迎接新的一年，沒有什么比一場精彩的匯演更合適啦！

大幕拉開——《和光同塵》的歌聲婉轉升起；孩子們騎著“馬兒”奔騰起來；卓別林風格的系列無聲電影盛大上映......

12月的最后兩周，北皋校區小學部和泉發校區幼兒園部的孩子們為家長和老師們呈現了一場精彩的藝術匯演——音樂會《我們都是音樂家》和孩子們自編自導的《默片之夜》。

慶祝新年到來、展示藝術素養，以及最最重要的——呈現孩子作為孩子的朝氣和陽光，沒有什么比這樣的形式更直觀了！

默片之夜

匯演伴隨《默片之夜》進入高潮！那是5年級學生戲劇課堂《無聲電影（默片）》學習單元的成果展示，也是我們了解他們觀察和理解世界的小窗口。

孩子們分組創作出一共17支有趣的短片——《按下按鈕》、《一天“正常”的學校生活》、《拋硬幣》、《追逐野鵝》、《失蹤的孩子》、《善良》……單是看看標題，就吊足了大家的胃口，非要一觀究竟不可！

劇照

觀影之后，我們也訪問了北皋小學戲劇老師Jessie Edmonds，請她解密這么精彩的電影之夜的源起和背后的教育深意——

為什么在戲劇課上選擇教授無聲電影？

Jessie：首先，將無聲電影納入戲劇課程提供了一個絕佳的機會——通過關注思想而非文字來跨越語言溝通的障礙。啟明星學校是一所雙語學校，在戲劇課上實現雙語教育的一項做法就是鼓勵學生有效交流，并且不僅僅是依靠語言來表達自己。這種能力（通過肢體運動和面部表情，無需口頭對話來傳達情感和敘事）是一種具有挑戰又很美麗的技能。

其次，將更多的技術融入戲劇課堂一直是我的職業目標。戲劇是一門非常注重形體表達的學科，和典型的課堂環境非常不一樣。結合使用iPad和iMovie制作影片，也是學生發展IT技能，探索快速發展的技術領域的機會。

默片（無聲電影） 小卡片

無聲電影于1894年面世，并在1910年至1929年間最為流行。在電影剛開始時，劇院會有一個“內部解說員”來解釋故事的部分內容。后來，影片變得足夠長，就會使用字幕來幫助觀眾理解劇情。其實，無聲電影也并不完全無聲！在公共劇院上映的電影會有現場伴奏，從鋼琴到完整的管弦樂隊都有可能。1929年，華納兄弟公司首次推出了一部有對話的故事片。從那時起，有聲電影被稱為“說話片”或“有聲電影”。如今由于保管不善，超過75%的無聲電影已經失傳。

無聲電影單元和其他學科學習之間有什么聯系嗎？

Jessie：有趣的是，戲劇具有和每個學科相關的特點。從講故事到建立信心，從理解肢體語言到培養空間意識，這樣的課堂有一種和學生學習過程的不同領域建立聯系的非凡能力。通過學習，學生學會展示角色、表達想法和探索情感。這促使他們對周圍世界產生更全面的了解。經由這種多學科的學習方法，我們鼓勵學生將自己在課堂上學到的知識應用到課外的生活中。

這個單元的學習是怎樣進行的？

Jessie：我們完成整個單元花了大約6周，這樣能確保我們有足夠的時間來完成學習過程的每一步。首先，學生們分成若干個小組，以組為單位共同創意電影故事的大綱，詳細設計人物角色，確定需要什么道具和服裝。另外，學生也要決定在校園的哪個地方完成影片的拍攝。之后，他們一起拍攝，一起剪輯，分別承擔演員、導演和剪輯師的角色。這個由學生主導的項目需要非常大的能動性和內在動力。我們的學生真的很享受這個項目賦予他們的獨立感。

怎樣評價學生在無聲電影單元的表現？

Jessie：無聲電影項目最棒的一點，是它包容了每種類型的學習者。我的教室里滿是興趣各異、個性和學習風格不同的學生。無聲電影讓每個學生都獲得了平等的學習和成長機會。一些學生在鏡頭前發現了自己的巨大興趣。有些學生可能更喜歡在幕后擔任導演、剪輯師或攝影師。其他人可能更傾向于寫作、閱讀或做研究。5年級的學生有機會在整個項目中探索多種不同的角色和責任。通過這樣的學習，孩子們的團隊合作和協作能力也得到了提升。他們還獲得了主人翁感和自豪感，因為他們見證了自己的創作從理想一步步成為現實的過程！

學習之旅也是自我發現之旅——這樣的學習體驗彌足珍貴！愿見證這場匯演的每一位觀眾和參與者，都能體會到這份學習的快樂和滿足感！

The curtain rose, the singing of "Dust with Light" rose gracefully, students galloped on "horses", and a silent films produced by students following the style of Chaplin were released......

In the last two weeks of December, students from the our Beigao elementary school and Early Learning Center presented a series of song and dance performances - "The Musicians in Us!" - , as well as "Hush Hush Cinema" produced by Grade 5 students to their teachers and parents.

There is nothing more visual than such a performance that welcomes the New Year, demonstrates artistic literacy, and most importantly - presents the vitality and joy of students as students!

Hush Hush Cinema

The performance came to a climax with a night of silent films "Hush Hush Cinema"! That was a showcase of learning from the 5th graders' unit of study on "Silent Films" in their drama class, and a small window into their interests of observation and understanding.

The 5th graders worked in groups to create a total of 17 interesting short films."Press the Button"," A 'Normal' Day of School", "Coin Toss", "Wild Goose Chase", "The Missing Kid", "Kind"... The films look so interesting!

STAGEPHOTOS

After the Hush Hush Cinema, we interviewed Jessie Edmonds, Drama Teacher of Beigao Elementary School. She introduced educational meaning of such a wonderful movie night:

Why do you select ‘Silent Film' as a teaching unit for drama class?

Jessie：I am thrilled to share more information on our Silent Films unit! Firstly,the inclusion of Silent Films into the Drama curriculum offers a wonderful opportunity to transcend linguistic barriers by focusing on ideas rather than words.We’re a dual language school here at Daystar Academy. Part of developing that initiative within Drama class, is through encouraging students to communicate effectively without relying solely on words to express themselves. This ability (to convey emotions and narratives through body movement and facial expressions, without spoken dialogue) is a challenging yet beautiful skill to develop.

Secondly, integrating more technology into the Drama classroom has been a professional goal of mine. Drama is a very physical-focused subject, and is quite different to a typical classroom setting.By incorporating iPads and iMovie, it provides students with the opportunity to enhance their IT skills and explore the rapidly growing field of technology.

What is Silent Film?

Films (Silent Film) were introduced to the public in 1894, and reached its height of popularity between 1910-1929. When film began, theaters would have an “in-house interpreter” to explain parts of the story. Later on, once the films became full length, intertitles were used to help make the plot clear to the audience. Silent films were not completely silent! Films shown in public theaters had live accompaniment, from a piano to a full orchestra. In 1929, Warner Brothers premiered the first feature film with dialogue. From this point forward, films with sound were called “Talkies” or “Talking Pictures”. Most silent films today exist as 2nd or 3rd generation copies made from damaged stock. It is estimated that over 75% of silent films were lost due to poor preservation.

Is there any connections between silent film and other subjects?

Jessie：Interestingly enough, I believe Drama has the unique ability to relate to every subject.From storytelling to building confidence, understanding body language to developing spatial awareness, Drama has the remarkable ability to establish connections with the diverse areas of our students’ learning journeys.Through the lens of Drama, students learn to embody characters, express ideas, and explore emotions. This fosters a more holistic understanding of the world around them. Through this multidisciplinary approach, we can encourage our students to apply what they’re learning in the classroom, to their lives outside of school.

How did you carry out this unit teaching?

Jessie：This entire unit took about six weeks. I wanted to make sure there was ample time to complete every step of the process. First, the students were organized into small groups and worked together to create an outline of their story, come up with detailed characters, and determine what materials (props) and costumes they would require. Additionally, they assumed the responsibility of deciding where on the school campus they would complete their film. Following this, our students worked together to film and edit their movies, with designated roles such as actors, directors, and editors. This student-lead project required a tremendous amount of student agency and intrinsic motivation. I can say our students really enjoyed the independence this project gave them.

How do you comment students' learning of this unit?

Jessie：One great aspect of this project, is that it’s inclusive to every type of learner.As an educator, I know my classroom is always filled with students who have different interests, personalities, and learning styles.This project allows every student an equal opportunity to learn and grow.Some students find their passion in front of the camera. Some may prefer to work behind the scenes as a director, editor, or cinematographer. Others may feel more inclined to write, read, or do research. Our Grade 5 students had the opportunity to explore multiple different roles and responsibilities throughout this project. Through this, the project fosters teamwork and collaboration. It also gives our students a sense of ownership and pride as they witness something they’ve made on their own, come to life.

A journey of learning is also a journey of self-discovery - such a learning experience is precious. We hope that every audience and participant who witnessed this performance will experience the joy and satisfaction of this learning experience!

啟明星正式成為ACT GAC學校，提供ACT考試！Daystar Becomes an ACT GAC School

喜報｜出道即巔峰：中文辯論隊“縱橫杯”比賽滿載而歸！Good News! Daystar Swept the Board at Zongheng Cup Mandarin Debate