An Arundel teacher engages children through a method inspired by a movie that was, in turn, inspired by life
It was a simple but revealing homework assignment for a group of fifth-grade girls at Van Bokkelen Elementary School in Severn: Come up with a list of questions you would like to ask your classmates
As she read from the girls' list of questions, she asked students to step on the line if they could answer yes to a question or agree with a statement she read.
Students would then step back off the line to wait for the next question.
It started off easy: Step on the line if you like rap music. All but one of the girls moved forward before stepping back. Eight girls stepped on the line when asked whether they had a pet.
This type of sharing might seem jarring, and it is meant to be. By opening up to each other through the spoken word, the girls are learning to express themselves through the written word
2007 Paramount Pictures movie, Freedom Writers
clipped from: www.baltimoresun.com 