December 1, 2010
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1 Greece is the word.
2 Ah, I love this time of the year!
3 It is this time of the year that I blow the dust off all my Ancient Greek stuff, and bring mythology and the Odyssey into the lives of my students.
4 Opa!
5 I begin with teaching the word, “Opa!” which is simply something that one shouts out when feeling good, or when enjoying life to the fullest.
6 I play music from ancient Greece for my students, teach them about The Iliad and The Odyssey, teach them nautical terms, and how we as a seemingly democratic culture owe so much to that amazing Age in world history.
7 It’s great fun. I come home and cook Greek dishes, listen to Greek music, wear a toga, and watch My Big Fat Greek Wedding.
8 Okay, I’m not THAT nuts. I know teachers who are, but they have nappy hair and they smell odd. So nah,
9 I keep it pretty cool, honestly. No toga.
10 We do vocab, which I do each week. I have them get in groups each Tuesday to put vocabulary sentences on the whiteboard. While they do that, I always play ancient Greek music. The groups have names like The Kool Aid Kidz, The Geniuses, OSM, OSMER, and OSMEST (awesome, awesomer, and awesomest!). It’s great fun, and they use multi-colored markers to write the sentences and draw funny pics on the board.
11 While they do that, I always say, “While you guys do that, I’m going to play some music from Greece.” And I’ll play some classic called “Aphrodite’s Hymn”, or “Ode to Zeus” or something on You Tube. I have some nice speakers, so there is a full sound as they enjoy putting the sentences up.
12 They enjoy Tuesdays because there is almost a competition to see who can write the craftiest sentences. Entire stories begin to emerge and the class bonds almost as young authors. It is SO fun, and easy on me. At times it gets a bit routine, but most times, it’s a nice time to socialize, relax, and learn.
13 I also hang pieces of paper above the whiteboard, papers which say things like “OPA!”, or “Greece is the Word”. I have a sketch of the Parthenon displayed as well.
14 When I need quiet, I shout, “On the count of three, tell the person next to you, ‘OPA!’ ” Technically, this usually works, because when we are not in this unit, I usually say, “On the the count of three, tell the person next to you, ‘S-h-h-h…’ ” which works most times. Students like consistency, so it’s familiar and comfortable.
15 But it’s still school, so it can border on boredom if done too often.
16 Yesterday, however, I changed it up. They have a test on the Golden Age of Greece today, so I scared them a bit with that, and with what will be on the test. I let them study notes for a stint, so that when we switched to Tuesday vocab sentences on the board, they were more than happy to advance to the whiteboard.
17 I usually have around ten to fifteen kids at the board writing while the remaining students either study or socialize at their desks. I play music from Greece during this time, and then we reconvene to study the sentences and see the correct way to use words. It’s always relaxing, and great fun.
18 Yesterday I added a slight twist, which I did last year as well. When they advanced to the board, I said, “I’m going to play some music from Greece,” which most just blew off because I purposely have made it the same old schtick.
19 Timing is everything in education, so I delayed a second, and then played the opening music from Grease. You know, Grease is the Word and all.
20 It doesn’t take long for the marking pens to drop, and for others to look at me. I ignore the stares, put my glasses down to the tip of my nose, and point to the exact center of the whiteboard, where I have a paper with Greek-style writing that says, “Greece is the word!”
21 I deliberately say nothing else, and very routinely change to the next song, which is “Summer Nights”. Since it takes about three songs for them to finish the sentences, I finish off with “You’re the One That I Want”.
22 Kids start dancing, singing, and enjoying, especially those who were brought up with that music in their homes.
23 GREAT fun, and when the song is over, we go over the fabulous writing on the board. I just ask if the word has been used correctly. I time it down to the last two minutes, collect their homework, and as they line up to leave, I play “We Go Together”, which is a classic. They dance out of the room, and I smile.
24 That was yesterday’s lesson, and it worked famously in all classes.
25 Today they have the severity of a test on the Golden Age of Greece, complete with Cleisthenes, Themisticles, Pericles, and Socrates, and any other guy in a toga whose name ends in -es.
26 I LOVED yesterday and thought I’d share it with you.
27 Next year I might have them do sentences with a Greek theme. Who knows? I might even sacrifice a lamb out at the stadium.
28 Nah.
29 Just kidding.
30 AnywayZ, that was the day yesterday. GREAT fun, GREAT music, and good times. We stepped out of the ghost unit at Halloween right into a unit on legends. Along the way, lots of learning and fun. It had been getting a tad dull, so yesterday brought fun back into the fold.
31 I love teaching. It gets OSMER every year!
32 Just thought I’d share.
33 Have a wonderful Wednesday everybody.
34 Shoo bop shoo wadda wadda yip pity dip de boom.
35 Peace.
~H~