I haven't expected us to be spending so much time just learning about Italy. It has been four months since we first started with Marco Polo and we haven't even left Italy yet!
Luckily our current approach to home education gives us the flexibility to study a topic in depth without having to rush through it. However, I think we have had enough of Italy by now so I am happy to report that we are finally wrapping up at a suitable place - by the coast.
We were at Canterbury over the weekend where we walked along the Roman city wall.
We were on our way to see the Reculver Towers and Roman Fort. It location is stunning and right by the coast. Very appropriate for a departure by sea (as Marco Polo did when he first left Venice), don't you think?
Before we departed, we had a very delicious meal at an Italian restaurant. The food was so good that I completely forgot to take photos of them until we had finished eating... Fortunately, the restaurant has a shop section that sells food-related items from Italy so I took a few shots of the wide variety of food stuff there:
Since we have been all over the place (in time), reading the historical fiction recommended by Julie from Highhill Education has been very useful to take us back to 13th century Venice.
We are going to take a break from The Travels of Marco Polo for now and resume his journey in the autumn. You can read all of our Italian Experiences with him here.
Learning about Mount Vesuvius' eruption has given us a reason to revisit some aspects of the Roman culture, which in turn is the perfect excuse to visit the city of Bath...
The exterior of the site is very impressive. There are classical statues all around it (built during the Victorian times) with the original bathing pool extremely well preserved.
Compared to my previous visit to the Roman Baths about 15 years ago, the venue has had a major makeover with a large exhibition room. The exhibits are all very clearly labeled, with detailed explanations and models. There was a section about Roman life in general, and the people who would have visited the baths back then.
We also learnt that the site was much bigger than what has been preserved, and that there was a temple attached to the bath. It seems that the Romans made an occasion of visiting the baths not just to clean themselves but also to seek healing from a sacred spring as well as to visit the temple of Sulis Minerva.
What we found to be most interesting was the section about the structural design of the baths.
We also attended the guided tour to learn more about the structure and history behind the baths behind the archaeological findings.
Watching the following documentary adds on to what we have learnt about the structure of Roman baths:
We were very impressed by our visit. It is definitely a place worth visiting. You can take a virtual tour of the great bath (the largest pool) here.
For some reason, we did not study the infamous eruption of Mount Vesuvius when we studied Ancient Rome. Luckily, we get to do it this time round because of Marco Polo. Who would have guessed?
We started by reading many books about the event in Pompeii:
This was followed by several cross-curricula activities from this book, which included learning about Pliny the Elder's route (geography), reading a play version of the story of Pliny the Elder as narrated by his nephew (comprehension, drama, reading), and labeling parts of a volcano (earth science). The more hands-on activity was the making of a topologic map, 3D model of Mount Vesuvius.
Tiger used some terracota-coloured clay and worked layer-by-layer using the copy of the topologic map provided in the book. The final result:
Originally, I only intended to watch one documentary, but we ended up watching three different ones to get a really good understanding of the event from different perspectives:
With a good understanding of the event, we were able to better appreciate our visit to the Life and Death: Pompeii and Herculaneum exhibition that is currently showing at the British Museum.
While we were there, Tiger attended a full-day workshop related to the exhibition. At the workshop, the children were introduced to several re-enactors who took on different roles as people who were in Pompeii on that fateful day in AD79: Pliny the Elder, Pliny the Younger, a freed slave girl, a rich merchant, a priestess, a slave. Through their interaction with these different characters inside the exhibition hall, the children were given good insights into life in Pompeii at that time, how people lived, their different roles, and how the Roman societal hierachy was organised.
listening to the audio recording of the entire play, and reading the full script.
As a genre, Shakespeare's work is best learned in the way that it was intended: as a play. While reading the script is one way to analyse the literary elements of the play, the most memorable and engaging way for children to experience Shakespeare's work is through acting/drama. If that is not possible, the next best way to learn is to listen to the play, rather than reading it.
It is difficult to find good Shakespearean classes for children so when one of the homeschooling groups that we belong to offer a 4-day course on The Tempest, led by an experienced actor who is also a literature teacher, we jumped at the chance to participate in it.
In Workshop 1, the children started with drama games to help them relax, get acquainted with one another, and to get used to the different drama terms such as 'neutral position' which means to be ready for instruction or action.
This was followed by a brief introduction to the history of drama, in which the drama coach told us that Shakespeare was inspired by the commedia dell'arte characters. The children were also introduced to the different "levels" in acting, which they learned to convey using different body positions. Another technique that the children learned was using their facial expressions. For example, they were challenged to express 'innocence' through their eyes, face, cheeks, mouth, movement, then finally in the ways in which they interacted with the space around them.
The next half of the workshop concentrated on analysing Act 1 Scene 1, which involved a few rounds of discussions about the shipwreck scene. After that, the children worked in several groups to turn themselves into the ship, and they had to convey the shipwreck using movements.
Workshop 2 again started with drama games that helped to enforce the ideas of relaxation, cooperation and teamwork. This was followed by a review of Act 1 Scene 1. This time, the children were led into an analysis of the characters and the scene. For example, the children were asked to discuss the significance of the play as Shakespeare's final work, the possibility of it being used as an autobiography via the character of Prospero, the use of symbolism, and what Shakespeare's message to the world (through this play) might be.
The focus of Workshop 2 was on Act 1 Scene 2. Analysis of the scene included discussions about:
the element of suspense in the order of which the characters spoke
the effects on the audience to have another character (Miranda) introduce the main character (Prospero)
how rhythms and patterns in the speech conveyed the status of each character
the emotions in Miranda's speech - the children were then trained to identify and create the different emotions in speech
the motive behind having Miranda fall asleep when Ariel was summoned
the relationship between Ariel and Prospero
some background/historical inspiration for the character of Caliban - it stemed from Tudor records of "strange-looking" natives near the Falkland Islands
After this, the children worked in groups of four to create the character, Caliban. They were to show, through working together and body movements, the character emerging out of the earth.
The children worked on Act 2 Scene 2 in Workshop 3, focusing on the characters of Caliban, Trinculo, and Stephano. In groups of five, the children were given the task of creating Caliban with multiple heads and legs under a piece of cloth. To do this, they had to consider the characteristics of the character -- earthy, heavy movement, type of voice, it being half-animal and half-human, etc. When they have developed their character, each child was given a line (Caliban's curse of Propsero) to add a voice to the Caliban that they have created.
The scene analysis in workshop 3 included:
thinking about the mouth movements required for Shakespeare's speech, i.e. the emphasis of vowels
considering how consonants and vowels work together to affect the sounds of what was spoken
readings of lines and explaining unfamiliar words
discussing the interactions between Caliban and the two human characters
considering the comic potential of the scene - and think about why Shakespeare created the comic element to the story
understanding Caliban's speech at the end of this scene - what he was trying to do and what it conveyed about him
The final workshop focused on analysing Act 3 and on understanding why Shakespeare has set the play on an island. Specifically in Act 3 Scene 2, much time was spent on dicussing and analysing Caliban's speech:
what is his plan?
what emotions are portrayed in this speech?
what does he want Stephano and Trinculo to do, and how?
do the spirits like Caliban?
what does Caliban need to do before killing Propsero?
are his words believeable?
how the use of certain words convey Caliban's state of mind
what do we learn about Caliban here?
Caliban's relationships to Prospero and Miranda
The discussions on Caliban led to the children thinking about how the settings of the play might have been related to the slave trade that took place in Elizabethan times, that perhaps Shakespeare intended the audience to consider what would happen if you treat other people as sub-human (as in the case of how Caliban has been treated).
Working in pairs, the children were then given the tasks of:
1) finding an image from the speech to be used to represent a statue of Caliban, and
2) finding a phrase from the speech to represent, as a statue, of either Stephano or Trinculo.
In doing so, the children had to analyse the body language of the statue that they were to represent with their bodies, while also analysing why the two humans may want to help Caliban. It was interesting to see the many different, creative interpretations of the same speech.
It is all very timely because the new 2013 season has opened at The Globe and we went to watch The Tempest there. You can catch the final moments of this year's production here.
When we look into the traditional art associated with Italy, the one that we come across the most is mosaics. I wonder whether this is due to the influence of the Roman culture, which is also our main association to mosaics.
We started off our exploration of mosaics with a set of puzzles that Tiger had used when he was a preschooler. Following last week's land and water forms exercise (also from his preschool days), we seem to be feeling rather nostalgic lately. Maybe it's because the academic year is coming to a close soon and I am feeling more reflective about what we have done so far.
Once Tiger has the hang of forming a mosaic picture from the above exercise, I wanted us to make one out of paper. To get our design inspiration from real mosaics, we went to look the V&A. The V&A prides itself as a design museum, so everything in it is filled with ideas for designers. We had a good look at the different patterns on its mosaic floors as well as a few more modern mosaic portraits on the wall.
At home, we proceeded with our paper mosaic project. We cut an A4-sized white card into two to use as our base. Then we each sketched the outline of our designs using pencil before filling the designs in lightly with coloured pencils. This is to help us plan where the colours go.
Tiger's design
My design
We gathered all the coloured craft papers we needed, measured and drew 1cm squares on each and cut them up with a pair of scissors. The coloured paper tiles were put in plastic trays by colours for ease of use. Then we glued each paper tile onto our designs carefully, one colour at a time.
The paper mosaics took a while to complete but it was a fun exercise.
Finally, I gave Tiger a mosaic tile set that I bought from a craft shop. The set came with ready-cut tiles, a wooden base, ready-drawn design, and grout. All Tiger had to do was to assemble it.
Tiger actually prefers to make his own paper mosaic rather than to use the ready-made set because:
1) he prefers to draw his own design, and
2) the tiles in the set are all standard 1cm squares, and we cannot cut the tiles easily without making a mess and breaking them. The inability to cut the tiles results in a less refined finish.
Tiger has already read the story from Tales of Shakespeare and other abridged versions. He also remembers the masks that he decorated, which he thinks will come in handy in the masquerade party in the play. He also watched the BBC animated version of Romeo and Juliet.
After our previous successful trip to The Globe, Tiger asked to go there again. On his own accord, he started to read the original play at home and took it along on the day of the performance to "match what the actors are saying with the script" (his words). The version that he read is one that is used in schools -- with the dialogues on one side and the corresponding analysis on the other. I wasn't expecting him to read the actual play until later, but if he wanted to do that and has enjoyed doing so (as he told me afterwards), then I won't hold him back unnecessarily.
The production at The Globe that we watched was one that was specifically put up for the benefit of students who are taking literature GCSE exams this year, as Romeo and Juliet is one of the selected texts for the exam.
The performance, although the actors still spoke in the original
Shakespearean language, was modernised in its props and costumes, which
reminded me more of West Side Story than the usual Elizabethan stage than we were expecting to see at The Globe. It is very unusual for The Globe to perform in a modern version so I wonder whether it was a deliberate action to get the secondary school children interested.
I was very impressed by the performance nonetheless, as I felt that I now understand the play and the emotions within the characters more after watching the performance. However, Tiger didn't like the modernised parts of the performance. He wanted to see the traditional Elizabethan version that The Globe did a few years ago:
Tigerwas also not impressed with the audience that day. Compared to the very civilised, interested, paying public whom we sat amongst to watch The Taming of the Shrew, this time we were amongst secondary school groups. Watching from the side where we were sitting, it was clear that some of the school children / teenagers really didn't want to be there. Tiger was slightly baffled at one point by the disinterest he saw in the majority of the school-attending audience.
The quality of the audience and the modernisation of the play, both of which Tiger didn't take to, helped me make up my mind about not attending school matinees at The Globe anymore. I would rather pay the full price to have the same experience as we did with The Taming of the Shrew.
We also watched an Italian opera, La Boheme, at The Royal Opera House. I wasn't sure whether Tiger would be able to sit through the entire performance without feeling bored, but he was captivated by the music and the set.
As a result of his interest in the opera above, we came home to learn more about its composer, Puccini:
In studying about Italy, Tiger and I began discussing about all the stories we know that were set in Italy. Somehow our discussion led to Shakespearean stories. We then listed the stories from Tales of Shakespeare and identified the locations where the stories were set.
Interestingly, 9 out of the 20 stories in the book were set in Italy:
The Tempest - Milan, Italy
A Midsummer Night's Dream - Athens, Greece
The Winter's Tale - Sicily, Italy
Much Ado About Nothing - Florence, Italy
As You Like It - France
The Two Gentlemen of Verona - Verona, Italy
The Merchant of Venice - Venice, Italy
Cymberline - England
King Lear - England
Macbeth - Scotland
All's Well that Ends Well - Paris, France
The Taming of the Shrew - Padua, Italy
The Comedy of Errors - Sicily, Italy
Measure for Measure - Vienna, Austria
Twelfth Night, or What You Will - Albania
Timon of Athens - Athens, Greece
Romeo and Juliet - Verona, Italy
Hamlet - Denmark
Othello - Venice, Italy
Pericles, Prince of Tyre - Tyre, Lebanon
So we set to locate the proximity of the different cities on a map:
After Tiger has read the book, we discussed briefly about the concepts of comedies and tragedies, and grouped the stories into either category. Tiger's favourite story by far is The Taming of the Shrew. He is tickled by Petruchio's character and wit.
After reading the story, we watched a very good BBC animated production to see it come alive:
However, nothing beats watching the actual performance at The Globe. Tiger remembered laughing so much throughout last summer's performance that it was well worth the time and cost to be there.
You can have a feel of what the performance was like from the clip below:
Since Marco Polo's father and uncle stayed in Venice for four
years after their first trip to the East before they set off again, we
thought we would spend a little bit longer in Italy to learn more about
the country, as well as to better prepare ourselves to embark on the epic
journey.
We learned about a specific type of theatre in Italy called commedia dell'arte.
It is very similar to the English Punch and Judy puppet show where there is a standard set of characters. In fact, according to Wikipedia, Punch and Judy evolved from commedia dell'arte.
After watching National Theatre's introduction above, we decided to watch an actual Italian version that introduces each character and the relevant theatrical masks each wears:
I bought two pre-made masks from a craft shop and asked Tiger to choose one mask to be decorated as a theatrical mask, the other was to be a Venetian carnival mask. For ideas and inspirations on how to decorate the carnival mask, Tiger googled "Venetian carnival mask" and looked through the search results.
Once he was happy with his research, he started to paint each mask with an undercoat:
The undercoat took a day to fully dry. Next, I laid out all the materials I could find for Tiger to start decorating his masks: sequins, ribbons, craft precious stones, feathers, yarn, crepe paper, craft aluminium foil....etc.
