Lit Circles with Student Choice, Autonomy, & Control

As we approach the end the school year, and engage in our final unit of study, students are in groups, reading a novel they selected (from a provided list).  This spring, the student options are: The Secret Life of Bees, The Things They Carried, and The Road.  Students rated the books after listening to a book talk on each, indicating their level of interest.  Based on their responses, I placed them in groups (as best I could) with their top choices.

Students prepare analyses of what they've read based on a teacher-created schedule; however, students determine how much they read for each scheduled day.  I try to give them as much autonomy as possible, but for this final unit, I selected the topics they would discuss (characterization, setting, syntax, structure, etc) so that they could be best prepared for the final exam.

Here they are discussing their novels on their first collaborative discussion day:

   

Just Being in a Different Space....

There is something about simply being in a different space that will help spark something new in us.  No matter whether that is on a vacation, or  through changing the furniture design in our living rooms, or taking a class to a new and different space, we are bound to have a new experience just by occupying different space.  So was the case when this semester's students ventured to see La La Land at our local theatre, The Catlow (www.thecatlow.com).

After all, it's far more fun to watch a film on the BIG screen rather than on our little big screen in the classroom.  And there's just something about being in that space that brings the best out of some students.  Being in this larger space, out of school hours, allowed us to mix and blend our classes.

Here's what I loved most about this experience:

1.  There are 3 different film teachers at our high school, so I loved collaborating with them--and best of all, our students got to mingle with students from the other classes.

2.  We film teachers don't all use the exact same films in our courses, so it was fun to see them discuss the films they were watching, make recommendations, complain about Citizen Kane still being considered "The Greatest Film of All Time," etc.

3.  Students who don't always participate in class came out of their shells and shared great ideas about La La Land.  There's just something about being in a new space that can be so refreshing and rewarding.


My first shot, sans flash:
   

The second one--that blinded them.  Oops.

Coaching Our Writers with Student Samples

Upon returning essays, I always take time to discuss with my students overall what they did well and what we can improve upon.  After we review those successes and areas for improvement, I will read aloud an essay that was particularly good.  I want them to hear good writing--writing that seems as though it was meant to be read out loud.  And then, we will discuss what stood out to them about the essay.  Typically, I read one entire essay.  However, sometimes I choose excerpts from multiple essays.  When I do that, I try to provide visuals for them (as the image below) that include my comments.  I'll explain my comments and what I thought the writer had done well.  I also always try to give students the opportunity to share what they thought was good.   It is also important to me to stress to my students that the writing need not be perfect.  We just focus on our specific goals (writing with fluidity, supporting a central claim, using precise language, etc) and discuss how the writer is working to achieve that goal.  The excerpt below is from a student essay in our Critical Studies in Literature and Film class.  The essay was produced in class, and it focuses on developing an argument that addresses whether or not Citizen Kane should be considered the Greatest Film of All Time.


About my notes above:

1.  I wrote the smiley face because I liked that the student was addressing a dual idea: 1) that scene draws a viewer in; 2) a tacit implication that he was wishing for more
2.  I LOVE the phrase "visual summary."  It is so precise and to the point--and addresses exactly that moment in the film.
3.  I also marked "to churn the fire" because I thought it was a slight nod to the surprise ending of the film.

I use these notes to discuss with the students what I loved about their writing.  I think the more positive things I have to say and the more excitement I show about their writing--the more likely they are to be energized to keep developing & growing themselves as writers.

A Supreme Dedication

Q: What do Rick Astley














and Carl from Up

have in common?




A: They come together in a perfect marriage to create this joke:

















One of our classmates posts a Joke of the Day EVERY. DAY.  His dedication is supreme.  And while he knows that his classmates during his single period enjoy the jokes, I have the benefit of seeing students enjoying the Joke all day.  Even students who have class in our classroom--but are not my personal students--make comments about how much they love the Joke of the Day.  One of my juniors admitted to logging the jokes in her notebook each day.  I absolutely love how one student is affecting others' happiness all day.  And what's best about it--I didn't ask him to do it.  I had this student last year in Junior Honors English, and he joined me this semester (the last of his senior year) for our Studies in Lit and Film class.  At some point last year, he and a friend just started putting jokes up on the board.  And they didn't do it for my benefit. They even wrote them when I wasn't present (and they had a substitute).   Happily, on Day 1 of our class this semester, he marched right up to the board and picked up where he left off.  In truth, I'd like to relegate some other fun tasks and responsibilities to students.  I think it would be really fun to have, say, a Birthday Liaison.  I celebrate my students' birthdays--but maybe it would be more fun if their classmates did the celebrating?  This is something I considered back when I read ReLeah Lent's book Overcoming Textbook Fatigue.

(https://www.amazon.com/Overcoming-Textbook-Fatigue-Revitalize-Teaching/dp/1416614729)


In this book, Lent suggests a variety of ways to let go--and give students control, such as creating teams.  She suggests the following types of teams:

Current Events Team
Writing Team
Social Team (they'd be the ones in charge of birthdays, secret pals, Jokes of the Day)
Other Special Teams such as: art, technology, book, logistics.


Overall, this student has not only given me a daily laugh, he has inspired me to attempt to release the reins for a variety of tasks to my students.

All Part of the Shakesperiance

In addition to students' Presentational Speaking and Listening Summative Assessments, students also engage with a close reading of Shakespeare as a part of their summative experience in this unit.  To prep, (in addition to reading & close reading Hamlet) students practice "translating" several sonnets and speeches from other Shakespeare plays.  In the photos below, you will see students engaging in their Meet and Greet (or Move, Pair, Share) to discuss their progress with a sonnet.  In prepping with these several formative experiences, I have students approach the readings in a variety of ways, including, but not limited to:

1.  On their own
2.  With a partner
3.  On their own and then moving to meet with a partner
4.  In a trio
5.  Students approach different sonnets on their own and then go discuss them with students who had different sonnets
6.  Groups of students tend to the same sonnet on their own--and then go meet with people who had the same sonnet to discuss their progress


All of the practicing and close reading paid off!  Nearly all students met or exceeded expectations on the Summative Assessment!
 
 

Show; Don't Tell

Ah...the writing mantra that swirls the halls of many a high school...SHOW; don't tell.  Our classroom is no exception, and contrary to the erroneous belief that we're simply playing the Thesaurus Game, "Show; Don't Tell" does get to the heart of good writing.  Show; Don't Tell helps language come alive and make the words dance off the page--in a way that allows a reader to experience what the writer hopes to express.

In preparation for our What's Your Story personal essays, students worked on some Show; Don't Tell phrasing today.  And while, yes, many of them used the thesaurus to produce their sentences, I'd argue that playing the Thesaurus Game alone cannot craft the beauty that is present in a carefully developed sentence/image.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1tOqZUNebs



Check out these beauties:

Listening to her children, she paused and began to rub her temples.  Looking as if she was thinking hard, she decided to get Advil from the cabinet.

The water rushing against his small feet, a smile peaked on his face as he felt a sudden tug.  Struggling against the weight, he hauled in the slimy creature out of the waves.

As the bright light raced against the meadows, the flowers upon them awakened from their sleep.  The explosion of light filled the darkness.  Nothing could hid in the shadows.

On the corner of her daily stroll, waiting to cross the street, her head spun towards the sound of screeching tires and metal colliding.

A meadow, lifeless and still, was illuminated by the bright orange ball of light.

Birds began to sing and inspire, with the first winds swaying and rustling the bristling pines.  

What________Loved: A Valentiny Exploration

In homage to Valentine's Day, our film students wrote lists of what characters loved.  Inspired by the Academy of American Poets' list "What Sylvia Plath Loved", I assigned my students to come up with a list of what a particular character loved.

First, check out the Sylvia Plath list:  https://www.poets.org/poetsorg/text/what-sylvia-plath-loved

Pretty cool, right?

So, students were tasked with creating a list with examples of what, say, Forrest Gump loved.

Here they are at work:

 
 




Here are a few student examples:

Forrest Gump:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1vJwLiFsRDuukAJowHpSd5UD8XACNMrlTAOQZ5abfMrE/edit

Ron Burgundy
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1YnKavOEduv3s_yB8X711duZn6hGZtp-NH59snk-8SI8/edit

Cher Horowitz
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1TpVde8Acq-gtQNCTM4B-jscBEs6rNmK4QWbtuoTKWBo/edit