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What's in a Lesson... That Which We Call Fun and Games!

Personally, when thinking about a really good lesson that would get me involved and learning, I think that I really need something very independent. Surprising right? I know!

 I actually find that I really do not enjoy group work at all. Mostly I always get paired with students who do little to nothing, and I end up just doing most, if not all, of the work by myself. This is something that I would like to keep in mind for my future students, because I know what it's like to get the crappy end of the stick.

On the teaching side of things, I like to think that a good lesson is something that really grabs my students attention. Something that they all want to get involved in, and have a bit of fun with while they are working on it. The perfect lesson has the ability to teach students a lesson without them even knowing it's happening.

On the other had, it MUST be organized. I can not stand when there are all sorts of things happening and I can't control any of the things going on around myself. So my perfect lesson is something that has a lot of structure and organization too.

So, I know that this seems like a really long list of random things that could not possibly be put into a lesson without it being all over the place. However, I hope to present here one of the coolest / best lessons to show what I actually mean.


So, this video is long and I do not suggest you watch the whole thing, but the idea is there. This video shows a class taking a book, Frankenstein, and setting up a mock trial for Dr. Frankenstein versus the Creature. Students are placed on teams as lawyers, witnesses, judges, and jury members. From there, the students take direct evidence from the book and create an entirely made up argument for each side, trying to win the case of negligence against the Creature. This lesson takes a few classes to complete, but the outcome is awesome!
It is something that is organized and a whole lot of fun for everyone involved. All students are responsible for their personal roles and held accountable for what they complete. This is absolutely something that I want to do with my students in the future, and is certainly my perfect idea of a good lesson!

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