Past projects 6
The Relevancy of Shakespeare
Funded Mar 23, 2022While this letter is coming late, I feel the impact of this class is important to share. Overall, I want to report success. Each student was exposed to a good representation of William Shakespeare's work. The class started with each student stating, whether or not they have been exposed to Shakespeare's work, if they believed that Shakespeare's work is relevant for the 21st century high school student. In meeting with two sections of 10th grade students - each class having 28 students, about 70 percent of the grade felt that Shakespeare's work was not relevant to the high school student. The range of explanations ranged from his work being too: boring, old, and white, to the famous author's work not being accessible because of the language. The success, is not that I convinced everyone that Shakespeare's work is relevant, but each student was able to write thoughtful argumentative essays supported by their interaction with a good representation of his works. Students read, performed and viewed performances of Shakespeare's work. Students discussed, analyzed, directed, and adapted Shakespeare's work in order to argue their positions effectively. The result of their hard work, approximately 85 percent of the sophomore class believes that Shakespeare's work is relevant to the modern day high school student. There we many student's who reluctantly switched their opinion. One student said, "I hate to admit it, I don't want to admit it, but what I have looked at makes me say, Shakespeare is definitely relevant. I don't want you to be right. But he is. Especially "Measure for Measure."
My immediate goal for students was twofold to expose students to Shakespeare's work and for them to be able to academically argue a position about Shakespeare with confidence. Students were able to do this through their argument essays and projects that ranged from "Measure for Measure Teaches Us Empathy or the children's book - Hamlet (The title character is a pig). The experience you provided allowed students to look deeply at Shakespeare's poetry, a comedy - Measure for Measure, and a tragedy - The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. Regardles of the final positions taken by students they were able to read, see, analyze, and debate, the influence seen on modern art in different mediums. Regardless of the final positions taken, students can argue in a scholarly way the merits Shakespeare's work for high school students. For this, no more can be asked. Or as the bard penned in his famous play, "All's well that ends well, ... Whate'er the course, the end is the renown."”
With gratitude,
Mr. Dorian Herron
This classroom project was brought to life by Black History Month Partners and 7 other donors.Bringing Music to the Class Ii
Funded Jun 19, 2024Thank you so much for your support to support students in different ways. Students, as many of us know, do not process information in a homogenous way and nor do they show their intelligence in all the same ways. Often times we marvel at someone’s genius when what we are really viewing is a display of a different intelligence. It is my intention to get students to display their thinking or way of looking at literature in different ways. I look forward to sharing with you the progress students will make this upcoming school year as they investigate literature and themselves through music creation.”
With gratitude,
Mr. Dorian Herron
This classroom project was brought to life by Michael Jordan and The Jordan Brand and 9 other donors.Bringing Music to the Class III
Funded May 25, 2024Thank you for your donations to fund this project. I am excited that I will be able to give more students the opportunity to show their learning through other intelligences. I have been able to do this on a very small scale with one or two students at a time. This will allow more students access to a variety of instruments to further explore their ideas.
Thank you for support and belief in the idea that there are multiple ways for students to show their growth, learning, and thinking.”
With gratitude,
Mr. Dorian Herron
This classroom project was brought to life by Michael Jordan and The Jordan Brand and 7 other donors.Bringing Music in Class
Funded May 20, 2024I am encouraged by your funding to be able to offer students an expanded experience and a different mode of showing their depth of understanding and complexity.
I see this as an opportunity to expose students’ intelligences and have students present recognizable forms of expression and thinking coupled with traditional writing to make a more impactful and dynamic presentation of learning.
Lastly, this will help grow the involvement of the music department in English classroom.”
With gratitude,
Mr. Dorian Herron
This classroom project was brought to life by Michael Jordan and The Jordan Brand and 5 other donors.Art Speaking to Life
Funded Apr 15, 2021Thank you so much For your generous contribution to this project. Students will gain so much experience in transferring their work into artistic pieces to highlight awareness of social justice issues. They will be exercising their understanding through a medium that shows their deep learning. we look forward to sharing our knowledge, passion and talent.”
With gratitude,
Mr. Dorian Herron
This classroom project was brought to life by Booz Allen Hamilton and 7 other donors.Athletes Effecting Change
Funded Mar 10, 2021Wow! Folks thank you so much for contributing to this project. There multiple goals embedded in this deep look at the role of professional athletes of color in activism. Your contribution will allow for conversations to extend beyond: the admiration of prowess, the argument of the greatest in respective sports, the argument of statistics, or just gossiping about private lives. We will be looking at the development of Black athleticism and attitudes (positive and negative) attached to Black athleticism that are still prevalent in society. We will investigate the development of activism in athletics and whether athletes of color have a responsibility to be activists, role models, etc. Students will culminate the study and share their knowledge with the learning community through a "TED Talk" style program, or artistic (genre of choice) expression of the importance of the Black athlete's use of the playing field, or popularity to call attention to issues and affect change in society. Again thank you for what I am sure will be a stimulating and eye opening academic adventure.”
With gratitude,
Mr. Dorian Herron