Mrs.+Faulkenberry

=﻿ Romeo and Juliet: Another Place, Another Time=

Project Overview
After reading and studying Elizabethan drama and //Romeo and Juliet//, students scanned the play for scenes/parts of scenes to dramatize. The class reached consensus on three scenes. Students got to choose which scene they wanted to work on. Then they counted the number of characters in each scene. and it worked out pretty well because of flexibility in adding characters not in the Shakespearean version. Almost all the students were satisfied with their parts and everybody had a part. Next, using the mini-computers, each group collaborated on a re-write of their scene set in another place and time. There were eighteenth century pirates, settlers and Indians, feuding fraternities, and more. The scripts contained staging directions as well as dialogue. Each student wrote his/her lines with the approval of the group. Students memorized their parts and practiced the dialogue; then they rehearsed on the stage. They also created their own costumes. The groups took turnes using the Flip cameras to video each other in performance. They did lots of "retakes" when they made mistakes. When the entire scene was on the Flip camera, the students used the editing feature--built right into the Flip camera--to create their movies.

SLE's

 * R.10.9.11 Read.....an Elizabethan tragedy.
 * R.10.9.12 Identify the two basic parts of drama: staging and scripting.
 * R.10.9.15 Describe how stage directions help the reader understand the setting, mood, characters, plot, and theme.
 * OV.1.9.4 Perform...scenes from a play.
 * W.4.9.6 Adapt content vocabulary, voice, aand tone to audience and purpose.
 * W.4.9.15 Use available technology for all aspects of the writing process.
 * W.5.9.7 Write responses to literature.

Student-Created Projects
media type="custom" key="6684415"Lambda Ki (Chi) vs. Sig Ep

media type="custom" key="6684451"Rising Mountain and Julie Anna

Reflection
I'm delighted with the results of this assignment. Students really assumed ownership of the project. They developed team spirit and tapped their strengths and talents. A parent arranged for them to raid the wardrobe closet of the high school drama department, and they went on a school bus during class to choose what they wanted to wear. Some brought props from home, and others brought materials and made props, like cardboard swords. It was fun to watch students who had been reluctant to speak up in class start to bloom as actors and have fun in the process. A lot of laughing went on. Best of all, the scripts adhered to the themes and spirits of the chosen scenes. The tail did not wag the dog. Students who had never edited a film learned how to do it, taught by their classmates.

However, the project took three times as long as I had planned. The time of year was partly to blame. Students were pulled away from class for field trips, competitions, track meets, baseball, etc. I will plan this type of project at a different time of year hereafter. It was too hard to get everybody together. Also, the work load was not equitable. Some of the parts were much longer than others. I'm thinking of expanding the choices from just //Romeo and Juliet// to several other Elizabethan plays. I'm thinking of a "literature circles" approach for the selection process. Scenes with fewer parts might help to solve both of these problems.