女兒的閱讀報告 (1) My daughter's book report on fairy tales

We had a 2-week notice to do this book report. But of course my daughter didn't start writing this report until last Sunday. So we have exactly 2 more days to finish this book report/project as it's due on Friday (if you count today as a day). The title of this project is "A New Cereal on the Shelf". I am dumbfounded that this is a 4th grade project. My daughter and I brain-stormed for a couple of days to figure out what kind of cereal she wants to create and ideas for the cereal box. I suppose my daughter can make it as easy or as complicated as she wanted to. But being her mom, I had to make a special trip to Michael's just to buy the supplies she needed to do this project. I will post a photo of her final product when she is done with the project.

Here are the instructions given to the students in order for them to complete the fairy tales book report/project.

A New Cereal on the Shelf
If you could invent a cereal based on the fictional book you read, what would it be? After you think of a name and shape for your cereal, you'll design a cereal box for it.

MATERIAL:
Empty cereal Box, white or light-colored paper, scissors, markers or crayons, construction paper, glue tape.

DIRECTIONS:

1. Find a fairy tale book that interest you and is at an appropriate reading level for you. The book must be approved by your teacher.

2. Think about what you will name your cereal. Choose a name that sounds enticing and that relates to the story in some way. Then choose a shape for the cereal, as well as colors and ingredients that also relate to the book. For example, for Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, you might invent a cereal called Wizard Wands, a toasted oat cereal in the shape of a miniature lightning bolts.

3. Cover an empty cereal box with white or light-colored paper. Or you might want to write and draw on appropriate-sized sheets of paper and then glue them onto the box. Write a rough draft and draw sketches before moving on to your final copy. Here are the guidelines for each side of the box:

Front: Write the name of your cereal and draw a picture to go with it. You might draw characters or other pictures to help sell your products. Make your cereal box look appealing and fun. Look at actual cereal boxes for ideas.
Back: Design a game that is based on the story. It can be a puzzle, a word game, or any other fun activity that might be found on the back of a cereal box. Make sure it includes information from the book.
Right Side: Under the heading "Ingredients," list the main characters and write a sentence about each one. Then describe the setting (place and time).
Left Side: Write a summary of the book. Describe the main conflict and the resolution. Minimum and Maximum 20 sentences, either typed OR written in cursive or printing.
Top: Write the title and the author of the book and your name.

4. Plan a 2-minute commercial for your cereal, and present it to the class.

That last one is a doozie. It's not enough trying to invent a cereal from scratch AND creating a box for the cereal, the kids need to plan a 2-minute video?! Doesn't the teacher know most TV commercials are only 30 seconds?! I don't know how my daughter can get all that done in 1 day, on top of her other regular homework. My daughter wants to film a video of her brother and herself doing the commercial. Once the commercial is filmed, her daddy would have to transfer the video to the computer and copy it onto a DVD. It sounds easy enough except that the last time my husband did that was at least 5 years ago. Good luck to all involved!!!

What ever happened to the good ol' fashion book report?!

中文[待續]