An English Teacher's Filmic Vacation
Mar. 12th, 2007 10:11 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
talkstowolvesAs a reward for bearing with me through the grading period (more as a salve to myself, perhaps), this week is movie week for both my 10th graders and 11th graders. Usually, I show them the film adaptation of the book we've just read and allow them to write a film review for extra credit.
However, the book we just finished reading this 8 Weeks were Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe (10th graders) and Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (11th graders). While there are film adaptations for both, neither seemed to be available at the local Blockbuster (and I never plan far enough ahead on these things to use Netflix). This meant thinking up alternative movies.
For World Literature (10th), I finally decided on giving them a film adaptation of a Dumas novel. I had wanted to make them read one of his novels in class, but we just don't have enough time in the year. Why not expose them to his work through film, at least? Because I knew it's definitely tame, The Three Musketeers with Oliver Platt, Keifer Sutherland, et al was my first choice. I hoped I could fall back on The Count of Monte Cristo if that proved unavailable (but I couldn't clearly remember whether the latter movie contained anything objectionable).
Amazingly enough (to me), the Blockbuster DID NOT have The Three Musketeers! WTF? I seemed to recall that being a popular film. How can they not have it? They also didn't have The Count of Monte Cristo, which was an even bigger WTF for me.
Besides my problem finding anything for the sophomores to watch, I had no idea what to show the juniors. Then I turned around and saw it on the shelf: Dead Poet's Society. A classic! I had to watch it in highschool, I seem to recall. Why not?!
However, since I couldn't get both movies there, I took myself off to Best Buy in hopes of procuring both movies I needed cheaply. They also did not have The Three Musketeers. Or Smoke Signals, which I thought of as an alternative to Dead Poet's Society for my 11th graders. I did manage to find Dead Poet's Society and The Count of Monte Cristo, though.
As I was checking out, I had the following exchange with the female cashier:
FC, scanning the Dead Poet's Society DVD: Hey, I had to watch this for English last year. It was good.
Me, glancing at![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
sirandrew and laughing silently since that's what I'm buying it for; after a moment, I ask: What grade were you in last year?
FC: I was a junior. I'm a senior this year. Still in highschool, I'm afraid.
Me, laughing: I'm actually an English teacher and buying this to show my 11th grade class.
A few other random chat things and then she says:
FC: I'm a LAMPer.
Me: Really?! I'm an alumnus of LAMP.
FC: Yeah, last year Mrs. Frucci made us watch that movie...
Me: It was Mrs. Frucci that had me watch it as well!
I closed the conversation by asking her to tell Mrs. Frucci that I said hello. Andy pointed out that this is a sign that I'm showing the right movie and, by cosmic association, doing well as an English teacher. I mused that if I could touch any one student the way that Mrs. Frucci touched me in high school, I would consider myself accomplished. So I'll take this as a sign that I'm going down the right path as well.
However, the book we just finished reading this 8 Weeks were Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe (10th graders) and Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (11th graders). While there are film adaptations for both, neither seemed to be available at the local Blockbuster (and I never plan far enough ahead on these things to use Netflix). This meant thinking up alternative movies.
For World Literature (10th), I finally decided on giving them a film adaptation of a Dumas novel. I had wanted to make them read one of his novels in class, but we just don't have enough time in the year. Why not expose them to his work through film, at least? Because I knew it's definitely tame, The Three Musketeers with Oliver Platt, Keifer Sutherland, et al was my first choice. I hoped I could fall back on The Count of Monte Cristo if that proved unavailable (but I couldn't clearly remember whether the latter movie contained anything objectionable).
Amazingly enough (to me), the Blockbuster DID NOT have The Three Musketeers! WTF? I seemed to recall that being a popular film. How can they not have it? They also didn't have The Count of Monte Cristo, which was an even bigger WTF for me.
Besides my problem finding anything for the sophomores to watch, I had no idea what to show the juniors. Then I turned around and saw it on the shelf: Dead Poet's Society. A classic! I had to watch it in highschool, I seem to recall. Why not?!
However, since I couldn't get both movies there, I took myself off to Best Buy in hopes of procuring both movies I needed cheaply. They also did not have The Three Musketeers. Or Smoke Signals, which I thought of as an alternative to Dead Poet's Society for my 11th graders. I did manage to find Dead Poet's Society and The Count of Monte Cristo, though.
As I was checking out, I had the following exchange with the female cashier:
FC, scanning the Dead Poet's Society DVD: Hey, I had to watch this for English last year. It was good.
Me, glancing at
sirandrew and laughing silently since that's what I'm buying it for; after a moment, I ask: What grade were you in last year?FC: I was a junior. I'm a senior this year. Still in highschool, I'm afraid.
Me, laughing: I'm actually an English teacher and buying this to show my 11th grade class.
A few other random chat things and then she says:
FC: I'm a LAMPer.
Me: Really?! I'm an alumnus of LAMP.
FC: Yeah, last year Mrs. Frucci made us watch that movie...
Me: It was Mrs. Frucci that had me watch it as well!
I closed the conversation by asking her to tell Mrs. Frucci that I said hello. Andy pointed out that this is a sign that I'm showing the right movie and, by cosmic association, doing well as an English teacher. I mused that if I could touch any one student the way that Mrs. Frucci touched me in high school, I would consider myself accomplished. So I'll take this as a sign that I'm going down the right path as well.