This past week, I began working on "The Canterbury Tales" with my students. So far, we have only finished the prologue, but my students don't seem to be enjoying it or understanding any of it. I have decided to do "The Canterbury Tales" with Double Entry Journals, or Reader's Logs, instead of reading in class each day like we did with "Beowulf". I know this method may be a little bit more difficult for students but this way, I can make sure that each student is actually reading and I can see what the students are getting out of the story even if they don't talk in class. I feel like this method will work better than reading the story aloud like we did before.
I hope an assignment I am doing with the class this week will help them really get into the story and enjoy it more. The students are making a short film about one of the characters in the prologue and so far, they seem to really be enjoying it. I just hope that this will be beneficial to them so that they will get the most out of the story. We are beginning "The Pardoner's Tale" on Tuesday, so hopefully by then they will be enjoying Chaucer more and have a better understanding of his humor and his satire. Only time will tell, I guess.
-Mr. T
Making connections to modern characters/personalities might help. One could also think of "The Canterbury Tales" as a reality TV show, with the producers picking all those personalities to clash with one another. But I bet the films will be a big hit! Those are always fun, and it sticks with the kids.
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