Propp’s Propaganda

A few years ago upon the completion of reading Hamlet, I had my students take part in the “Hot Seat”.  Each student selected a character from the play at random.  They then had to become that character.  Each student in the class would write up 5 questions to ask each character from the play.  On the day of the “hot seat” the student’s desks would be lined up in front of a single chair.  The character of the day would sit in front of the panel in the single chair.  Each student would go down the line and ask the character questions.  The student must then respond as  the character would respond.  Students get bonus points for dressing the part or bringing in props that are appropriate for the character they are playing.  In the past, this has been an exciting exercise.  This year, however, it didn’t quite go so well.  Now, I find myself wondering what I did differently or how next time I can make this an exciting experience for the students.  I wonder if anyone has ever tried anything like this that could help me out with this assignmnet for next year?  Part of me wants to say that many of the students this year did not take this assginment seriously. I hate to say that or even think it since it is an honors 12th grade English class.

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