VIDEOS: Thug Notes does Hamlet and other Canonical tales

[Ryan Goble]

I'm not sure if I'm into this resource but certainly see the utility/humor in it. Although a majority of the language is actually classroom friendly I'm not sure I would would use it because it perpetuates negative stereotypes (while playing with them). It is not clear to me that a student would always read these texts on multiple levels without a lot of scaffolding around the concept of "thug" and "gangster."

So far Sparky Sweets PhD has stuck with the canon - dead white guys + a little Austin. You can check out the entire video collection at the ThugNotes YouTube channel.  Here is Hamlet and To Kill A Mockingbird samples. Would love to hear what other folks think.

[Regina Meeks]

I love the idea. I watched his Animal Farm video several weeks ago. Unfortunately, his language prevents me from being able to use it in the classroom. 

[Ryan Goble]

Such is the nature of Pop Culture, eh?