All the world’s a stage,
And all the Classcraft characters merely players;
… especially in teacher Chad Schuermeyer’s quest.
Each month at Classcraft, we choose one awesome teacher-created quest — personalized, self-paced, choose-your-own-adventure lessons for students — to share with educators everywhere. Chad’s (IG: chadviolin) creative lesson plan “Write your story” is our December Quest of the Month.
In his quest, Chad puts students in the author’s seat, and citizens of the Classcraft universe (Haden a Fox Guardian, Alster the Healer, and Talik a Fire Mage) in the starring role. He challenges student’s creativity as they test the waters of writing fan-fiction and playwriting.
Integrated with Google Classroom with embedded worksheets and resources, students will have the opportunity to follow each step in the playwriting process. Guided by writing prompts they’ll set the scene, write dialogue, revise their work, and submit their final theatre play.
Students who have their own story ideas can take advantage of the differentiated path and write their own play instead of following the provided storyline.
With six objectives and four tasks, any Classcraft account (free or Premium) can use this quest for free. Created for elementary level classes, this lesson can also work at any grade level — either in-person or as a distance learning assignment.
Ready to have your students play their way through playwriting in your next drama or English Language Arts class? Import this quest to incorporate drama you’ll want your students to experience.
This quest is part of a huge library of lessons created by teachers around the world for K-12 students. If you’re new to Classcraft, check out how quests can supercharge your lesson plans. Whether you’re a Classcraft newbie or pro, everyone can level-up their quests with our free plug-and-play narrative experience, Story Mode.
If you’re already teaching with Classcraft, you can submit the quests you’ve created for the next Quest of the Month on our submission page. Our goal is to spotlight the amazing educators who inspire us and share creative, teacher-made content with our global community of forward-thinking educators.
Now, meet the Gamemaster behind this quest in playwriting. Take it away, Chad!
What are your teaching stats?
Chad: I have taught for eight years. For the last seven, I have been the drama teacher at Lyle Creek and Oxford Elementary Schools in Claremont, North Carolina. I teach every student from kindergarten to sixth grade. I am also the Play Submission Coordinator and Book Editor for the North Carolina Young Playwright’s Festival. My students’ work has been frequently recognized at the competition.
What inspires you?
Chad: I’m inspired by my students when they create their own stories and find their voices to share them! I love watching my students create their own stories. From the short and silly improv games, to more detailed characters and plays.
What made you decide to use Classcraft?
Chad: Short answer: COVID.
Long answer: I’ve been looking into Classcraft for years. I love how Classcraft encourages students to learn “for the experience.” I love how Classcraft gives my students pathways and lets them have the freedom to learn at their pace. Also, as a D&D [Dungeons & Dragons] player and DM [Dungeon Master], I love the quest nature of learning.
For years I wanted to incorporate Classcraft into my classes. However, due to the number of times I saw my students and limited access to technology, I wasn’t able to make it work.
When schools closed in-person in the spring, I decided it was the time to make Classcraft work.
I needed a way to create lessons that focused on storytelling and were adaptable for in-person as well as remote learning. Also, since this year was already crazy, I felt more comfortable trying something completely new!
Your favorite things about Classcraft are …
Chad: Pathways. I love how Classcraft presents learning in a clear step-by-step order and that lessons are able to be presented in a way that gives students multiple paths that lead to the same end goal.
Why do you love the quest you created?
Chad: When I created this quest, I focused on integrating the story into the task I would be giving students. The students read a play as they are learning how to write a play. For the characters in my story, I pulled in characters from the Classcraft world. This is something I can later refer to when talking to my students about writing fan-fiction.
This quest begins with a brainstorming activity called D’s World where students create a setting and start imagining their world. From there the quest shares an example of a play and leads the students in writing their first draft, revising, and turning in a completed play.
What did your students think of your quest? How did they react?
Chad: As of right now, I don’t know. I am still in the early stages of introducing my students to Classcraft. They have loved the quests I’ve opened for them. This one is a little more advanced. They are not ready for it yet.
What are your “trapped on a desert island” books or movies?
Chad: My “trapped on a desert island” books are the Terry Pratchett Discworld books. The characters and the world they live in are wonderfully detailed. It is so easy to imagine myself as my own character in that world!
Why did you want to become a teacher?
Chad: My reason for being a teacher is to create a safe space for students of all ages and experiences to feel confident sharing real and fictional stories with others. I want to encourage my students to show the world how great they already are.
If you could pass on any wisdom to your students, what would you share?
Chad: Never be afraid to tell your story. Who you are is amazing, wonderful, beautiful. There is no one else in the world like you!
Is there a quote or saying that you live your life by?
Chad: This came from a fortune cookie. “The great joy in life is doing what people say cannot be done.”
Personalized Learning - Quest of the Month