Storytelling: Day One
Mmmmkay I feel like this needs some 'splainin, so here's the gist:
I've got this class of 11 kids and they are not so high level, but since they're good natured and there are just 11 of them (and I see them twice a week!) I get to do anything! It's so nice! Last year these kids watched High School Musical, and wrote a proper essay (they ran about 400-500 words) about the importance of identity to high school students. It went well, but they didn't get a lot of speaking practice in, so I decided that this term, we'd do a project that emphasized speaking more.
After awhile, I decided to go with storytelling. I taught a three-week storytelling course for middle-schoolers back in the states, so I have a little bit of experience with it, and I thought it could be a nice, well-rounded project. I've tentatively got three parts planned: First we're taking a look at fables and using them to discuss morals and do reading comprehension. Next we're going to take a look at fairy tales and/or greek myths (I haven't decided which) and do...hmmm. Something different--I'm thinking I'll find a movie version of a fairy tale and show them clips, or maybe they can do some sort of illustrated guide to greek myths...haven't decided yet. Then finally, we're going to get to storytelling--they can pick any fairytale they want (Japanese or English) and must memorize it and perform it storytelling-style for each other. I think it's going to be really fun and it will step up their confidence and pronunciation (hopefully).
So that's the plan. Now I can talk about Day One:
We started with the Tortoise and the Hare. It's familiar to Japanese people, so they had a decent general understanding of what's happening in the story. I had them read to each other, then had a few kids take on the roles and act it out, and finally had them ask each other questions for understanding.
So far, I'm pleased! I arranged the kids' desks in a U-shape and it made for a much better atmosphere for discussion. Even with 11 kids, if they are behind anyone, they sometimes try to zone out of class and talk to each other. This way, they were all facing each other and me at the same time. It was quite nice!
The kids are so cold from summer break; they lost a lot of the confidence they had...but I know it's gonna come back to them, and some of them are already stepping up to the plate.
The simple comprehension questions went well, but unfortunately we ran out of time before we could get to the deeper discussion of the moral. I introduced it to them already, but I feel like they didn't really get what I was asking of them so it could take a little more structure next time.
All in all, a good class! They seem into the fables and were really interested when I described the difference between fables, myths and fairy tales. Added bonus: the teacher is really interested in this topic as well, so he was very "present" for the class...it was a pleasant change.
So far, so good! Of course, I'm a drama geek at heart so I can't help but think, let's get to the fun part already XD