Final Performance!

I'm going to be honest, I was a bit nervous for our final performance because Mrs. Larsen got sick with the flu and had to get a sub, so it was all up to me to make sure the performance went smoothly! It was a big job, but I was very excited it turned out as well as it did!

Thankfully, the substitute was wonderfully enthusiastic about our performance and was able to help get all our costumes and props ready for the performance. We headed down 15 minutes early and even got a chance to do a quick run-through for each of the plays so the kids could get a quick refresher on their blocking! 

They did a wonderful job. The parents and the four second-grade classes who came were absolutely thrilled by the kids' performances. Here are a few pictures from our Anansi performance:

And here's a few from the Twelve Dancing Princesses:

One of my second-graders wanted to introduce the show at the last minute. How cute!

And here are the videos of the two final performances!





Thanks to Mrs. Larsen and all her wonderful students. I had so much fun and learned so much!

Week 4--Poetry and Fairytales

Today the goal was to introduce some poetry and get the kids started on their individual fairy tales! They need to get writing them so we can start rehearsing them!

First we started by comparing the story of Sleeping Beauty (I used the Disney version)

to a poetry version by Ken Nesbitt:

Sleeping Beauty pricked her thumb,
started feeling overcome.
Probably she would have died
as the witch had prophesied,
but the fairies had her blessed
so she just got beauty rest.
For a hundred fifty years
she missed balls and film premieres,
till Prince Charming came along
singing out a cheerful song.
Kneeling down he kissed her cheek
hoping that she'd wake and speak.
Sleeping Beauty raised an arm
reaching for the snooze alarm
and her waking words were these:
"Just need five more minutes please."

We did a dramatic reading of the poem where I had kids choose words to make them sound more interesting in the poem and then I recorded them doing it (a curriculum requirement).

[I'll upload it once I have permission slips back]

Then, to introduce the fact that they are going to be writing their own fairy tales, I had a few students roll these dice and we made up a story about the characters, place, and problem that came up.

Then we played a game I wish I could take credit for (my friend, Alicia came up with it) called FairyTale Telephone. Each student writes down one thing for each category, folds down the paper, and then passes it to the next student. He/she then writes something down for the next category and then passes it to the next person, etc. By the end, they should have a variety of things written down that make for a very interesting story! Here's a few that they came up with:

And by "snack," the 2nd Grader meant "Snake"

From here, the kids then kept the one they ended on and they will be able to use it in their story writing. They are free to change whatever they want about the paper they ended up with, but this gives them a starting point in case they don't have anything to start with.

Overall, I think this activity turned out pretty well. I am always amazed at what kids come up with in dramatic readings. They always choose the hardest words like "prophesied," but then the come up with a way of saying it or an action to go with it that makes it pretty darn creative!

The Fairytale Telephone activity didn't go quite as smoothly as I had planned, but it did work. I think I needed to instruct them better and maybe it would've been a bit smoother. The last part (the "Problem") was definitely the hardest, but I knew that was coming. So Mrs. Larsen read a few of the problems I already came up with and most of the kids picked a problem from there.

If nothing else, it helped the kids understand the elements of a fairytale more so they will be more successful in writing one. I'm really excited to see what they come up with. I really think they are going to surprise me with their creativity!

Week 3--What is a fable?

Today the goal was to review with the kids what fairy tales and folk tales were and contrast them with fables (which we were going to learn about today). I was pleasantly surprised to find that they remembered almost everything we had talked about the previous 3 weeks!

We then did a game I called "Fairy Freeze." This was an exercise where I would call out animal movements like "waddle like a penguin," "soar like an eagle," "scurry like a mouse" or "sleep like a lion!" They loved it and all of them got so into it by making noises and everything!

I wanted to get them moving with this activity and also give them an intro into talking about the animals in our story, a lion and a mouse. I also told them that the people who participated well in this activity would get to help me tell a story later on, and that made them all a LOT more willing to do what they should!

From here, we came back to the rug and I pulled out my lion and mouse puppets. One student got to be the mouse and the other got to be the lion. I then passed out some string for 5 students to be the "hunters" in the story. I told the story and helped the kids with the puppets tell the story by telling them to make the noises at the right time, and make the puppets do what they need to in the story, etc.

The kids loved being "the hunters" and tying the lion up. I actually had to tell them to sit back down after they were done putting their piece of yarn on the lion because they were loving tangling him all up!

When I asked boy who was playing the lion to "roar" like the lion, he did a VERY impressive lion noise, and moved the mouse so well that the rest of the class giggled in delight (I may or may not have giggled right along with them)!

We then talked about the elements of fables and I asked them what the moral of the story of the lion and the mouse was.

From here, I split them into 3 groups by having them do a toe-to-toe exercise and I gave them each a poster where I explained to them that they were going to write everything they knew about fairy tales/folk tales/fables (depending on which poster they got). They could write or draw anything to do about the genre they got.

I loved the pictures that the kids chose to draw. They all had to do with the genre and it really showed me just how creative these kids are.

Once they were done with that, they were to come up with a story that fit in their genre to perform for the class. This was a pre-assessment for me to see how well they performed in front of their peers.

I feel like this activity went really well, especially since Mrs. Larsen and I went between the 3 groups and made sure they were doing well. The fairy tale group had a hard time working together as a group at first and the narrators got so involved in the story, they forgot to narrate it. But it was a great version of Jack and the Beanstalk!

We also had a great rendition of "The Three Little Pigs" where they used their desks as their three houses and "The Lion and the Mouse" with the greatest casting of the mouse ever (see the girl in blonde below). Also, the boy in the blue striped shirt was a great narrator.

Next time, I would end with a more solid wrap-up where we talk more about the differences between the genres and what we saw in each performance. I learned that I need to have a better follow up to wrap the lesson all together.

I just LOVED seeing these kids interact with the stories today and create their very own performances. It was extremely rewarding for me. Kids are so creative!

Week 1--Introduction to Fairy Tales

Today was my first day at Elk Meadows in Mrs. Larsen's class!

Today my objective was just to get the kids thinking about fairy tales and opening their minds to the different kinds of fairy tales as well as the parts of a fairy tale. So I started out with a variation of the game "Telephone." Instead of having the kids pass a bit of information down the line vocally, I had them pantomime an object down the line. I split the class into two and then put each group into a line. Then I had everyone but the first people in each line turn their back while I showed them the object (my objects were a pencil and a set of car keys). The kids loved how much the objects changed and having to guess what they were at the end of the line.

Pantomime telephone was a great way to help students see why fairy tales, folk tales, and fables have so many different versions! Because the stories were told orally in the beginning, each storyteller would change the story ever so slightly and that's why we have different versions of so many stories!

After talking about this idea with the students, I read them one of my favorite stories out of this magical book:

I chose "Aladdin" because the story is fantastic and it is quite different from the Disney version. In this version, Aladdin doesn't pretend to be a prince and Jasmine is kidnapped by an evil magician so Aladdin has to travel halfway across the world to find her. The illustrations are absolutely gorgeous and really make the story come alive.

So because I knew most of the kids were familiar with the Disney version, I asked the students what the difference was between the two stories. I was definitely surprised at the students' insight. They picked up on a lot of subtleties I didn't expect them to get!

I also had them answer some questions about the who, where, why, and when of the story as well as I pointed out some of the key elements of fairy tales found in this story of Aladdin.

THEN I introduced my "Magic Wand" and I did an activity called "Fairy Freeze" where I had them walk around like different characters in the story (i.e. the evil magician, Jasmine, Aladdin, and the genie in the lamp). Then I had them choose their favorite to walk around as and see who their classmates chose to be.

I think this was a great way to introduce what we'll be learning about in the next few weeks as well as the element of drama. The kids were delighted and LOVED the activity even though it was simple enough. I can't wait to see what the next few weeks bring!