Project Based Learning Electives provided by the Berrien Springs Virtual Academy
​Diane Helbley: Poetry Fun and Scriptwriting        Fall 2021

Instructor: Diane Helbley 
Contact: phone: 269-240-3959 email: diane.helbley@gmail.com       
Format: in-person
Location: Neighbor to Neighbor Meeting Room, 9147 US Highway 31, Berrien Springs
Classes must begin in September.     CLASSES CANCELED
Grades: 3-6

Additional registration at location is not required.     These classes are in the Communication Category in registration.

Poetry Fun for Elementary Students 
Tuesday, 1:00-2:00pm

Description:  ​Are you a fan of Dr. Seuss books, greeting card  sayings, commercial jingles, or song lyrics? Then you’re a fan of poetry! Poetry isn’t just an old, dusty  way of writing. It’s an interesting, creative way to get ideas across, even today. It helps us to memorize  things, and it helps us to use our imaginations to describe something.  
In this class, we will explore, write, recite, and perhaps even illustrate classic and modern poetic forms.  We will learn about the poetic tools used to create interesting poems. Students will have opportunities  to share their poems with each other in class, and a poetry reading with each student’s best/favorite  poem(s) will end our time together. 
Each student will need a notebook or journal in which to write their poems. They should choose one  that is at least 5”x7” and no larger than 9”x12”. It can be lined, bulleted, or blank. (For younger children, lines will likely be helpful.) 
Syllabus


Scriptwriting for Elementary Students 
Tuesday, 2:00-3:00pm

Description:  ​Would you like to be able to write plays for  school, church, or your friends and family? Then scriptwriting is for you! Telling a story in a way  that people can actually see what you were intending is a very exciting process! 
In this class, we will learn all about theatre and storytelling terminology, as well as story  development for live stage productions. Students will write their own scripts throughout our time  together, and each will be performed in a Reader’s Theatre for parents/guardians at the end of the  course. 
Each student will need a notebook, journal, or computer in which to take notes and write their  scripts. Notebooks or journals should be at least 5”x7” and no larger than 9”x12”. It can be lined,  bulleted, or blank. (For younger children, lines will likely be helpful.)
Syllabus

*Please note: it is important to make as informed a decision as possible when choosing your student's Community Resource classes. Most locations will allow a student to drop a class after one meeting, at no charge if it wasn't a good fit for the student, but not all. Some classes plan ahead based on the number that have signed up and have purchased materials, hired teachers, etc. and there might be a fee for class time or materials given to the student if the student drops after one or two meetings. The school cannot pay for classes that students do not complete, so choose wisely; if you do not take the class off of your student's schedule by the deadline, you may be asked to pay for the class time incurred prior to dropping the class. 

​Teacher of Record:  Mark Ring