Cyrano’s Funk

It is no secret that teaching literary canons in an ever-changing and technologically advanced world is challenging. Competing with roller coaster designs in a physics class or robotics in an engineering course across the hall makes the pages of a dense novel seem unmanageable for students. However, Project Based Learning offers a viable solution for literature teachers, by allowing them to teach a novel in the context of an authentic project.

Cyrano’s Funk focuses on the story of Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand. Although it is over 100 years old, students in this project will feel like the characters and themes from this classic piece of literature are playing out on their Facebook page today. Students become engaged and motivated by making personal connections to the play by developing a forum through social media to share and exchange their knowledge and ideas.

During the project students complete assignments which parallel character traits and literary themes in the play to their favorite music. They share these connections through social media by designing a Facebook page for one of the characters in the play and assembling a soundtrack for the play consisting of these “paralleled” songs. The project culminates when student teams create either a live performance, video, or written product that is shared with an audience at a “red carpet” event.