After reading the story I asked if they thought Jack was innocent or guilty of theft and murder. We had a thoughtful discussion. I was surprised how many thought he was guilty.
I followed the discussion with this writing exercise. They had a choice - (1) They could write about a court case involving a fairy tale character (2) they could write about a fairy tale from another character's point of view (3) they could write a sequel to the fairy tale. I gave them 15 minutes to write. Almost all of them wrote furiously.
I followed the discussion with this writing exercise. They had a choice - (1) They could write about a court case involving a fairy tale character (2) they could write about a fairy tale from another character's point of view (3) they could write a sequel to the fairy tale. I gave them 15 minutes to write. Almost all of them wrote furiously.
When the time was up I had them get into groups of 3 or 4 to share their stories. Each teammate was to tell the writer something they liked about their writing. They also were to make one suggestion they had for the story. Once everyone had shared, they went back to their seat and began revising. I also gave them the option of writing about a different fairy tale.
My students really were excited about today's class.
