Shakespeare in South Dakota!

Did you hear?!

SHAKESPEARE IS COMING TO SOUTH DAKOTA!!!

That's how I picture your reaction, anyway. Shakespeare being, of course, the English teacher's Beatles...You squealed when you read that line up above, right?

Even if your squeal was more of an "Oooo!" or just a "hmmm" like the girl on the right, you may want to keep reading because this is pretty cool.

2016 marks the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare's death. To celebrate, the Folger Shakespeare Library is sending out four of its 82 copies of Shakespeare's First Folio to tour the United States. For South Dakotans, that means 27 days of a copy on display at USD's National Music Museum and a plethora of Shakespearean events to commemorate the occasion. (This is starting to remind me of Sir Nicholas' deathday party in Harry Potter...)

The Folger traveling exhibit, First Folio! The Book that Gave Us Shakespeare, includes an interactive display along with a copy of the the First Folio. USD's NMM will host the exhibit from March 7 - April 2, 2016. During that time, USD and the Vermillion community will also host Elizabethan/Shakespeare-related concerts, movies, lectures, and family events, most of which will be free to the public. Click here to see the full schedule of events.

Also, USD's Shakespeare Folio website provides some useful pieces for the classroom. First, it offers a brief history of the book and connects learners to more information via the Folger's website. Second, Darlene Farabee, Chair of the USD Department of English, speaks to students about Shakespeare and his book through three quick videos: "Shakespeare's Connection to Music," "What is the Shakespeare Folio," and "Why is Shakespeare Important?" (Scroll to the bottom of the website to locate the videos.)

Was I right? Pretty cool? Maybe I'm in the dark on this one, but this is the first Folio visit to SD of which I am aware, and I am hoping to catch a glimpse of this historical book. USD is just a wee bit closer than the Folger Shakespeare Library in D.C. Let me know if you want to carpool!

B&N "My Favorite Teacher" Contest

The Barnes and Noble "My Favorite Teacher" Contest is an opportunity for middle and high school students to give their favorite teacher a shout-out. Using a maximum of 500 words, students can choose to submit an original essay, poem, or thank-you letter.


Need a reason to entice your students to enter?

The national student winner will receive a $500 B&N gift card and a Nook.


Need a reason to encourage your students to enter? 

Five teachers will "win" on the regional levels, and each of them will receive a $500 B&N gift card. The national teacher winner will receive $5000 (!!!) and his/her school will receive $5000, as well.


Deadline: March 1, 2016

POEtry and Pi

What does Pi have to do with Poe?

Besides the fact that I really like pie (especially pumpkin or pecan!) and find Poe stories to be intriguing...nothing, really. At least, nothing on the surface.

Mathematician, software engineer, and author Mike Keith enjoys blending his passions by applying mathematics to music and the English language, the latter of which led to his interest in Pilish.

What is Pilish? Pilish is one approach to the idea of constrained writing where the writing adheres to a pattern based upon Pi. To write in Pilish, each word's letter count must match with the numbers found in Pi.

For example, Keith rewrote Poe's The Raven using Pilish. It begins:

"Poe, E.

Near a Raven

Midnights so dreary, tired and weary."

If you count the letters in each word and put them together, you have 3(.)1415926535. The first eleven digits of Pi!

You can find the entire Near A Raven poem and its 740 digits of Pi here. Keith also wrote Cadaeic Cadenza, another Pilish piece that uses nearly 4,000 digits of Pi. (Cadaeic Cadenza is a collection of shorter pieces modeled off of other popular texts; part one is Near A Raven.)

Perhaps a little something to tuck away for March 14th...(Is it too early to start planning?)

If you're intrigued, here are Keith's guidelines for writing in Pilish.

Let Your Imagination Fly - PTA Reflections 2015-2016

Oh, the Reflections contest! Having a mother who was extremely active in the PTA, the Reflections contest was on our yearly calendar. Perhaps my memory is incorrect, but I do not recall there being so many categories. I hope if dance had been a category back when I was in school that I would have taken that opportunity!

If your students are looking for a creative outlet that can earn them a little scholarship money, encourage them to think about entering this year's contest. Entries need to connect to the theme "Let Your Imagination Fly" and fall into one of the following six categories: Dance Choreography, Film Production, Literature, Music Composition, Photography, or Visual Arts. 

The local Sioux Falls deadline is Saturday, December 5, which is less than a month away. Access the printable registration form here. As I learn more, I will update this post,

Sorcerer's Apprentice Registration Posted

The Dakota Writing Project has posted the registration document for the annual student creative writing camp: The Sorcerer's Apprentice. The camp is March 27-28, but early bird registration is due March 16. Read more about the camp in this previous post or visit the DWP website.

Stop Motion Illustrated Poetry (and One Short Story)

BetsiePieBaker's YouTube channel, "Some Poetry For You," features stop motion illustrated readings of the poetry (and one short story - "The Gift of the Magi"...English I teachers!) listed below. I had the opportunity to see Shakespeare's "Sonnet 73" in action last week, and the students responded really well to the interpretation. They had already read and discussed the sonnet, and they seemed to appreciate the visual representation created by the stop motion illustrations. BetsiePieBaker's current offerings include:

• "I am Nobody" by Emily Dickinson
• "This Is Just to Say" by William Carlos Williams
• "To a Friend who Sent Me some Roses" by John Keats
• "who knows if the moon's" by e.e.cummings
• "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost
• "Sonnet 73"  by Shakespeare
• "Discovery" by Elizabeth Keller
• "In Defense of Seasonal Poetry" by Elizabeth Keller
• "Shooting Stars" by Sara Henreckson
• "Holy Sonnet 10: Death, Be Not Proud" by John Donne
• "Fern Hill" by Dylan Thomas.
• "The Gift of the Magi" by O. Henry