"The play's the thing."

For the last 5 years, we have taken the Clifton 8th graders to see a Shakespeare "sampler" at the Glendale Center Theater. It's a "play within a play" about a troupe of actors who are shipwrecked on an island. Prospero comes and tells them to prove the "virtue, civility and mystery of love" or else he will keep them forever on the island.

They start out with some sonnets, but Prospero is not satisfied. So they do scenes from Much Ado About Nothing, Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, Taming of the Shrew, and Hamlet. In the end, Prospero tells them it's all been a dream - they have been home all the time.

It's a pretty lively performance - most of the kids enjoy it. Some do not - and some are even a bit rude - like the young lady behind me who kept repeating, "This is so boring." I finally turned around and told her I'd take her out if she didn't stop. She seemed to believe me, so she at least stopped saying it. I'm pretty sure she didn't appreciate it! After the show, the 8th grade chairman said, "This makes me think we need to start exposing kids to Shakespeare in Kindergarten!!"

We were not the only school in attendance, but the other schools were private schools. For a number of reasons, those kids were better behaved and more appreciative.

I have often noticed that many students have not been taught about appropriate behavior for different settings. We almost can't condemn them, since they may not know better.

But we did give them instructions before we left. Not following instructions may be something they learned at home however, so once again condemnation is not the answer.

So we keep instructing them at school - in lots of things!