Acting Out Class Summary 3/4/13

Yesterday, we wrapped up our discussion and performance of The Golden Fleece: The Voyage of Jason and the Argonauts.

Both Susan and I were very pleased (and impressed) with many of the diary entry homework shares. Some students used a considerable amount of detail from the reading (Sailing the Wine-Dark Sea) and also incorporated information from both Part I and Part II scripts. Nicely done -- keep it up!

Before performing Part II for the final time, we paused to analyze many themes from the the story, including -- teamwork, personal responsibility, the purpose of a life "quest," leadership, what makes a good role model, victimization vs. villainy, and female assertiveness.  All in a day's work!

The students also completed a 5-minute in class writing challenge -- to come up with an alternate ending to The Golden Fleece. We got some terrific writing in that short amount of time! Final performance of Part II was nothing short of inspired. :>)

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Next week we will embark on our own little journey through The Odyssey, beginning with a short play called The Monster in the Cave. Class time will also be spent understanding character traits, perspective, and working through basic literary analysis (Characters, Setting, Theme, Tone-Mood, and Plot).

At the end of class, students were given a handout entitled "The War at Troy (in 13 steps)" -- they should study the outline and be prepared to discuss next week. I would like them to treat this as a research opportunity, using either the library or the internet to gather information on the Trojan War. An understanding of the cause of this legendary war will be necessary to fully understand our "Odyssey" selections. Students should make an outline of their own or write a summary of any length describing their findings. We will kick off class next week by sharing some of our research.

Enjoy your week!

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