Write like Shakespeare!

As part of our Renaissance studies, we have been learning about another amazing artist, but this one did not make frescoes or sculpture -- he painted pictures with words! And like many  Renaissance artists that we have studied, he created -- with WORDS. We were amazed to find how many phrases and expressions still in use today originated in Shakespeare's plays and sonnets. "To be or not to be?," "Eaten me out of house and home," "Dead as a doornail," "not a mouse stirring," and our class favorite: "What the dickens!" -- all these were "inventions" of Shakespeare's. We've been tuning in to his interesting words (fair play, moonbeam, dew-drop, radiance - all his "inventions"), and we decided to try our hand at using some of his phrases to create short stories and Shakespearean-style compliments. Read on, and "laugh yourself into stitches!"

 Here we are doing a little "Reader's Theater" of an adapted version of "As You Like It." Doing this won out over watching videos. Hooray Shakespeare!

 Here are the Spirits presenting their writing at Gathering this morning.

 "Thou sweet, well-wishing Valentine. Thou brave, fair-faced song of love. Thou rare, honey-tongued toast. So yummy!"

 "Thou flowering, honey-tongued welsh cheese!"

" I am Sir Toast of the Kitchen Table."

 "Thou brave, thunder-darting toast!"

 "Thou sweet, fair-faced toast."

 "Thou fruitful, tiger-booted pigeon egg. Thou delicate, young wafer-cake. Thou precious, honey-tongued cuckoo-bud."

  "Thou fruitful, tiger-bodied pigeon egg. Thou rare, honey-tongued nose herb. Thou sweet, best-tempered cuckoo-bud. Thou precious, tender-hearted toast."

 "Thou sweet, best-tempered tousle. Thou brave, tender-hearted pigeon egg. Thou rare, young-eyed song."

 "Thou brave, one-eyed true penny."

A challenge well met, Spirits!

Engineering challenge: Think Like Leonardo!

Inspiration:

The challenge: Build a parachute and container that will safely land an egg.

The goal: Drop your team's parachute from the big toy without the egg breaking.

First steps: Brainstorming, sharing ideas, planning:

Choose 5 materials.

Cooperate, negotiate.  Add equal parts inspiration and perspiration.

Research further.

Concentrate.

 Experiment.

Create.

  

Build.

  No idea is too small.

Test.

  Test again.

Refine, re-engineer.  

Try again.

 

Back to the drawing board for some.

Make final changes.

At last -- it looks good. But will it work?

Final drop -- the egg did not break!

 Celebrate!

Job well done!