Tall Oaks Classical School’s Jaime Weber Named Prestwick House Delaware English Language Arts Student of the Year

Smyrna, DE, July 25, 2012 – This Wednesday, at the Delaware Shakespeare Festival in Wilmington, DE, local publishing company, Prestwick House, announced the winner of the third annual Prestwick House Delaware English Language Arts Student of the Year Award, Ms. Jaime Weber of the Tall Oaks Classical School in New Castle, DE.

Ms. Weber’s achievement was announced as part of the Teacher Appreciation Night festivities at the Delaware Shakespeare Festival prior to the evening’s performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Prestwick House CEO, Jason Scott, recognized Ms. Weber onstage, and commended her on her efforts both inside and outside of the classroom.

“Within her school, Jaime has demonstrated what it means to be a role model, and we are proud to honor her dedication,” said Scott. “This contest is an excellent opportunity for Prestwick House to publicly recognize students who have demonstrated excellent academic achievement in the study of literature, writing, and English Language Arts. Working hard in school to get the most out of your education and remaining well-rounded in other areas is a great achievement.”

Each teacher within the state of Delaware was encouraged to nominate a student for this prestigious award. Nominations were then carefully reviewed by the Prestwick House Delaware Language Arts Student of the Year Committee, and finalists were selected. According to Tall Oaks Classical School English teacher, Stephen Rippon’s nomination letter, “Jaime exemplifies a passion for learning, outstanding leadership, a positive attitude, and excellence in many different areas.”

Along with her skills in the classroom, Ms. Weber has proven herself well-rounded in many areas. This spring, she was also awarded first place in the Medicine and Health category for the New castle County Science Fair for her project on age and heart rate recovery — earning her the title of a BioGENEius finalist for the state of Delaware.

In addition to her work in the field of science, Ms. Weber has been named the Tall Oaks Classical School team’s most valued runner, and finished top ten in the Mid-Atlantic Independent League conference. As a part of her school’s debate team, Ms. Weber won first place out of ten teams in her division during the Winter 2012 Mid-Atlantic Christian Debate League Tournament.

Mr. Rippon also adds that, “As a testament to Jaime’s character, we on the faculty chose her to receive the Tall Oaks Classical School’s highest award, the David Award. The award citation aptly describes Jaime as one ‘who is hard-working, humble, and who honors others.’”

In addition to a plaque commemorating her achievements as the Prestwick House English Language Arts Student of the Year, Ms. Weber received a $500 scholarship. In the coming months, she will be featured on the Prestwick House website, blog, and in the Footnotes monthly email newsletter.

About Prestwick House - Founded in 1983 by a former Dover High School administrator, Prestwick House is a leader in educational publishing. With a focus on helping English teachers in grades 9-12, Prestwick House publishes the largest selection of literature teaching guides in the country, a line of classic novels, and hundreds of other educational products. Find out more at www.prestwickhouse.com.

Sonnet Love Songs by Deborah Anderson

 

The other day, I received a preview copy of a CD that I thought some English teachers might be interested in. Sonnet Love Songs is a brand new album from composer Deborah Anderson. She’s taken ten famous poems from authors like Shakespeare, ElizabethBarrett Browning, Tennyson, and Wordsworth and penned modern jazz compositions that highlight these great poems. The songs are peaceful and beautiful and would work wonderfully in the classroom.

For students that are much more familiar with music than they are with Shakespeare or the other poets included on this disc, the music will serve as a great entry point to beauty of these words.

This CD is a great opportunity to demonstrate an example of creative projects that can be done with poetry and would work well with books like Alan Sitomer’s Hip Hop Poetry and the Classics in the Classroom  or the poetry of Tupac Shakur .

The CD is now available on Amazon and is a perfect way to get your students interested in poetry.

101 Books To Read This Summer

Check out Upworthy.com for the full summer reading flowchart excerpted below!

Beowulf Performed in the Original Old English

Although the original Old English is a bit much for most students to handle, Benjamin Bagby's lively performance of Beowulf  is a great way to show your students how the story was originally intended to be heard. Check out a clip from the show here.

Original Shakespeare theatre discovered

According to RT.com:

The 17th century stage that saw Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet staged for the first time has been rediscovered in the Shoreditch district of London. Archaeologists claim they’ve found the remains of the long lost Curtain theatre.

The theatre opened in 1577 and stood until it was dismantled in the 17th century, and its remains were discovered in one of the most densely built up city areas, The Guardian reports.

Archaeologists discovered fragments of the theatre’s exterior wall. Now the experts are waiting till the site is cleared for further work. They believe that many interesting discoveries might await them as they continue digging.

The Curtain theatre was the premiere venue from William Shakespeare’s team before the Globe was built on the banks of the Thames. It stood just next to London's first playhouse, The Theatre. They are the oldest examples of purpose-built theatres in London. The Curtain received its name after the road it was facing and stood until the late 1620s.

The Globe was complete in 1599. For at least two years prior to that Shakespeare was using the Curtain as the main stage. Such plays as Henry V and Romeo and Juliet saw their premieres in the Curtain.

After Shakespeare’s team moved to the Globe, the building fell into decay and was then lost.

The site where the theatre remains were found is currently being developed. Having learned of the discovery the Plough Yard Developments plans to incorporate the remains as public open space within a mixed office, retail and residential quarter. The company now awaits further planning permission.

Social Networks and Summer Reading

by Matt Roberts

The advent of summer heralds the coming of summer reading. English teachers can surely get to those books they haven’t had a chance to read during the school year, and they’ve likely given their students a reading assignment to tide them over until the fall. My fondest summer reading assignment was from the summer preceding seventh grade; I had to report on The Hobbit. I’m looking forward to the movie based on the book to come out this December, of course, but sincerely hope the film won’t fundamentally alter the treasured images I had conjured up in my mind as I enjoyed Tolkien’s mellifluous prose that summer.

The New York Times’ “Learning Network” education blog has sparked a Twitter campaign to discuss summer reading. Whether you’re picking up timeless classics like Brontë’s Jane Eyre (I vividly recall the illustrations from the 1943 edition I pulled off my parents’ shelf for summer reading) or enjoying a recent book like Fforde’s The Eyre Affair, join in the conversation by using the Twitter hashtag #summerreading tomorrow, June 7th. For more details, along with classic essays and articles on summer reading from the Times, see their post here.

In other news, Ray Bradbury, author of perennial classroom classic Fahrenheit 451, has passed away at the age of 91. We at Prestwick House express our condolences to his family and friends. Bradbury was a shining beacon in the literary world, and will be sorely missed.

Great Gatsby Trailer

Released today, the trailer for Baz Luhrmann's adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby promises a cinematic adventure like no other. Look for it in theaters in December 2012. 

"From the uniquely imaginative mind of writer/producer/director Baz Luhrmann comes the new big screen adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel, The Great Gatsby. The filmmaker will create his own distinctive visual interpretation of the classic story, bringing the period to life in a way that has never been seen before, in a film starring Leonardo DiCaprio in the title role. "The Great Gatsby" follows Fitzgerald-like, would-be writer Nick Carraway as he leaves the Midwest and comes to New York City in the spring of 1922, an era of loosening morals, glittering jazz and bootleg kings. Chasing his own American Dream, Nick lands next door to a mysterious, party-giving millionaire, Jay Gatsby, and across the bay from his cousin, Daisy, and her philandering, blue-blooded husband, Tom Buchanan. It is thus that Nick is drawn into the captivating world of the super-rich, their illusions, loves and deceits. As Nick bears witness, within and without the world he inhabits, he pens a tale of impossible love, incorruptible dreams and high-octane tragedy, and holds a mirror to our own modern times and struggles."

Learn About the Benefits of Direct Vocabulary Instruction with This FREE Downloadable!

As funds for education fluctuate, teachers like you are forced to be discriminating in purchasing of classroom programs and supplemental materials. With this valuable downloadable, you will discover the benefits of direct vocabulary instruction as a whole, as well as the effectiveness of the Prestwick House Vocabulary Power Plus series. 

Click the button below and fill out a brief form, and we'll email you a link to instantly download your free copy of "A Research-Based Evaluation of the Effectiveness of the Prestwick House Vocabulary Power Plus Series," containing information on: 

• The Effectiveness of Direct Vocabulary Instruction
• Demonstrated Effectiveness of Methods in Vocabulary Power Plus for the New SAT 
• Demonstrated Effectiveness of Online Learning 
• Common Core State Standards Correlations for the Vocabulary Power Plus Series 
• And More... 

 
 

Book People Unite for an Awesome Cause

Reading is Fundamental (RIF) has created a PSA aimed at reading lovers everywhere — urging us to come together to help us get books into the hands of kids who need them the most.

Remember visiting Narnia, playing Jumanji, and eating Green Eggs and Ham? Books can have an incredible effect on children’s lives, yet there’s only one book for every 300 kids living in underserved communities in the U.S.

If you could, please take a few moments to take the Book People pledge declaring your belief in the transformative power of books – and get a free download of the new RIF song. Join RIF in igniting a movement to spark a love of reading in America – and get books to kids who need them most.

Val Kilmer unrecognizable as Mark Twain

According to Yahoo.com:

He's played the rock god Jim Morrison, Moses, and even Batman, but now Val Kilmer is taking on the diety of authors: Mark Twain, in a one-man play, "Citizen Twain," which he created. The 52-year-old wrote, directed, and stars in the project.

From the photo of him in full Twain getup, it may be hard to believe that the actor is the usually blond, baby-faced Kilmer.

The show, which will run for two weekends at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, is all just preparation for a movie that Kilmer is set to do also as Twain, "Mark Twain and Mary Baker Eddy." The two were historical adversaries: Twain, a social satirist, and Eddy, the founder of Christian science.

The pair never met, but Twain was obsessed with her views, and wrote screeds against her. Kilmer told the Huffington Post that after seven years studying the two, "It's very much like 'Amadeus.' It's a dual biography. I'm regretting that now, because it's really hard to do."

As Twain, the "Heat" actor is unrecognizable. Fans may be reminded that the actor's trademark is exhaustive research in a role, and the Twain project is no exception. Kilmer wears the signature wild white hair and trademark mustache. His face is wrinkled, and he speaks with Twain's twang. The "Willow" actor, whose career has long been in a slump, is apparently financing the film himself. A note on the movie's website says the actor sold his New Mexico home to help with funding.

Kilmer, who is also an accomplished stage actor, told the Hollywood Reporter that the live performance is a great way into the character, who, he said, he's always loved for "his humor and genius." He added, "There's really no way of creating the role of Mark Twain without being onstage. He was a speaker, first and foremost; he did it before he was a famous writer. It's how he became famous as a writer, and it's even how he wrote novels. He would write in the morning and then read them to his children."