Additional Lesson Plan Resources

       Below are a couple lesson plans that were utilized throughout the Drama course. They have incorporated a wide variety of drama strategies and integrate curriculum expectations from other subject areas.

        What I find most interesting to note surrounding the use of Health integration into Drama is the ability to address real-world problems with students who are facing challenges to get enough activity daily. I felt that the group handled the sensitive nature of health concerns well as one of the presenters assumed the role of the inactive person and all opportunities to share could be deflected by using the character the teacher was playing, rather than themselves. As mentioned before, I believe strongly that it is necessary to tend to the needs of the students in their learning from a holistic perspective. Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs indicates that a child cannot reach self-actualization until all other areas are met; and safety is one of the fundamental areas. If a child feels safe within the classroom to explore and discuss their healthy choices (whether using the "I" or "you" pronoun in the scenarios), they can make more appropriate changes to their lifestyle than if they feel unsafe socially and picked on - no learning can occur in an environment such as that. Thus, I believe this lesson was exceptionally well executed in that regard.

        As an educator, I hope to inspire my students to try new things and be creative thinkers. I believe that by modeling positive behaviours to my students, creating environments where they can work together collaboratively and giving them opportunities to do and teach will foster that in them (Bandura's Social Learning Theory).   

        Although there were moments, I'm sure, within both of these lessons where I felt uncomfortable or unsure I could complete a certain task, the learning environment was so encouraging and supportive that it was okay to be a little silly or to miss the mark on a task. I want students to feel comfortable enough to "take chances, make mistakes and get messy!" (Miss Frizzle, Magic School Bus).

Drama Presentation

January 16, 2013

Guiding Theory

Social Learning Theory

The guiding theory behind our activities is Bandura’s social learning theory.  This theory states that people learn through observing the behaviour and attitudes of those around them, and the results of those behaviours.  It goes on to explain human behaviour as a continues and reciprocal interaction between both behavioural and environmental influences.  None of our strategies can be appropriately carried out by any one individual.  Rather, they require the interaction of multiple persons, working together and responding to the actions of one another.

Outline of Strategies

Machine: Elevator

Machine

This strategy requires the collaboration of the whole group.  The students are challenged to come up with an idea of which “machine” to create, that is, a structure or a theme.  Each student will be required to come up with a sound/phrase to combine with a repeating action/movement.  Once one student comes up with the idea, he/she starts with their action, and other students must come up with their own sound/movement to add to the same overall theme/structure.  For example, if the theme is shopping in a supermarket, the first student might start by pretending to look at boxes on a shelf and saying the prices aloud, while another student might join in and pretend to be an employee stocking the shelves, humming as he/she works.  The overall goal is to have the students work effectively collaboratively and to work to develop creativity.

What If

The “What if” strategy encourages students to be creative and think quickly. “What if” questions play a key role in creating dramatic situations and providing context for what students are expected to do. The “What if” strategy encourages students to consider possible problems, outcomes, and solutions to their presented situations. This strategy can not only provide a starting point, but also extend and alter students’ thinking in the middle of their dramatic learning. “What if” questions can be posed by the teacher or the student, depending on the context and goal of the lesson.

Tableaux

A tableau is the creation of still images through the use of participants’ bodies, which captures the essence of what is going on in a reading, photograph, or piece of art. When creating a tableau, the participants must focus on their physical positioning, body language, and facial expression. There is no speech in a tableau, which is why the importance of students’ physicality must be stressed.

News Report

News Report

News Reporting encourages students to develop in depth and critical perspectives on a specific person or event. With this strategy, students must report information about a person or event, real or fictional. However, this strategy also provides the opportunity for students to engage in imaginative storytelling; which fosters creating thinking. News reports can be implemented in a variety of learning situations to assess comprehension and both critical and creative thinking. Thus, news reports are very flexible in terms of subject matter or topic.

How Can You Implement These Drama Strategies Into the Classroom?

Grade: 4                          Subject Area: Science and Technology- Pulleys and Gears          

Resources: Microphone, 4 handouts with the definition of a pulley and pictures of 2 common pulley systems (make sure that each handout has 2 different pulley systems on it- thus, 8 different pulley systems required)

Curriculum Connections

·         Science and Technology- Pulleys and Gears

o        1.1 assess the impact of pulley systems and gear systems on daily life

o        3.6 identify pulley systems (e.g., clotheslines, flagpoles, cranes, elevators, farm machinery) and gear systems (e.g., bicycles, hand drills, can openers) that are used in daily life, and explain the purpose and basic operation of each

·         Drama

o        B1.3 plan and shape the direction of the drama or role play by posing questions and working with others to find solutions, both in and out of role

Activity Outline:

·         Begin by briefly summarizing the 4 drama strategies that the students will be using in the lesson (machine, what if, tableaux, news report)

·         Next, model the 4 drama strategies by incorporating all into a short scene depicting a common gear- in this case, a train- that students are familiar with. Before performing this scene, remind students to pay attention to how the 4 drama strategies are used

·         The teacher will ask students to explain how the scene connects to the topic of pulleys and gears.

·         Though students should already be knowledgeable of the term pulley, the teacher will quickly define the term to refresh students’ memories

·         Each student will then select a drama strategy from a hat to determine the groups that they will be working in

·         Once students are in their groups of 4 or 5, they will be given a handout with 2 pictures of common pulleys. Students must select 1 of the 2 pictures, and create a scene using the drama strategy that they selected from the hat

·         Once groups have worked together to create their scene, each group will present their scene in front of the class

·         Students will be encouraged to guess which drama strategy is being used in each scene

Modifications

Strategy	Younger Students	Older Students	Students with Special Needs
Machine	- giving them each specific roles to play within the “machine” and ideas on how to carry this out if necessary - having them create actual machines that they are already familiar with (such as the train)	- encourage them to use words and phrases as opposed to just sounds if used for a language arts activity - encourage them to do this activity focusing on “themes” as opposed to physical machines, perhaps connecting to other subject areas - could have them write a reflection about their role within the machine and how the actions of others in the “machine” changed their own actions	- have them come up with the initial idea, as this will allow them to be more engaged and take on a “leader” role in the class - if a written component is added, allow these students to express themselves verbally - if there is a physical need, have these students take on a role that they can still perform with their physical disability
What If	- Providing the “what if” questions rather than having them develop their own - Encourage imaginary play to understand a perspective other than their own	- Providing the opportunity to develop their own “what if” questions and for improvisation - Rather than having a group plan their “what if” questions together, have the students randomly ask them throughout (Example: Students tell a one-sentence story and every third person must ask a “what if” question for a change)	- Use multiple visuals and props throughout - Encourage working in pairs - All students to visually represent their question or answer (Example: drawing or writing) - Scribe for students
Tableaux	- Create one tableau - Show students a picture of people using a common pulley or gear, and have them replicate the picture	- Create a variety of tableaux that flow into each other in some way - Create tableaux that are centered on complex issues or questions. For example, ask students the question, “What would life be like if the pulleys and gears that we use in our every day life never existed?”	- Use visuals for the students to replicate as opposed to having them create an original tableau
News Report	- Model specific examples - Help students generate questions to answer in their news reports	- More student-directed; encouraging multimodality in the classroom - Additional success criteria (e.g. purpose of your news report, specific audiences, selling or persuading your audience, addressing a critical issue, thoughts on the media or current trends).	- Sharing the news report in a variety of ways (e.g. writing, speaking, audio or video recording, multi-media, storyboard etc.) - Students can work independently, in pairs, or in groups - Provide prompts for creating the news report - Scribe for a written report

Resources

Tableaux: http://dramaresource.com/strategies

News report: http://artsonline2.tki.org.nz/ecurriculum/drama/glossary.php

What if: McNaughton, M. J. (2004). Educational drama in the teaching of education for sustainability. Environmental Education Research, 10(2), 139-155.

Machines: http://dramaresource.com/games/mime-and-movement/essence-machines

Social Learning Theory: http://www.learning-theories.com/social-learning-theory-bandura.html 

Drama Presentation

Guiding Theory:

David Kolb’s Experiential Learning Model (ELM)

•                    Experiential learning can exist without a teacher and relates solely to the meaning making process of the individual's direct experience.

•                    However, though the gaining of knowledge is an inherent process that occurs naturally, for a genuine learning experience to occur, there must exist certain elements.

•                    According to David Kolb, an American educational theorist, knowledge is continuously gained through both personal and environmental experiences.

•                    He states that in order to gain genuine knowledge from an experience, certain abilities are required:

1.       The learner must be willing to be actively involved in the experience;

2.       The learner must be able to reflect on the experience;

3.       The learner must possess and use analytical skills to conceptualize the experience; and

4.       The learner must possess decision making and problem solving skills in order to use the new ideas gained from the experience.

Outline of Strategies:

·         Flash Forward/Moment in the Future: This drama strategy is a structural convention which involves shifting forwards in time so that participants or the audience can experience or investigate action or context from another perspective. These strategies are effective for getting students to focus on the consequences of action rather than on the action itself. They help avoid the fullscale battle scene, for example! They encourage reflection and discussion. They stop the dramatic action and require students to refocus on something that happened before, which may have caused a particular event, or happened later, perhaps as a consequence of the action.

·         Thought Mapping/Positioning: This is a good technique for creating and then examining the private thoughts of characters at particularly tense moments of a narrative. It focuses on the characters in a freeze frame, or those from an ongoing drama where the action has been frozen. It involves the rest of the class contributing ideas as if they were speaking the thoughts of one of the characters. These can support or contrast with the words that the characters actually say. The class makes a circle around the character and says their thoughts one at a time, or individual children can stand next to the frozen character and speak their thoughts aloud.

·         Overheard Conversations: This strategy is used in performance and process drama in which a conversation that would not normally be overheard by others is disclosed in order to add tension or provide information. The conversation can be heard in a variety of ways - a telephone conversation, one side of a telephone conversation, in groups, in pairs or individually.

·         Slow Motion: This strategy is used in performance and process drama in which movement, expressions and gestures are slowed down and exaggerated to heighten tension or isolate an important moment.

Strategies in Practice:

·         Grade:  6             Subject Integration: Healthy and Physical Education

·         Strand: Healthy Living     

·         Curriculum Connections:

·         Healthy Eating: C3.1 explain how healthy eating and active living work together to improve a person’s general health and well-being (e.g., both provide more energy and contribute to improved self-concept, greater resistance to disease, and better overall health; both help a person to maintain a weight that is healthy for them) and how the benefits of both can be promoted to others [CT]

·         Drama:

·         Creating and Presenting: B1.1 engage actively in drama exploration and role play, with a focus on identifying and examining a range of issues, themes, and ideas from a variety of fiction and non-fiction sources and diverse communities, times, and places

Activity Outline:

·         Start by inviting the class to sit quietly and listen in to what’s about to happen. Begin by modeling an example of an overheard conversation.

·         Next, ask the students to reflect on what they just overheard and concentrate on what they are feeling/how they are feeling about the situation.

·         Have the students position themselves around the chair in relation to how they feel. The teacher will emphasize that this question is open to interpretation and ask students to share if they are comfortable.

·         From here, ask the students to put themselves in a group of four. Ask them to think about advice that they can offer. They will be sharing this advice through slow motion action.

·         Allow each group to share. Ask the students to stay in their same groups and have them think about how their advice might impact this person and how they might have changed in two months. 

·         Allow the student to choose a strategy to present their ideas.  After each group has presented their ideas ask them to reposition themselves in the space according to how they feel now.

·         As a debrief, you could ask the students to reposition themselves according to this topic. Once all four strategies have been modeled, have the teacher explain to students what each strategy was.

Modifications:

Strategy	Younger Students	Older Students	Students with Special Needs
Flash Forward: Moment in the Future	-Consider a ‘flash forward’ point in the nearer future, for example two weeks rather than two months	-Consider and present a more detailed scene of the future, more intricate way of presenting	- Allow for larger groups and/or more time to create their scene
Thought Mapping/Positioning	-Provide examples for how students may want to position themselves to prompt their thinking	- Encourage students to think deeply about the issues and reflect on their feelings	- provide speech bubbles to students to write their thoughts if they have a physical disability
Overheard Conversations	-Make sure that language and subject matter are appropriate to students’ age level. For example: in a grade one class, the topic may focus more on specific eating habits rather than the associated feelings	-Conversations may deal with subject matter more directly related to Intermediate grade curriculum	-Have an FM system or written transcript of the conversation for hearing impaired students
Slow Motion	-Brainstorm as a class different advice you could give the individual and allow groups to choose from the class list -Choose groups for students	-More detailed, intricate scene -More advanced drama strategy	-May focus on exercises and strategies that students with physical exceptionalities can do

Resources:

·         The Ontario Government, The Ministry of Education (2009). The Ontario Curriculum: Grades 1-8, The Arts (ISBN 978-1-4249-8060-4 (Print) 124-125). Ontario: Queen’s Printer for Ontario.

·         The Ontario Government, The Ministry of Education (2010). The Ontario Curriculum: Grades 1-8, Health and Physical Education (ISBN 978-1-4435-3530-4 (Print) 159-163). Ontario: Queen’s Printer for Ontario.

·         Smith, M. K. (2001). 'David A. Kolb on experiential learning', the encyclopedia of informal education. Retrieved [enter date] from http://www.infed.org/b-explrn.htm.