In another class, I was discussing ways in which to get students excited about English and the shock factor came up. Specifically, we were discussing the short story "A Rose for Emily," by Faulkner in which an elderly woman sleeps with her murdered husband's corpse. Gross right?! However, I still remember this story from when I read it in high school! That's impressive! Clearly, it had an effect on me, even if that effect was that I was totally grossed out.
In teaching, I think that this may be a strategy that is underestimated and I don't like that. It is so simple and yet so effective! Why not teach things that students have an emotional reaction to, or find a way to make them have an emotional reaction to a story? This is where a lot of other medias can come into play as music, pictures, and videos can all trigger these responses in kids. Again, something so simple that can have an incredible impact.
I had a similar experience with Shakespeare high school. I remember some of the banter in Romeo and Juliet simply because my teacher explained how the characters were just saying innuendos and insults. Once we realized that they made the same kinds of jokes that we made, we could relate better to it.
ReplyDeleteAlso, the teacher brought in a few videos of Shakespearean plays with a slightly modern twist to each one. This is where you idea of utilizing new medias comes into play. After watching the visuals, we could relate even better to the plays.