to feel free to access his site and bring up questions we have for the speaker based not only on what he tells us, but on what we discover?
Until we change the attitudes of the teachers, we will NEVER catch the attention of the students. Teaching to a room full of laptops is a reality teachers can no longer ignore. It's time to stop living in the 19th century. The 20th century saw the introduction of the filmstrip, the slide projector, the overhead projector, the 16mm film projector. All ways of projecting information onto a static surface. Passive education. Watch, but don’t touch.
Today’s education no longer has those tools. Filmstrip projectors gather dust. The slide carousels are relegated to the top shelves of department centers, their slots filled with faded artworks and broken cassette tapes. Video cassettes have replaced the 16mm projector, but the concept is still the same. Be quiet and watch the movie.
So education, without these tools, must go one of two ways. Either is must slide back to the 19th century with a dependence on books, chalkboards and paper…or it must embrace the NEW technologies: the computer, the Ipod, the cellphone, email.
Too often we have slid to the familiar rather than challenge ourselves to the difficult. How can we expect our students to accept the minor daily challenges we throw at them if we are too scared, too complacent, too stuck-in-our-ways to take on a challenge ourselves?
Critical thinking skills are vital. But how should those skills be taught? Therein lies the issue. Understanding the ins and outs of a mathematical construct or being able to analyze and synthesize information found in textbooks are needed skills. But so is the ability to determine the validity of a website or information gathered from a variety of sources, the Internet included.
*****
In reading back over this, I see in my rant that I have actually touched lightly on several subjects and dealt with none in detail. Will post again later and show what I'm doing in the classroom to challenge both myself and my students and you'll see...they really ARE responding. And yes, responding positively ! :)
And that pushed a button.
DON'T tell me to put my laptop down. Why the heck do I have it if not to take notes and make connections? Shouldn't she rather be ENCOURAGING the use of the laptops to make connections between his presentation and our own learning???? Shouldn't she be telling us to feel free to access his site and bring up questions we have for the speaker based not only on what he tells us, but on what we discover?
Until we change the attitudes of the teachers, we will NEVER catch the attention of the students. Teaching to a room full of laptops is a reality teachers can no longer ignore. It's time to stop living in the 19th century. The 20th century saw the introduction of the filmstrip, the slide projector, the overhead projector, the 16mm film projector. All ways of projecting information onto a static surface. Passive education. Watch, but don’t touch.
Today’s education no longer has those tools. Filmstrip projectors gather dust. The slide carousels are relegated to the top shelves of department centers, their slots filled with faded artworks and broken cassette tapes. Video cassettes have replaced the 16mm projector, but the concept is still the same. Be quiet and watch the movie.
So education, without these tools, must go one of two ways. Either is must slide back to the 19th century with a dependence on books, chalkboards and paper…or it must embrace the NEW technologies: the computer, the Ipod, the cellphone, email.
Too often we have slid to the familiar rather than challenge ourselves to the difficult. How can we expect our students to accept the minor daily challenges we throw at them if we are too scared, too complacent, too stuck-in-our-ways to take on a challenge ourselves?
Critical thinking skills are vital. But how should those skills be taught? Therein lies the issue. Understanding the ins and outs of a mathematical construct or being able to analyze and synthesize information found in textbooks are needed skills. But so is the ability to determine the validity of a website or information gathered from a variety of sources, the Internet included.
*****
In reading back over this, I see in my rant that I have actually touched lightly on several subjects and dealt with none in detail. Will post again later and show what I'm doing in the classroom to challenge both myself and my students and you'll see...they really ARE responding. And yes, responding positively ! :)
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