The Sunscreen Song: Activity to do with Graduating Seniors

Well the school year is really winding down here. Our last day is this Friday. I can't believe another year is almost in the books. This year has had its ups and downs, its challenges and its triumphs. But overall, I really enjoyed the group of kids I taught and was excited to incorporate some new lessons into my curriculum.

I teach mostly seniors, who finished up a couple weeks ago, and this year I incorporate a new activity on their last day of regular classes. I might be showing my age a bit, but the "Sunscreen Song" by Baz Luhrmann was really popular when I was graduating from 8th grade (lol) and I remember it kind of being a mantra for my class.

If you aren't familiar with this spoken word song, it actually started out as a piece in the Chicago Tribune by Mary Schmich entitled "Advice, like youth, probably wasted on the young."

Then, two years later, Luhrmann (the man who directed films such as Romeo + Juliet and The Great Gatsby) set it to music and turned it into a popular spoken word song for graduating seniors (or 8th graders, as it may be).

Here is the music video for it, which I showed to my seniors:

None of my seniors had heard it before (they were all 2 when it came out, which should make you feel very old!) I also gave them a copy of the lyrics.

After listening to it and watching the video, I had them go through and mark their favorite pieces of advice. What I love about this song/article is that even though it is silly at times, it does have very good and even poignant advice in it. Here are my favorite lines:

Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't

Maybe you'll have children, maybe you won't

Maybe you'll divorce at 40, maybe you'll dance the 'Funky Chicken'

On your 75th wedding anniversary

Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself too much

Or berate yourself either

Your choices are half chance, so are everybody else's

Many of my students loved these lines too.

After we discussed what their favorite pieces of advice were, I had them get in pairs and write their own "Sunscreen Song." They had to come up with at least ten pieces of advice for their fellow graduating classmates. The advice could be serious or silly, sentimental or humorous. I gave them about 20 min. or so to think about it and write, and then they each shared their favorite pieces of advice. I thought beforehand that most would want to write silly advice, but the vast majority came up with very thoughtful, heartfelt and sage advice actually.

It was a very fun activity, and I thought a perfect one for their last day as a high school student. Middle school teachers could easily use this with 8th graders graduating as well, since nothing in the song is inappropriate. 

What activities have you used with graduating seniors or 8th graders?

How I'm doing vocab. this year

Man, time got away from me. Already two weeks since I last posted. The school year is in full swing with tests, papers, projects, football games, and all those other things that signal we are back to it.

I have been knocked on my butt this past week with a terrible cough/cold. I also had lots of kids out sick. Never before have I had to take a sick day the first couple weeks of the year. I am feeling better, but still not totally myself yet.

Well now that I've had a couple weeks of doing vocab. in a new, CC-aligned way, I thought I'd post how it's going.

In the past, we had vocab. workbooks with arbitrary word lists, the kids got 20 words every two weeks, we'd do workbook exercises plus some supplemental stuff I came up with, then did a review game and quizzed on those words. NO MORE. And I am excited about the change.

Now, our tier 2 words are coming from what we read. Whenever I assign a reading, I go through beforehand and pick out 3-4 words (per week) that I think are difficult, yet frequently-used words my students will need to know across the curriculum and to use in everyday conversations.

I also define for them Tier 3 words (not often used or very content-specific terms). The tier 2 words I underline in the reading and have them try to figure out from context clues. Then when we discuss the reading, we come up with a consensus of a definition (if no one knows it, I let them use their phones to look it up in an online dictionary). They keep vocab. journals and keep a running list of our words: the words, definition, synonyms they come up with, and they write down the sentence it appeared in.

Every couple weeks, we take those words and will make a decorative sheet for them for our Word Wall. They can use colors and fun fonts to make a sheet with the word, definition, and a picture that shows that word's meaning. Then we hang them on our wall, so we can always see them and incorporate them into our language. So far, between my seniors and juniors, we have about 12 words up there and it will keep growing.

We also do some supplemental activities about once every two weeks. This week I had them fill out graphic organizers for each word with things like their own sentence, antonyms, synonyms, and a picture to demonstrate. I also plan to play some review games.

One game I want to do I learned at a CC conference. I plan to get note cards and for each word, do three things: one card has the word, one card has the definition, and one card has a defining picture. I'd do this for all our words so far (and cover up the word wall or take them down). Each student gets a card and has to find their two word partners. Then they have to stand with their group and show me all three cards that go together. I like this idea a lot; I just want to accumulate more words before we play it.

Extra credit:
Everyone feels differently about extra credit, and I don't offer a lot, but I do offer a few points. I find that many students don't take advantage, but the ones that really want to try to better their grade do. Each week, students can earn one extra credit vocab. point by doing one of the following with a word on our word wall:

1) Use the word correctly in a Facebook status and show it to me.
2) Use the word in a Tweet and show it to me.
3) Find a word in a book or magazine/Internet article they are reading and bring it in.
4) See the word used out in public somewhere, take a pic of it and bring it in.
5) Use a word correctly in class.

So far, I've had a handful take advantage and it's been fun. A lot of them really dig the FB and Twitter options.

Overall, I am loving doing vocab. differently than in the past, and it frees up time to do more with lit. and writing, instead of feeling like I have to get through 20 words in two weeks that they won't retain anyhow.