Eloquence

Classroom Activities

Classroom Activity 1

Have the students translate the Gettysburg address into contemporary language without sacrificing any part of the message. This is a challenging activity that allows students to get creative. This activity should be done in groups of two or three. Allow them to use whatever language they choose as long as it does not violate the student code of conduct. Encourage the students to incorporate music and rhyme as they please. The object of the activity is to get the students to use some of the rhetorical devices they have learned in a creative way.

Classroom Activity 2

The students will write a rubric for the perfect rap song. Begin this activity as a whole class to establish a baseline before allowing students to create more nuanced rubrics independently. It is crucial that the teacher steer students away from just rhythm and beat, and toward how the lyrics and rhythm complement one another. This rubric should mainly concern the lyrics, and will be divided into two parts: style and content. The style section is where the essential rhetorical tropes will be listed and explained, and the content section is where the ideas of the speaker are outlined. After the students create their rubrics, they will pick out a song and rate it according to their rubric. They will write one evaluative paragraph about how successful the song is rhetorically.

Classroom Activity 3: Final Project

For the final project, the students have a choice. They may write a persuasive speech as a rap, or they may write an album review for an album of their choice. The album review must include a thoughtful analysis of the musician's approach, the rhetorical strategies used, and an evaluative statement that persuades the reader either to listen or not listen to the album. The review will include the student's opinion, but it must be backed by their knowledge of rhetoric. Thus, the student should not say "I like the part when…" but instead speak objectively, "This particular line is emotionally stirring because of x rhetorical device." At the top of their review, they must assign a number of stars for the album, ranging from 1 to 10. Ten stars is a perfect masterpiece, and one star is a total flop. Encourage the students to stay away from the absolutes to enhance their credibility. Make sure the students use their rap rubrics as guidelines for what to write. The students will each present their final projects to the class with a brief synopsis of the album and their rating of it. The presentation shouldn't last more than three minutes but should include relevant information as to why they picked that rating. The reviews will be posted around the classroom with pictures of the album covers.

Some students are going to be turned off at the prospect of writing what is ostensibly a persuasive essay. These students have the option of writing a persuasive speech in the form of a song. They may revise and expand upon their rewrites of the Gettysburg Address, or they may pick another topic they find relevant. They also must use the rap rubrics they designed as a guideline. The song should be no less than two minutes long. The teacher or a student will record a performance of the song and it will be played to the class. That way, the student can have time to practice and revise their performance after they view the tape. If the teacher does not have access to a video recorder, the performance can be live, but allow a few days for the student to practice at home