My 7th and 8th grade Literature classes recently finished listening to the audiobook of The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan. When I read the book last summer, I loved it and I knew I would have to share it with my class. Side note: I think that’s one of my favorite things about being a Literature teacher — you can change the content with which you use to share the concepts and the learning is still there. I know there are teachers out there that could teach Caddie Woodlawn for thirty years and be just fine, but I crave variety.
I gave my classes the ability to choose nearly anything they wanted for this project. I was hoping that the kids would choose something that they’d enjoy doing, not something they were unenthusiastic about. One of the popular choices with the 8th graders was a blank Facebook profile that they had to fill out with information about a character from the book. Sadly, the 7th graders’ popular choice was a collage in which nearly every student had the same five or six pictures they found on the Red Pyramid wikia. (I guess I should have let them find that website on their own…)
I’m not through with all the presentations yet, but I wanted to share some of the most exciting ones with you today! Here are some photos of the projects that were made:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/32985630@N00/sets/72157625700074009/with/5355498017/
One of the neatest things submitted was a “talk show” with Pheme. Pheme is the Greek goddess of gossip and rumors, and she interviewed some of the characters from the story. These girls did a great job, even though they were embarrassed watching the video during class today. (They all gave me permission to put it up for the blog!)
Awesome! Great way to give them variety in how they present their learning — and get them a book by an author who’s big at the moment. What kind of books do you look for when you select for your class?
I try to pick books that are probably going to be liked by boys and girls… one of the reasons I picked TRP was because of the alternation of narrators in the story. You could hear both sides. I also try to pick something that I am going to enjoy teaching, because trying to teach something you don’t enjoy is a drag! I’ll put a little more thought into this and maybe write a post about it later!
Very cool job, girls! Really a great way to learn a bit about the book. I’m wondering who figured out what you did for the project – combined idea?
I can only imagine the fun you had while brainstorming the characters!
Keep up the good work!
I will pass your message on to the girls at school this week!