Denise A. Braswell, Teacher Consultant, Boise State Writing Project Think~Pair~Share… Describe a particular text or data that is difficult to teach. ~what.

Denise A. Braswell, Teacher Consultant, Boise State Writing Project

Think~Pair~Share…

Describe a particular text or data that is difficult to teach.

~what makes this text challenging to teach and for students to comprehend?


Shakespeare What????

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“Mere mention of his name is likely to make a class of freshmen panic, so it’s important that a student’s first encounter with Shakespeare’s plays be dynamic and engaging”

(Biondo-Hench, 1993).


Language and Comprehension Problems with Shakespeare

Language is distant from the student -Late Middle-English.

Syntax~ reversed word order. “I must upfill this osier cage of ours” (Romeo and Juliet, 2.3.7).

Word phrases are long (wordy).


The Challenge Continues…

Classical allusion“Titan’s fiery wheels” (Romeo and Juliet,

2.3.4)

Reversed sentence construction“Within the infant rind of this small flower/

Poison hath residence and medicine power” (Romeo and Juliet, 2.3.23-24).

The “Yuck-Factor”


Principles of Engagement…

Situated Cognition:~ “most learning occurs naturally through activities, contexts, cultures” (Lave, 1988).

*Evoking prior knowledge in students

Pop Culture:~ “[…] that popular culture is an element of their own lives and can be ‘fertile ground’ [for engagement]” (Newkirk, 2009).

*Close to home


Principles of Engagement…

In order to engage reluctant learners, his or her learning must have a purpose-

“Without purpose, significant learning is difficult if not impossible to achieve”

(Wilhelm, 2007).


Principles of Engagement…what I’ve discovered

Learning needs to take place in a safe environment

Learning is social

Learning should be fun

Learning needs to occur within the student’s zone of proximal development

Learning needs to be purposeful


Autobiographical WritingJournal write:

Write about a healthy, dating relationship you have had in the past or that you’ve observed.What made this relationship fun and exciting? What is something you questioned about this relationship?

Think~Pair~Share

The Process


What’s the BIG Question?

Reframing Shakespeare with inquiry:

Romeo and Juliet

“What makes a great relationship?”

“What is maturity?”

“What makes a good decision?”

Othello

“Who do we trust?”

“How does one reveal his/her essential character?”


Schema Building

Theme PromptsThink~ Small Group Discussion ~Whole Group

Discussion Define “feud” as you understand it. Under what circumstances is it permissible to kill

another person? Is it possible to be in love at the age of 14? Explain

your answer.


Visualize

Bulletin board: Functions as an Anchor Chart

Students stake their claims Opinions Characterization Discoveries--through journal writes, etc.

(This is something that the students continually build upon throughout our exploration of relationships)


Working with the Language

Choral reading--Prologue, Romeo and Juliet1. Read the Prologue in unison~

Discuss and define confusing words or phrases2. Read one word at a time

Read as one voice (one word at a time)3. Read half-line as Montagues vs. Capulets; Boys vs. Girls4. Read with style

Southern drawl, rapper, redneck…Read to punctuation stops--semicolons, colons, and periods,but NOT COMMASWrap-up: Have one student read the prologue in its entirety for closure.



Moving beyond choral reading: OthelloExploring words and motifs

Word search activity:Working in groups of two--students were given the challenge of exploring various words/motifs that occurred in Othello. They picked one word and then created a log quote and cited each time the word occurred in the play, who said it, and lastly, the word’s connotation and denotation. They then had to present their word in a creative way to the class.

Possible presentations: poster, choral reading, rap etc.



List of words for word search activity:Soul HateHeaven DevilDamn(ed), damnation MonsterMoor HellHonesty LoveJealous, jealousy ** Othello Rap exampleHandkerchiefFaith


Inferring Helping students connect to the BIG PICTURE

Subtext activity*

2. Graffiti journals (Monologue about Queen

Mab)*

3. Journaling in character or from the Dear Abby perspective*

4. Insult hurling activity

5. Guided think aloud activities


Determining Importancesupporting comprehension

Romeo and Juliet

The letter

Othello

The handkerchief


Handkerchief Activity

Passing the handkerchief:The Script

o The handkerchief originally comes to Othello before the action of the play begins, from his mother--who had it either as a gift from an Egyptian or as a gift from Othello’s father, depending on which account of Othello’s you believe

o Othello gives it to Desdemona, his first gift to her.

o Desdemona tries to bind Othello’s head with it, and accidentally drops it.

o Emilia picks it up.

o Iago snatches it from Emilia…

o Then leaves it in the lodging of Cassio’s

o Cassio finds it and gives it to Bianca… (adapted from Shakespeare Set Free,1995).

Option:

Have the students write and perform a sports play for the letter scene or the scene that leads up to Juliet taking the poison in Romeo and Juliet


Synthesizing Putting it all together

Students overcoming difficult texts and making connections

~ ‘Cowboy’ Othello written and performed by 10th grade students

~Prologue II, Romeo and Julietperformed by 9th grade students


Breaking it down…The Process

Conceptual frontloading:

Framing Shakespeare with inquiry

Schema building/starting with what students know (pop culture)


Breaking it down…The Process

Procedural:

1. Breaking down the language~ short to long (Choral reading)

2. Finding patterns in the language (Choral reading)

3. Inferring (subtext activity)


Principles of EngagementWhat I’ve discovered…

SocialPlaySimple task gradually moving toward difficult task– Apprentice students with difficult texts

Limited time frameChoiceCreativityLess is more


Other Ideas for Engagement

PSA announcements (advocating healthy dating relationships)

Visual Tableaux with math concepts/vocabulary words

Act out a difficult text, i.e., Declaration of Independence

Role Play a scientific concept (metamorphosis, mitosis, etc.)

Use music~ ‘rap’ a concept (historical event, mathematical formula, grammar rule, etc.)

Graffiti journals

Board games and/or video games

Video diaries

Music videos or soundtracks about event in history or mathematical formula


The Engagement Continuum(Saxton & Morgan, 1994)

Interest: being curious about a problem or a topic Engagement: wanting and striving to be involved in the tasks associated with the

problem Commitment:[…] wanting to adhere to community and disciplinary norms Interpretation/Internalization: explaining, interpreting, and merging objectives. [In

other words] the content and processes to be learned to complete important tasks […] with the subjective experiences --what is already known, felt, and believed--resulting in deepened understanding and new insights and abilities

Application: finding new situations where the new understandings can be used Generation: generating new data and interpretations that build on established

sets of information Communication: wanting to represent and communicate new understandings

and questions to others Evaluation: willingness to critique and refine understandings of one’s own

learning process(as cited in Wilhelm, 2007, p.

153)


ApplicationReflecting: Think back to your opening journal write about a difficult text that is hard to get students engaged…

1. Identify the challenge2. Consider how you can reframe this lesson with inquiry

Examples:Is war necessary?What is maturity?Who do we trust?What makes a good home?What’s worth fighting for?How does music reflect society and culture?( some questions were adapted from Wilhelm,2007)


Application

3. Schema building- How can you activate students’ prior knowledge about this lesson?

Examples:

Journal writes

Theme prompts

Concept maps

Opinionnaire

Ranking scenarios


Application

4. Breakdown the taska. What is the purpose of this

lesson…state it________________.Example: The purpose is to get students comfortable and comprehend the complexity of Shakespearian language.

b. Reconsider how this text can be taught in smaller partsExample: Choral reading--playing with Shakespeare’s language from Romeo and Juliet, Prologue 1


Think~Pair~Share

Get into groups of two or three,

and discuss your ideas.


Bibliography

Lave, J. (1988). Cognition in practice: Mind, mathematics, and culture in everyday life. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. retrieved June 20, 2010:http://www.edtech.vt.edu/edtech/id/models/powerpoint/cog.pdfNewkirk, T. (2009). Holding on to Good Ideas in a Time of Bad Ones: Six Literacy Principles Worth Fighting For. Portsmouth,NH: Heinemann.

http://www.edtech.vt.edu/edtech/id/models/powerpoint/cog.pdf

http://www.edtech.vt.edu/edtech/id/models/powerpoint/cog.pdf


Bibliography

O’Brien, Peggy and Jeanne Addison Roberts et al. Shakespeare Set Free: Teaching A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Romeo and Juliet, and Macbeth. Washington, D.C: Washington Square Press.Watterson, B. (1996). Free Clip Art/cksinfo.com. retrieved June 24, 2010: http://www.cksinfo.com/cartoons/calvinandhobbes/index.html.Wilhelm, J. (2007). Engaging Readers & Writers with Inquiry. New York, NY: Scholastic.


Additional Resources

Wilhelm, J. (2002). Action Strategies for Deepening Comprehension. New York, NY: Scholastic.

Netflix: The Reduced Shakespeare Company

Denise A. Braswell, Teacher Consultant, Boise State Writing Project Think~Pair~Share… Describe a particular text or data that is difficult to teach. ~what.

Documents

teacher consultant

purposeful slide

home slide

process slide

social learning

significant learning

fun learning needs

safe environment learning