In Ashley Michelitch’s English 12 class at STARS Academy, students study Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein over the course of 10 weeks. Their culminating project is a mock trial, in which students utilize several skills including reading, writing, speaking, listening and language to meet their learning targets and answer the essential questions for the unit which is: Who is the monster in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein? How do we define the characteristics of a “monster?”

 

Students spend a total of six class periods preparing for this project in three groups: the plaintiff, the defense, and the judges and jury.

The case is Victor Frankenstein vs. The Creature; students on the plaintiff and defense have to defend their position while the judges and jury have to take notes and make a fair verdict based on how well each side utilized evidence from the text and their use of rhetoric.

 

 

In order to prepare for this project, students in the judges and jury group had to research issues that Mary Shelley raised 200 years ago regarding science, technology and ethics that are still relevant today. Students that were either for the plaintiff or defense had to create material using textual evidence for their opening and closing statements, as well as their direct and cross examinations. They also had to incorporate rhetorical devices when persuading their audience.

Neil Lisberg, social studies teacher at STARS Academy, kicked off the unit with a lesson on the types of law in America, focusing on the differences between a criminal trial and a civil trial, which is the type of trial that the students performed and prepared for. This project combined the skills they learn in both U.S. History and English 12, while preparing them for real world experiences in which they will need to dress and speak professionally, collaborate with diverse teammates and coworkers, and be able to take pride in their work. They even had a special guest as Ms. Michelitch’s brother, Officer Matt Michelitch, came in to play the role of the bailiff.

 

 

Students chose to dress up for the trial in order to receive extra credit. They took their roles very seriously but also had fun during their performance!