Rafe esquith biography channels

The special activity that has kept me engaged for three decades is the annual production of a Shakespeare play. It did not start out this way. Many good ideas evolve slowly, taking shape over many years and constantly getting better. The backstory of our productions might give you a notion of how your special idea might take shape and become a unique force in the life of your students.

During regular school hours, rude students and other problems are basic to any room full of youngsters who, by the grace of the state, are a captive audience.

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But this is not the case when you create a voluntary extracurricular activity. The students who come to Shakespeare want to be there, and also are quite aware that if their behavior and work ethic are not exemplary they will be shown the door. As a result, the 40 or more students in the shows always paid attention and gave their best effort for the entire rehearsal.

For a teacher, it really was heaven on Earth. The students in the shows had spent more time with me, and as a result were more attentive during daily lessons. Their positive attitudes helped shape our class culture, and even the apathetic students were more likely to make an effort in class because so many around them were behaving.

Within five years, the kids were performing rudimentary plays right in Room They were messy, fun, and the students learned a lot. Simultaneously, I began classical guitar lessons for interested students during their recess and lunch breaks. Soon they were holding their own year-end concert. I was making a mistake, however, during those early years.

For a little while, the play became more important than the lessons I was supposed to be teaching.