W. Scott Smoot ~ Teacher, Writer, Composer

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"If I knew what it was going to be, I wouldn't make it."
- Pablo Picasso

8th Grade Drama is the Most Important Course You'll Take - Seriously!

Here's a little secret about teachers: Every one of us thinks that he or she teaches the subject that is most important to students at the most critical age. Your teacher for this course is no exception. I see this class as the centerpiece of your education, now and forever. If you put effort into these nine weeks, you'll have knowledge and skills that will follow you through life. I'll show you what I mean.
In literature classes, you study how others have tried to involve an audience in their stories, and how they have related scenes to a theme. In this class, you do all that yourself.
In math and science classes, you practice problem-solving on paper. In this class, you work in real life through daily problems and numerous variables to make a reality from a mere idea.
Ultimately, Walker School hopes to prepare students to be leaders in their community. In this class, you will prepare for creative leadership by practice in

cooperation and compromise
envisioning a goal and taking initiative
identifying the problems and brainstorming solutions
revising the project in progress.
In this class, you also will bring together the experiences you've had in earlier drama classes to make a script, a set, costumes, publicity, and a well-run production.
Here are the roles that I will play in this class:

I commission your work.
To help you to realize what you imagine, I offer tips from my experience and study.
To maintain progress, I draw from a range of methods (from encouragement to advice to punishment) to keep you and your classmates to the production schedule.
To direct the production, I will make final decisions regarding the text and the staging, but I will consult you in those decisions.

Courage is the memory of past successes. You can have courage now, and earn courage that will last for years to come!

Grades
Missed deadlines = +1 per deadline on the week's four-point "effort" grade (1 being best, 4 unacceptable). Second warnings for disrespect, disobedience, distraction=+1 per incident on the week's four point "conduct" grade. Your letter grade will reflect the "effort" and "conduct" grades. 1=A 2=B, etc. Earn allowances for Extra effort by attending certain theatrical performances, and by working after-school on this show.

Close this window. "If I knew what it was going to be, I wouldn't make it." - Pablo Picasso	8th Grade Drama is the Most Important Course You'll Take - Seriously! Here's a little secret about teachers: Every one of us thinks that he or she teaches the subject that is most important to students at the most critical age. Your teacher for this course is no exception. I see this class as the centerpiece of your education, now and forever. If you put effort into these nine weeks, you'll have knowledge and skills that will follow you through life. I'll show you what I mean. In literature classes, you study how others have tried to involve an audience in their stories, and how they have related scenes to a theme. In this class, you do all that yourself. In math and science classes, you practice problem-solving on paper. In this class, you work in real life through daily problems and numerous variables to make a reality from a mere idea. Ultimately, Walker School hopes to prepare students to be leaders in their community. In this class, you will prepare for creative leadership by practice in cooperation and compromise envisioning a goal and taking initiative identifying the problems and brainstorming solutions revising the project in progress. In this class, you also will bring together the experiences you've had in earlier drama classes to make a script, a set, costumes, publicity, and a well-run production. Here are the roles that I will play in this class: I commission your work. To help you to realize what you imagine, I offer tips from my experience and study. To maintain progress, I draw from a range of methods (from encouragement to advice to punishment) to keep you and your classmates to the production schedule. To direct the production, I will make final decisions regarding the text and the staging, but I will consult you in those decisions. Courage is the memory of past successes. You can have courage now, and earn courage that will last for years to come!	Grades Missed deadlines = +1 per deadline on the week's four-point "effort" grade (1 being best, 4 unacceptable). Second warnings for disrespect, disobedience, distraction=+1 per incident on the week's four point "conduct" grade. Your letter grade will reflect the "effort" and "conduct" grades. 1=A 2=B, etc. Earn allowances for Extra effort by attending certain theatrical performances, and by working after-school on this show.

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