And the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay goes to...

During the week of January 26-30 we wrapped up our drama unit.

Students spent most of the week working on the drama unit culminating activity - adapting a scene from the science fiction or fantasy novel they read to be a scene in a movie or a play. Armed with the understanding of how script writers tell a story, students first decided whether their scene would work best on either the stage or the screen and then began drafting their scripts on Monday and Tuesday in class.

Later in the week, students brainstormed titles for their script, worked on revising and editing their script with the help of a checklist, and exchanged scripts with a partner as part of a peer review session. Students should be putting the finishing touches on their scripts this weekend and Monday. The final draft of the script is due Tuesday.

In addition to writing their scripts, students took a short quiz on vocabulary associated with drama this week. They also previewed three novels and selected one in preparation for a novel unit that will begin next week.

Returned Assignments

Students got back one 14-point graded assignment this week. Students answered recall, inference, and analysis questions about the short story "All Summer In a Day" by Ray Bradbury for this assessment.