Tuesday, October 18, 2016

GROUP PROJECT: Adapting a fable or fairy tale for the stage

AGENDA:

In small groups, you will be adapting a fable or fairy tale for the stage.


Your project requires:


1. A script for a skit.

2. A set and costume design.

3. A song to be sung for the skit by a character(s) to set the scene.  You can write the words to any famous melody.

4. A performance for the class.



What is the difference between a fable and a fairy tale?


http://www.differencebetween.com/difference-between-fable-and-vs-fairy-tale/




1. Review with students the elements of a fable: characters, setting, events and a moral. In most fables the characters are animals. These animals usually represent specific human qualities(personification).
2. Review the concept of a moral. Tell students that fables are meant to teach a lesson or moral. The moral is usually revealed at the end of the fable. Sometimes the moral is delivered as a statement, such as "Be happy with what you have," or "It is easier to think up a plan than to carry it out."
3. Ask students to re-read The Ant and the Dove and have them orally identify the characters, setting, and moral of the story (the moral is already provided).


 The Ant and the Dove 


  AN ANT went to the bank of a river to quench its thirst, and
being carried away by the rush of the stream, was on the point of
drowning.  A Dove sitting on a tree overhanging the water plucked
a leaf and let it fall into the stream close to her.  The Ant
climbed onto it and floated in safety to the bank.  Shortly
afterwards a birdcatcher came and stood under the tree, and laid
his lime-twigs for the Dove, which sat in the branches.  The Ant,
perceiving his design, stung him in the foot.  In pain the
birdcatcher threw down the twigs, and the noise made the Dove
take wing.


 One good turn deserves another
4. Tell students that they will be reading more fables individually and that they must be able to identify key elements of the fables.
PrewritingTell students to make a plan before writing. For the pre-writing stage, encourage students to use graphic organizers (see below) to organize their ideas. Students should plan out the following:
  • Characters (for example, a cat and a dog)
  • Setting (for example, a vacant lot)
  • Events (for example, a dog encounters a cat who has a piece of meat)
  • Moral (for example, pick on animals your own size)
DraftingDirect students to follow the order of the original fable or the order of events they listed and to begin writing a first draft.
RevisingEliminate this step during this section. When students are in small groups, have the other group members revise and proofread the fable that they are choosing for the skit.
ProofreadingStudents should check spelling, capitalization, punctuation and word usage. This can be done using a word-processing program.
PublishingIn this final stage of the writing process, students submit their writing. They have the option of extending on the lesson by publishing their creative work in a number of outlets(submitting to a newspaper or literary magazine, for example).
FABLES:


Fox and the Grapes


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkZp4eH04c8&feature=player_embedded


Fox and the Grapes:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hACpLj0_EiA



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtnyD2uG8yo




Adapting a Fairy Tale:

http://writingfairytales.weebly.com/adapting-a-fairy-tale.html

Tuesday, October 11, 2016

Music as Inspiration

Play that Song

Turn on music that you love. Listen carefully.

1. How does the song make you feel?

Tap into the emotions the song conjures up. Consider the mood that the song sets. With a focus on that feeling—joy, sadness, triumph, love, regret, whatever it is—write a piece that also conveys the same emotion.

2. What do the lyrics make you think about?

Sometimes the lyrics will tell a story; try to expand on that story by writing it in prose form. Or perhaps the song gives you a portrait of a character; use that description and fill in the blanks to create your own scene. Or finally, the lyrics may take you back to a time in your past; mine that memory for inspiration and write about your own experience.

3. What kind of story would use this song as a soundtrack?

Imagine the story you are about to write will be made into a movie (we can dream, right?) and this song will be on the soundtrack. Use the song to dream up a movie-worthy plot point or to envision a new setting or character.
What type of music inspires you? Is there a specific song that really moves you?

PRACTICE

Choose a song to use as your inspiration. Listen to it start-to-finish, while keeping the questions above in mind.
Write for fifteen minutes about whatever the song inspires you to imagine. (You might have to play the song a few times on repeat!)

Thursday, October 6, 2016

Peter and the Wolf

AGENDA:

Go to the following link:

http://www.philtulga.com/Peter.html#04

1. Read the background about the composer.

2. Learn which instrument plays each character in the story.

3. Read the story.

4. Listen to the music:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ueGfjBKbiE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ot7m9i70JDg


5. Do the writing prompt indicated on the first link.

Monday, October 3, 2016

Alexander Hamilton Rap

[JEFFERSON]
And every day while slaves were being slaughtered and carted
Away across the waves, he struggled and kept his guard up

Inside, he was longing for something to be a part of
The brother was ready to beg, steal, borrow, or barter

[MADISON]
Then a hurricane came, and devastation reigned
Our man saw his future drip, dripping down the drain
Put a pencil to his temple, connected it to his brain
And he wrote his first refrain, a testament to his pain


[BURR]
Well, the word got around, they said, “This kid is insane, man”
Took up a collection just to send him to the mainland
“Get your education, don’t forget from whence you came, and

The world is gonna know your name. What’s your name, man?”

[HAMILTON]
Alexander Hamilton
My name is Alexander Hamilton
And there’s a million things I haven’t done
But just you wait, just you wait...


[ELIZA]
When he was ten his father split, full of it, debt-ridden
Two years later, see Alex and his mother bed-ridden
Half-dead sittin' in their own sick, the scent thick


[COMPANY]
And Alex got better but his mother went quick

[WASHINGTON]
Moved in with a cousin, the cousin committed suicide
Left him with nothin’ but ruined pride, something new inside
A voice saying

[WASHINGTON]
“You gotta fend for yourself.”
[COMPANY]
“Alex, you gotta fend for yourself.”
[BURR]
There would have been nothin’ left to do
For someone less astute
He woulda been dead or destitute
Without a cent of restitution
Started workin’, clerkin’ for
 his late mother’s landlord
Tradin’ sugar cane and rum and all the things he can’t afford
Scammin’ for every book he can get his hands on
Plannin’ for the future see him now as he stands on
The bow of a ship headed for a new land
In New York you can be a new man
 
 
 
 
 
 
[COMPANY]
Scammin’

Plannin’
Oooh...
[COMPANY]
In New York you can
Be a new man—
In New York you can
Be a new man—
 
[HAMILTON]
Just you wait!

Just you wait!
[WOMEN]
In New York—
 
[MEN]
New York—
[HAMILTON]
Just you wait!
[COMPANY]
Alexander Hamilton

We are waiting in the wings for you


You could never back down
You never learned to take your time!

Oh, Alexander Hamilton

When America sings for you
Will they know what you overcame?
Will they know you rewrote the game?
The world will never be the same, oh


[BURR]
The ship is in the harbor now
See if you can spot him


Another immigrant
Comin’ up from the bottom


His enemies destroyed his rep
America forgot him
[COMPANY]
Alexander Hamilton

Waiting in the wings for you


You never learned to take your time!

Oh, Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton…
America sings for you
Will they know what you overcame?
Will they know you rewrote the game?
The world will never be the same, oh



[MEN]
Just you wait

[COMPANY]
Just you wait
 
 

Historical RAP

AGENDA:

Continue to work on your historical RAP