Dixon High School - Chanticleer Yearbook (Dixon, CA)

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PUBLIC SIJE AKKNG Not 'Do you want to be an actor?' but 'Do you want to be an orator, an afterdinner speaker or a congressman?' Take public speaking then. Eight students didn't have designs of becoming any of the above, but they did realize that this course is one of the best offered in the school, and that it teaches a person to think on his feet and express his thoughts before an audience. They therefore signed up for the course and were not sorry for it afterwards. In accordance with the title, an attempt is made to have every member of the class deliver a speech before a public audience. Besides speaking, students are required to write original compositions for the speeches given in the class, thus affording them the added advantage of supervision of good writing and self expression. In conjunction with the dramatic policy of the school, the public speaking class sponsored two plays with its members forming the casts. UBoy Comes Komen was capably given on Armistice Day before an appreci- ative student bodyg and on Lincoln's Birthday, 'Houses Divided' was produced with equal success. On each of the occasions one person in the class acted as a master of ceremonies and another gave a talk fitting the particular day. Several weeks of formal and informal debating form an important part of the course. Classroom debates and pro and con arguments on matters of local and national interest were held as practice for a formal debate given before the student body. Tentative plans at'this writing are the sponsoring of a Public Schools' Week program. DRA1V1A'f1CS The dramatic activity of the past year was very extensive and very much increased over previous years. The policy was to have more assemblies in which more plays were.to be given with large casts in order to make the students acquainted with appearing before the public. Subjects of national holidays of public events furnished the motifs. Some of the occasions that provided attractive themes were Better Book Week, Christmas and Washington's Birthday. During Better Book Week the English classes presented a program in which they dram tized selections from Nlvanhoen, WSo Bign, USeventeenH and nShe Stoops to Conquern. Just preceding Christmas vacation, a comedy, WA Knight Before Christmasn was given. On Washington's Birthday the Juniors entertained with HWashington's First Defeatu. The outstanding achievement was the Senior Play, 'Shirt S1eeves', given March 18 which included a cast of twenty and was produced before one of the largest audiences that has attended a public occasion in several years. Qf'zcm1fz'Cfeef gp-, eg - 4

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Athletics