Star Wars Teaches You to Write: Flexible Schedule

Class
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Janelle Fila
Average rating:4.6Number of reviews:(896)
In this 8 week flexible course, learn 8 storytelling elements from George Lucas, Disney, and Star Wars #creative

Class experience

US Grade 3 - 6
Week One: Time is an incredibly important aspect of a story's opening pages because it tells us the year/era the story takes place. How long is a long, long time ago? Why is Star Wars set so far in the past when the technology seems so far in the future? How many years are in between movies, TV shows, and episodes? Would the stories make more sense of the timelines were clearer and less confusing? 

Week Two: Place is the physical location of the story. Star Wars has many interesting and amazing planets to talk about. Some (like Tatooine and Jakku) are similar to each other. Some are similar to Earth. Others are creative and completely unique. All are important to the story and help make Star Wars come alive and feel realistic. 

Week Three: Setting (description of place) is such an important part of the Star Wars series. Would Star Wars be as popular if we didn't dream of flying to people-covered Coruscant, visiting Yoda on swampy Dagobah, or fighting on Mustafar? I will discuss other favorite locations and descriptions, and determine how settings like Vader's Castle, Cloud City, the Millenium Falcon, and Endor impacted the overall story.                                         

Week Four: The protagonist is the main character. Stories generally only have one main character, but Star Wars has many! We will talk about the main characters from each trilogy: Anakin, Luke, and Rey. Students might make a case for popular characters like Obi Wan and Finn to be included as protagonists in theses stories. 

Week Five: The antagonist  is the main villain. I will talk about Palpatine, Darth Vader, and the Sith, and the way the Jedi, the Rebels, and the Resistance combat them both in every single story. Students are also encouraged to consider other characters who antagonize the Jedi, like Count Dooku, General Grevious, the Trade Federation, Kylo Ren and Snoke. 
                 
Week Six:  Creatures and animals make Star Wars fun and cute! But they are also important to the overall story We will talk about the importance of fan favorites like Baby Yoda, Porgs, and Ewoks. Some students may make a case for animal creatures like Jawas, too. 

Week Seven: Robots are equally important in the Star Wars universe. How would the stories be different without fan favorites like R2-D2, C-3PO, BB-8, K-2SO, and D-O? Some robots are programmed to work for the Empire, like IG-88 and BB-9E. Many of the Star Wars characters don't like or trust droids, but how much of it is just their programming? We can also talk about cyborg characters (part living, part robot) like Darth Vader and General Grevious. 

Week Eight: Secondary characters are not less important than main characters! How boring would Star Wars be without Greedo and Maz Kanata? Students will be encourage to consider how important characters like Lando and Mon Mothma are to the overall story. Some characters have minor roles in early movies but become incredibly important as the series progresses. 
While earning my Master's Degree in Creative Writing for Children and Young Adults, I had endless discussions with my screenplay writer friends about the Star Wars Universe. Star Wars is so complex and ever growing that it seems impossible to know it all! Because the Star Wars galaxy is full of hints and questions, the movies and characters make great conversation! It is also nice to find other people (and potential friends) who share a love for Star Wars, science fiction, and good storytelling. 
Homework Offered
Each week, I assign a short writing assignment focused around that week's theme and encourage the students to share their paragraphs in the classroom (so other students may view, comment, and interact as well). I also encourage students to submit their own creative writing (either from a story the students are working on or Star Wars fan fiction, if they prefer). I will critique submitted work based on an overall view of that week's theme along with some minor spelling and grammar as needed.
1 - 2 hours per week outside of class
Assessments Offered
The more assignments that students post and the more creative writing that they share helps me to understand their knowledge and comprehension of the topics we are discussing.
Grades Offered
Each Sunday, students will have access to a new video and a corresponding one page worksheet that addresses/reminds them of some of the topics discussed (it will also have room for notes and some questions to consider answering). Students should have a familiarity with at least some of the Star Wars universe. I will try to limit discussion to avoid spoilers in many different areas, as not all of the students will have seen all of the movies or all seasons of all of the television shows on Disney +
Learners will not need to use any apps or websites beyond the standard Outschool tools.
Star Wars is a universe about fighting, wars, death, and darkness. Half of the movies are rated PG-13. Some of the these movies have darker themes that may not be appropriate for all age groups. 
Average rating:4.6Number of reviews:(896)
Profile
I currently teach English Composition at the collegiate level. I have a Master's degree in Creative Writing for Children and Young Adults, so I teach reading and writing classes. I worked as a substitute teacher for 3 years, in all age ranges and... 
Flex Class

$5

weekly or $40 for 8 weeks
8 weeks

Completed by 25 learners
No live video meetings
Ages 8-13

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