Improv Games

Please access Ms. Springer's blog at this link.

Look for the agenda there, as well as note your homework. 

Ms. Springer's Blog; Revision

Please check out Ms. Springer's Blog. She will be using this during her teaching here.

Ms. Springer's Blog!

Please use 3rd period to revise your:

1. Baseline Interview Story drafts
2. Your David Ives play scene draft
3. Your poem draft(s)

Make sure you change the DRAFT NUMBER for each new draft. From a 1st draft, change the draft # to 2, or 3 or etc. Keep track of draft #'s in your heading.

After 3rd period, please listen to Ms. Springer's instructions.

HOMEWORK: None.

Day of Writing; Poetry & Geva's Spamalot Workshop

Use period 3 to write/type up poems.

Your poem drafts should use your inspiration and journal notes from last class. Look through what you wrote and write about "ordinary things"--Keep writing! If you finish early (before 4th period), please write a second poem or a third. Or work on your baseline story revision (draft two!) or your play scene revision (draft two). Please change the draft number if you revise your work today.

Keep your writing/drafts in your portfolio.

Here are some things to consider to make your writing stronger or to help you revise:

Diction: word choice. Select words in your poem carefully to carry the most meaning. All words have a denotative meaning and a connotative meaning. Understatement, euphemism, and other rhetorical strategies may be used to affect a poem's diction. Speaking to your elderly grandparents uses a different diction than speaking to your "homies".

Voice: The agent or "speaker" speaking through the poem. Also called the "persona". Create a speaker for your poems. Try writing the same poem from a different perspective and see what version you like more. Ex. A poem about an overgrown garden would be different from the voice of a gardener than it would be from the perspective of a black bird or a cat. Try looking at your subject from a different point of view.

Tone: Often the attitude of your speaker or the voice. Identified in a poem by diction.

• Tone can be formal or informal depending on the diction a poet uses.
• Tone can be ironic, sarcastic, serious, pedantic, or hyperbolic depending on the voice a poet selects.
• Tone can be positive or negative or neutral. Selecting one of these tones can or should affect your diction.

Change your tone. If you wrote the first draft in an informal tone, try a formal one. If you wrote your first draft in a neutral or objective tone, try a sarcastic tone or hyperbolic tone. 

Use advice from Ms. Springer or the rubric to improve your stories if you can.

During period 4, we will be visited by a representative from Geva to discuss Spamalot! 

HOMEWORK: Please read the play information from the handout today. Read Act One of Spamalot! if you'd like. Meet in the Commons on Thursday at 9:30 (end of period 2). Bring a bagged lunch if you will be missing your lunch period.

Ordinary Things; Poetry Walk

To write appealing poetry poets should observe the world around themselves. For a beginning writer emphasis is often given to come up with an amazing topic and to write about the deepest thoughts and feelings of the writer. But what we find is that writing about simple life--our connection and understanding of these simple objects or events, holds more power than pedantic political diatribes or word games.

That is not to say that a poet should forget about structure, subtle use of poetic technique and just downright skill at communicating through objects, images, and comparisons those things that are essential for human life.

Today, after writing your drafts (or during, if you need a break), please read about Robert Frost. Read several of his poems (at least 10, but feel free please to read all of them or nearly all). Read them with a partner, if you need to--just read them.

At first glance you will notice Robert Frost has a love affair with nature. Most of his poems include nature. It is the primary theme of poetry and is found absolutely everywhere. What you want to know about nature is that humans interact with the natural world every single day of their lives. Sometimes this connection to nature seems forced, strained or distant. Other times the connection is close, intimate, and meaningful. Humans compare and contrast themselves to nature. When a poet writes about a path in the wood that branches off, we recall the difficult choices we have to make in our own life's path. The natural metaphor simply helps us understand and approach the conflicts in our own life. As you read, try to figure out what Frost is telling us about our HUMAN SELVES.

Take the next 15-20 minutes to read the poems by Ralph Fletcher: Ordinary Things.

Depending on the weather, we will be taking a little field trip today. Please bring your journals and a writing utensil with you. Please listen to instructions.

When we return from our "trip" please use the time in the lab to write 5 short poems with ordinary things as their subject. Form and structure (line, sound, tone, diction, etc.) is up to you. Write each poem in the same file. Call these drafts ORDINARY THINGS

SOME KEY POETIC TERMS YOU NEED TO KNOW:

Diction: word choice. Select words in your poem carefully to carry the most meaning. All words have a denotative meaning and a connotative meaning. Understatement, euphemism, and other rhetorical strategies may be used to affect a poem's diction. Speaking to your elderly grandparents uses a different diction than speaking to your "homies".

Voice: The agent or "speaker" speaking through the poem. Also called the "persona".

Tone: Often the attitude of your speaker or the voice. Identified in a poem by diction.

• Tone can be formal or informal depending on the diction a poet uses.
• Tone can be ironic, sarcastic, serious, pedantic, or hyperbolic depending on the voice a poet selects.
• Tone can be positive or negative or neutral. Selecting one of these tones can or should affect your diction.

Today, we are going outside along the poetry walk at the Memorial Art Gallery. As we stroll, jot down and look for ideas or subjects to write poems about. Use Ralph Fletchers poem collection as a model.

In the sculpture garden we will spend a longer period of time SILENTLY writing! Please do not be offended when I ask you to move away from other students so that you can focus on your writing. You will be given a grade for your participation.

Use your time outside to inspire yourself to write in your journal.

Collaborative Play Scene Project

Please follow these guidelines for this project:

1. Choose a partner (there should be an even #, but if you are on your own, please let me know and I'll create one group of 3.

2. Together with your partner, brainstorm settings. Choose one of these settings and describe it on the computer (I suggest using Google Docs for this assignment. Share your file with your partner (and me)).

3. Describe your setting. Use the plays we have read so far as models. No need to get too descriptive. Just enough information to make it interesting. See the example below.

4. Create a character for yourself that would be appropriate for this setting. Your partner should do the same. If you want, it might be more interesting if one of you has a character that fits in the setting, and another one who doesn't.  Describe your character's main physical traits or personality traits.

5. Using David Ives as a model, write a play scene with your partner. Each of you should "play" your character. Create a goal (and keep it secret from your partner). Your character should try to win his/her goal. Keep goals appropriate to the style, tone, and setting.

• You may wish to use a sound device or bell (like David Ives does) and redo a scene or pause it or change it up a bit like "Sure Thing" and "Variations on the Death of Trotsky". 
• You may wish to create "variations" (short scenes like those in Variations on the Death of Trotsky). Pick a historical character and creatively rearrange history. 
•  You may use mistakes of the communication process--take a look back at our sample videos and scenes, including David Ive's play "Arabian Nights". Write a scene where misunderstanding occurs. (See "Who's on First" as a sample).

•  Or creatively come up with your own idea!

6. Your play should be at least 3 pages in length. Do not double-space scripts. Instead, skip 1-line between each speaker. You may use the publishing format for your play script at this point. We will use a different style later in the course.

TIPS: All plays have a short description of setting and indicate the time of day or the season before dialogue begins. It's a good idea to give your character an action in the setting at the beginning of the play.

Example: On stage there is a bookcase with various titles, a four-poster bed, and a wash basin on a dresser. It is May, 1917, just before the Great War. Enter JOHN, drying his face with a towel. He sits on the bed and puts on his shoes. There is a knock on the door. It is PENNY. She enters.

Each character should have a brief one-two sentence description describing the character:

Example: 

John: a 52 year old accountant. He is always dressed in jeans and smokes a lot.
Penny: A nun. She doesn't wear a habit. She can be played by an actress between 20 and 40 years old. 

Please note that the cast list is usually printed just after the title and BEFORE the opening stage directions.

All plays deal with a complicated situation. To create a situation for a story/plot, you need to know the following:

1. Who is appearing in the play? (character)
2. Where is the action taking place (setting)
3. What are the characters doing? (action)

Once these questions are answered, you can complicate the situation by adding a "But...", "suddenly", "when...", or "uh, oh!" sort of statement.

Example: John is in his room when Penny the nun enters and tells him that War has just broken out.
John is cooking dinner in the kitchen when suddenly he is interrupted by Penny, a nun, who has had a vision that John's pancakes are in the shape of the Virgin Mary. But John is an atheist. Etc.

Your play should stay in one setting and be anywhere between 3 and 10 pages in length.

HOMEWORK: Please finish your play draft by the end of class. Turn in what you wrote as participation credit.

David Ives' Short Plays; Improv Games

On the index card, explain the communication process and how it works. Then, on the back of the index card, name ONE reason why communication is important. You have 5 minutes to complete your answer. We will collect your cards.

David Ives: Sure Thing (conclusion), Variations on the Death of Trotsky, Arabian Nights.

After reading these short plays today, we will play a few improvisation games. Note how the communication process is important as we play each game.

During period 4, we will return to the lab to work on a short collaborative scene. Please listen closely to instructions for this assignment.

HOMEWORK: None.

Tightening Up our Story Drafts; The Communication Process; Sure Thing

During period 3, please spend the next 20-25 minutes revising or completing your story projects. Check you grammar and your formatting. Add details and description that you might not have thought of before. Add visual imagery by using metaphor or similes in your description of abstract nouns.

If you finish before 20-25 minutes is up, please watch the following videos about the communication process during period 3:

A Brief History of Communication (animated film)
A Brief History of Communication (commercial)

We will move to room 238 for the remainder of the class.

Communication: Sender/Receiver: Abbott & Costello skit

Take a few minutes to take notes on the communication process. Take careful note of vocabulary words in caps and bold.

The communication process starts with a person getting an IDEA (or reason to communicate). We will call this person: the SENDER.

1. The sender comes up with an idea or reason to communicate.
2. The sender ENCODES this idea with words or symbols
3. The sender chooses a type of communication and sends his/her message to a RECEIVER.
4. After receiving the message, the receiver DECODES the message.
5. The receiver receives the original message or idea.
if communication is to continue as conversation, the receiver becomes the sender and starts the process again, responding to what was originally communicated.

Why should I care? 
--Communication is one of the most important activities a person can engage in.
--Communication allows us to express ourselves
--Communication allows us to learn new things or meet new people
--Communication builds friendships, loyalties, love, and trust between people
--Effective communication allows us to avoid damaging or hurtful events or situations
--Ineffective communication is often the reason people engage in conflict, war, or destructive activities
--As writers, we have to communicate our ideas with our audience. The better we can do this, the more effective we can be.

There are a variety of ways in which an author or speaker can make communication more effective.

Let's read the short play "Sure Thing" by David Ives together. As we read, consider how the playwright uses the communication process creatively to tell a fun and interesting story. We'll discuss what you noticed after reading the play out loud.

With time remaining, please take a few minutes to watch these videos about the failure in the communication process. Try to note what the problem communication is, and who is responsible for effective communication in your journal:

From: Monty Python and the Holy Grail
The Evolution of Communication (Social Media) (animated film for EMC)
Effective Communication commercial

Sesame Street: Bert & Ernie
Errors in Communication: Rabbit Seasoning: Pronoun Trouble

HOMEWORK: None.

Writing Advice; Baseline Interview Story Draft Due!

Let's begin class today with a little pow-wow/coming to the water chat about writing. In your journal take a moment to reflect on your writing so far.

• Do you have an idea?
• Have you picked your genre?
• What problems have you run into?

Today, please continue working on your baseline interview stories. These stories are due at the end of class today. Please remember:

• These stories are DRAFTS (not final drafts); it's okay if they aren't "complete" or if they have "mistakes". Try your best, but don't over worry. You are a beautiful snowflake...
• Please proofread and correct your formatting and grammar/mechanics in the work before you turn it in. Use your Creative Grammar & Style class assignments to help you!
• We like our fiction/prose to be double spaced, 12 pt. font
• Use an MLA appropriate heading (the name of the assignment is the baseline interview story; it is sometimes helpful to indicate draft #: example: baseline interview story, draft 1)
• Do not leave a skipped line between paragraphs unless you are indicating "white space"
• Indent 1-tab for each new paragraph
• Check your dialogue punctuation carefully. (Punctuation generally goes INSIDE the quote marks)
• Keep your POV and tense consistent. If you start off the story in present tense, keep writing in present tense, etc.
• Give your story an appropriate title. Titles should "hook" or interest a reader. Usually they are the name of the main character, an important object, a quote or concept, or the name of a setting
• Use your time wisely in the lab. The lab is for writing--not chatting, or surfing the internet for unrelated topics.
• No matter what happens or how much you write, please turn in your drafts at the end of class. Listen to my instructions/announcements concerning the same.

Please refer to the following rubric for this project.

Project Rubric:

9-10: story is imaginative, clever, well written, grammatically sound (almost completely free of proofreading, mechanical or spelling errors), story uses effective dialogue and effective description, story has an interesting theme, character is based on original peer interview in some clever and creative way. Story is turned in on time and fits in the 3-5 page range, properly formatted. Story has a clever and creative title. 

8: story is mostly well written, with some gaps or weaknesses, but nothing that makes reading the story laborious or difficult. Story is mostly grammatically sound (some errors) but nothing that gets in the way of comprehension. Story has some dialogue and description, but work is not as compelling as scores of 9-10. Character is based on original peer interview in some way. Story is turned in on time and fits in the 2-5 page range, properly formatted. Story has a title. 

7: story is completed, turned in on time, but lacks the imagination and creativity of scores of 8-10. Some moments of storytelling, but story may need more plot development, conflict, character development, or attention to detail and specifics. Story might have dialogue or description, but this is relatively uninteresting, or weakly presented by the author. Character is dubiously based on details from an interview or original source, but this is not clear, or the character is too similar to the source material as to be mistaken for the peer interviewed. Story may be late (missed deadline), and is on the shorter less developed side between 1 full page to 2 full pages in length. Work may have formatting errors. Story has a title. 

5-6: story is as 7 above, but may be very late, or there are so many grammar and development or writing problems that makes comprehension difficult for a typical reader. Work is carelessly or hastily done. Student spent more time off-task in the lab than working on this project. Story lacks a title. 

0: story or project not turned in.

HOMEWORK: None. 

Baseline Interview Fiction Project

Please take a look at this video today before you begin brainstorming or coming up with an idea for your writing project.

• Rick Riordan's Advice to Young Writers

WRITING TASK: You will use your interview notes to create a fictional character and place that character (based on your original partner) into your story. If you need a second interview with your original partner, go ahead and spend a few minutes asking him/her follow up questions. Take notes. 

You may change any detail as you see fit, but try to justify your change. For example, you may change a character's setting (where they grew up) or an event in his/her life, but the character should have something similar to the original source material. If you interviewed a girl who plays sports, perhaps your protagonist of your fantasy story is a girl (or was once a girl who is now grown up) who stays physically active. How you deal with the details is up to your imagination. Avoid discarding details just because you can't think of an idea. Put the "creative" in creative writing!

THE RULES: Your story can follow any genre (sci-fi, fantasy, horror, western, romance, realism, action, comedy, etc.) Want to write about teenage vampires? Go ahead! Choose a genre or topic that you are interested in. This helps a writer write a story successfully. Your genre should follow the standard rules for that genre. For example, if you are writing a high fantasy, the use of magic is perfectly allowed, but we often don't expect magic and dragons in contemporary realism. You might even create monsters for your protagonist to defeat out of the challenges or problems your peer told you about in his/her interview. Above all, show me that you can write a creative story. I am also looking at effort, so if you don't get it right, don't sweat it--writing can be hard, but you SHOULD be spending your time in the lab writing. I DO have my senses, after all.

Your story should be relatively short (approx. 3-5 pages, double spaced). You can always add to the draft later. When you have completed your first draft, please title your story, put your standard heading on the top left (or right) and proofread your work for spelling/grammar errors. When satisfied that this is your 'best' work, please create a title for your story, print, and turn in. This assignment is due at the END of next class. You should aim to write at least 1 page per class period.

Remember that a hook works just as well for a story as it does for a speech. Revise your opening sentence of your story to HOOK your reader. Be creative to grab our attention!

Please refer to the following rubric for this project.

Project Rubric:

9-10: story is imaginative, clever, well written, grammatically sound (almost completely free of proofreading, mechanical or spelling errors), story uses effective dialogue and effective description, story has an interesting theme, character is based on original peer interview in some clever and creative way. Story is turned in on time and fits in the 3-5 page range, properly formatted. Story has a clever and creative title. 

8: story is mostly well written, with some gaps or weaknesses, but nothing that makes reading the story laborious or difficult. Story is mostly grammatically sound (some errors) but nothing that gets in the way of comprehension. Story has some dialogue and description, but work is not as compelling as scores of 9-10. Character is based on original peer interview in some way. Story is turned in on time and fits in the 2-5 page range, properly formatted. Story has a title. 

7: story is completed, turned in on time, but lacks the imagination and creativity of scores of 8-10. Some moments of storytelling, but story may need more plot development, conflict, character development, or attention to detail and specifics. Story might have dialogue or description, but this is relatively uninteresting, or weakly presented by the author. Character is dubiously based on details from an interview or original source, but this is not clear, or the character is too similar to the source material as to be mistaken for the peer interviewed. Story may be late (missed deadline), and is on the shorter less developed side between 1 full page to 2 full pages in length. Work may have formatting errors. Story has a title. 

5-6: story is as 7 above, but may be very late, or there are so many grammar and development or writing problems that makes comprehension difficult for a typical reader. Work is carelessly or hastily done. Student spent more time off-task in the lab than working on this project. Story lacks a title. 

0: story or project not turned in.

HOMEWORK: None. If you did not complete your story draft today in the lab, please complete it and be prepared to turn in the draft at the END of class on Tuesday.

Speeches of Introduction; Interview Baseline Story Project

INSTRUCTIONS: Your short introductory speech should reveal something about the nature or character of the person you interviewed. When asked, please introduce your partner to the rest of the class. You may use your notes to help guide you, but try not to simply read off of your notes. Try to remember what your partner told you, then report this to us.

• Before you present your speech (all students are required to try this!), prepare your notes by adding a short introduction sentence. 
• Speeches usually open with an interesting statement or lead-in. This is called The Hook. 
• Begin your introductory speech with a clever hook or attention-grabber. Write an interesting opening line for your speech to introduce your partner.
• When called, please stand up and introduce your partner. You may use your notes if you get stuck, but try to also "talk" to us. No one likes to be "read" to. 
• As a class politely listen to each speech. Listening is an important element in the communication process. It is extremely rude to chat, ignore, or otherwise distract a speaker. Please be courteous in this class. As the class rule states: Respect all NOUNS (that includes you and me and each other).

When called, please come up to the front of the room and introduce your partner. You may use your notes if you get stuck, but try to "talk" to us. No one likes to be "read" to. As a class, politely listen to each speech. Listening is an important element in the communication process. It is extremely rude to chat, ignore, or otherwise distract a speaker. Please be courteous in this class. As class rules state: Respect all NOUNS (that includes you and me and each other).

Effective Elements of a Speech include:

• Volume
• Pace
• Pitch or tone of voice
• Language or imagery
• Organization
• Creativity
• Confidence (ethos)
• Body posture/Facial expressions/Gestures/Eye contact

While listening to a speech, a listener should:

• Pay attention
• Make eye contact with the speaker
• Be courteous and polite
• Avoid interruptions
• Listen (not just hear)

After all students have given their speech, please listen for further instructions for our next writing task.

THE TASK: You will use your interview notes to create a fictional character and place that character (based loosely on your original partner) into your story. 

THE RULES: Your story can follow any genre (sci-fi, fantasy, horror, western, romance, realistic, action, comedy, etc.) Want to write about teenage vampires? Go ahead! Choose a genre or topic that you are interested in. This helps a writer write a story successfully.

Your story should be relatively short (approx. 3-5 pages, double spaced). You can always add to the draft later. When you have completed your first draft, please title your story, put your standard heading on the top left following MLA guidelines and proofread your work for spelling/grammar errors. When satisfied that this is your 'best' work, please print and turn in. This assignment is not due yet. You should aim to write at least 1-2 page(s) per class period.

Remember that a hook works just as well for a story as it does for a speech. Revise your opening sentence of your story to HOOK your reader. Be creative to grab our attention!

In the Lab: Please use the time given to you in our lab to work on your story. If you get stuck, think about who your character is, what your character wants in that particular setting, and move the plot forward by cutting to the next interesting scene. If you find your character not acting, reacting, or making decisions--introduce conflict (forces) that cause the character to act, react, or make decisions. This is good advice to keep a story going.

HOMEWORK: Continue working on your draft. 

Welcome!

Welcome class of 2019!

This morning, after our course criteria discussion, complete this in-class activity: 

With a partner, discuss and create: 

A. a list of ways in which humans communicate (humans communicate through...) 

B. Reasons why humans communicate

This begins our first step as creative writing majors. It is important for us to examine how and why (and when), as human beings, we decide to communicate. Of course, communicating through writing is only one way we, as humans, communicate with one another. This course will cover areas of communication, the communication process, techniques of effective communication, along with performance skills, public speaking, and various writing projects (fiction, poetry, scripts, personal narrative, essays, etc.) If you go on to study the arts, literature, political science, divinity, history, business, advertising, marketing, teaching, law, journalism, communication, or media, you will definitely need a basic understanding of these concepts.

Conversation is one of the most obvious processes of communication. Today you are going to "interview" a class member, then introduce this person to the rest of the class. The notes you take on your index card(s) will also be used to create a "fictional" character based on a real person during our next class. More information about that assignment will be discussed next class.

Activity:

1. Please follow my verbal directions to choose a partner for this exercise.

2. Once you have a partner, take 5 minutes to ask any of the following questions (see below) and record what your partner says on your index card. 

TIP: Don't worry about long quotes or trying to write down everything your partner says. Instead, jot down only the KEY POINTS of what your partner discussed. Try effective listening techniques to comprehend what your partner is saying. Synthesize or summarize these key points when you deliver your short introductory speech. 

3. At the end of 5 minutes, switch places and take another 5 minutes to be interviewed by your partner.

4. When time is up (about 10 minutes total) you will be asked to quickly organize your notes and give an extemporaneous speech introducing your partner to the rest of the class.

Sample Questions to ask (use 1 or 2 of these if you have no better ideas):

A. How were you shaped by your environment or cultural background as you grew up? 

B. Name a friend, relative, or childhood friend or hero figure that had an impact (positive or negative) on your life. Describe how this person influenced you. 

C. Describe a personal experience that had a major impact on your life and/or creating the person that you are today. 

D. What activities or hobbies or interests bring pleasure and meaning to your life? 

E. Name a goal that you have set for yourself. How are you going to achieve that goal? 

F. What value or philosophical belief do you hold dear? Why do you hold this belief or value so highly? How does it affect your life? 

G. Any other question you wish to ask within the time limit of this exercise.  

Again, please note:     

You do not have to write down everything your partner says. Part of communication is listening to what is being said, then remembering and retelling what you heard in your own way. Use your notes and ask follow-up questions to develop your partner's answers. (see below)   

5. Keep your notes for the next writing assignment (more details to follow). 

INSTRUCTIONS: Your short introductory speech should reveal something about the nature or character of the person you interviewed. When asked, please introduce your partner to the rest of the class. You may use your notes to help guide you, but try not to simply read off of your notes. Try to remember what your partner told you, then report this to us.

• Before you present your speech (all students are required to try this!), prepare your notes by adding a short introduction sentence. 
• Speeches usually open with an interesting statement or lead-in. This is called The Hook. 
• Begin your introductory speech with a clever hook or attention-grabber. Write an interesting opening line for your speech to introduce your partner.
• When called, please stand up and introduce your partner. You may use your notes if you get stuck, but try to also "talk" to us. No one likes to be "read" to. 
• As a class politely listen to each speech. Listening is an important element in the communication process. It is extremely rude to chat, ignore, or otherwise distract a speaker. Please be courteous in this class. As the class rule states: Respect all NOUNS (that includes you and me and each other).

We will conclude any speeches not delivered on Wednesday. This assignment is worth participation credit.

If we happen to finish early, we'll head next door to the lab to begin a writing assignment.

HOMEWORK: None. Please show your parents your course criteria sheet! Complete field trip forms, etc.