周四的上午是早读加四节连堂课。学生们却很期待,因为周四是读报日,初三也不例外;同时,孩子们提前得知了这周四的课间是Queen乐队包场。
周三就Page 8的文章的第一段提出了两个online quest的任务,1. Why did Queen become one of the most famous and important rock bands in history? 2.Why did Freddie Mercury the band's lead singer die so early?
课上们首先分享了其收集的信息。针对问题一,孩子们从不同角度进行解读。
S1翻出了乐队的学霸背景 “Queen was probably the most educated rock band ever. Guitarist Brian May graduated from London's Imperial College, Freedie Mercry had a masters of Art; John Deacon had a masters in electronic engineering, and Rodger Taylor was the least educated with a BS in biology.”
S2对S1做了补充“The guitarist Brain May lives and learns. He even works for NASA these years.”
S3从音乐的角度分析“The songs from Queen are various and mixed. Some of them are elegant such as Barcelona, The Golden Boy, Someone to Love, Loe of My Life while others are quite strong including I Will Rock You, Adio Ga Ga, Under Pressure. However, my favourite one is We Are the Champions due to its inspiring lyrics.”
S4从文化角度分析“The band Queen spread a voice of the young in Britain and other countries from all the ages. They understand the confused and lost generation deeply and encourage them as well.”
S5从社会角度分析“Queen dare say no to the media.”
小结的时候,补充了从“文学”的角度看待Queen的音乐。叙事:黏连;反讽;以及“作者已死”。
针对问题二,孩子们通过why died找到了“真相”又感到惋惜继而引发讨论。
S1谈到了社会问题 “Freddie announced he was bisextual which was accepted by the public. I think it was a big step for the society. But I can imagine it was very hard at that time.”
S2谈到个人的事业观“Freddie knew his death's coming soon. He devoted himself to Music.”
……
简单反思:课前任务的设置需要有挖掘的空间。常常以布置背景知识的搜寻为内容,多问几个“why”,不由地涵盖了对文化的探究、对社会伦理的讨论。借此,孩子们还可以进行自我文化意识的觉醒,同时可以进行自我的道德教育。附加值,增加了对英语学习的兴趣。配套的课间Queen Live音乐包场,收获了几只调皮猴对Queen崇拜的目光,更收获了两个学习动力缺乏的孩子合着拍子哼唱时候满足的样子。