I have students in English Lit/Comp classes work in pairs to decipher the descriptions of pilgrims in The Canterbury Tales. In the past I've always gotten a lot of complaining about how difficult the language is to figure out. Some students just take a look at it, shut down and say "I can't." Today I tried a framing activity that came to me as I was reading Chapter 3 of Deeper Reading.
Instead of assigning pilgrims and having students get started on their own, I began by giving them the first stanza in Middle English, doublespaced so there was room to write between the lines. I read it to them in Middle English; it sounded pretty formidable to them, and the I can'ting started to rev up. But then I had them start over, and we went through it line by line to look for words they could recognize and wrote the Modern English words above their counterparts. When we'd done that, we went back through a third time, and they found they could translate it. Then I had them start on their pilgrims.
The students were pleased with how many words they got when we did the second round of reading. One even took a logic leap to see that "shoures" must mean "showers." She explained, "Because the line says April, and people talk about April showers." It was really neat seeing how proud they were of themselves when they reaized they could understand the Middle English so well after all. And it made a huge difference in the outcome of the pilgrim activity. They really attacked it in a way I haven't seen before. It was like they were thinking, "Hey, if I can figure out what the Middle English means, reading this modern translation should be a snap." Students were able to pull more information out of the text, and the change in collective attitude went further than just there wasn't the griping about "I don't understand this" that I was used to hearing. Most of them were kind of getting a kick out of getting to know their pilgrim.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Netta, I love seeing the kids pick up words from OE and ME text. Before I spring the OE Beowulf memorization on them, I play a recitation of the Lord's Prayer in OE. I get a kick out of their excitement as they realize what it is from its cadence and from the few words they can understand.
ReplyDeleteHave you ever had them make the dolls? I have to sit on my hands to keep from waving at everyone, I get so happy during that week. It's just too cool to see them brainstorming how to make concrete the characteristics of their character that are more abstract. It's that kind of excitement that reminds me why I'm in the classroom. And in this post, you sound very nearly giddy with it as well. Awesome!
That sounds so fantastic, Netta.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad it's working out for you. Like Billy and I were discussing, it's a mental challenge for us to slow down. When we (the teachers) DO slow down, however, and help the students absorb, the end result is much more satisfying. I'm still trying to get the swing of covering more depth than breadth.
For my upcoming Fiction unit, I'm focusing on only 4-5 stories over the 3 week unit. In the past, I would've tried to cover ALL the stories in the text, but I've realized that taking time to get the students interested is much more beneficial.
In the end, I guess, our job is about hooking them into our content area and creating lifelong readers. Or at least people who will be inquisitive and have the ability to read when it interests them.
Netta's idea sounds great. I bet it would work good for Shakespeare or any other older English texts. Does anyone else have any other brilliant ideas floating around?