(KIWA Staff Photo)
Spencer, Iowa (RI) — An Iowa teacher who assigns “The Odyssey” in her World Literature class says she’s excited to hear how her students respond to the summer’s blockbuster movie.
Rochelle Auchenbach, an English teacher at Spencer High School, includes the epic as part of a unit on ancient heroes.
Written about 3,000 years ago, “The Odyssey” is often described as a collection of chapters or episodes.
Auchenbach asks her students to compare the original text with modern adaptations, including the hit Disney series “Percy Jackson and the Olympians.”
Iowa’s academic standards for English Language Arts and Literacy in History do not require “The Odyssey” to be taught, but they do expect high school students to be attentive readers who understand and enjoy complex works of literature.
