Language Arts 7

Today students began with a content read, whereby they explored their choice of Ancient Greek history or mythology.

Students then discussed in their groups what they read (each student had one minute to share).

Next, students got into their groups and were given a category of criteria to fill in for our Greek myth shadow puppet shows.  The criteria they created can be seen below:

Greek Myth Shadow Puppet Criteria

Criteria	Beginning	Developing	Accomplished	Exceeding
Acting -rehearsed -voices -pronunciation -skill/emotion	·       bad grammar and pronunciation ·       no emotion ·       has frequent pauses ·       not rehearsed	·       some emotion ·       pauses in the wrong places, but self-corrects ·       some voices used, but shifts and changes back to normal voice ·       somewhat rehearsed	·       good grammar and pronunciation ·       very few mistakes ·       always uses emotion ·       well-rehearsed	·       great grammar and confident pronunciation ·       almost no mistakes ·       pauses in the perfect spots ·       rehearsed a lot and taken seriously
Puppets and Staging -creativity -lighting -props	·       not very creative ·       no effort into props-they look rushed ·       dim lighting	·       kind of creative ·       put some effort into props ·       lighting is fine ·       overall, the play seems to need more	·       creative ·       lighting is good ·       props well made ·       shadows are clear	·       beautifully made ·       lots of effort ·       lighting is excellent ·       details in shadows ·       props are very creative
Script -formatted -clear -conventions	·       not in script format ·       messy and unclear what character says what ·       does not follow proper conventions	·       shows an attempt to format ·       attempt made to make things clear, but more effort could have been made ·       has some understanding of conventions	·       understands how to format a script ·       effort has been made to make the script clear ·       understands how to use conventions	·       script formatting experts ·       script is clear and goes beyond just a regular script (has interesting added details) ·       clear understanding of conventions, mistakes are rare if non-existent
Group Work -kind -respectful -equal -on task -listening	·       not interacting ·       disrespectful ·       unkind ·       talking out of turn ·       hardly listening	·       no acknowledgement of ideas ·       polite most of the time ·       some positive interactions ·       looking at speaker ·       everyone participates	·       sharing opinions openly ·       interacting positively ·       respect ideas ·       mostly polite ·       do not interrupt each other ·       shows good listening	·       sharing opinions and ideas respectfully ·       everyone shares equally ·       fully interacting ·       respecting all ideas ·       very kind and polite ·       focused ·       not interrupting the talker ·       looking at the speaker

Finally, students were briefed on how to actually write a script.  We practiced together and a sample can be seen below:

Theseus and The Minotaur

Narrator: Aegeus, the king of Athens, and Aethra, daughter of Troezen, were married and were expecting a child.

Aegeus: Athens can be a dangerous place, Aethra.  There are always people who plot against the king. Stay here with your father and raise our child in the peaceful countryside.

Students will be working on this project for the next few classes.