Baking a Cake Lesson What’s more fun than baking a cake? You can skip the mess and use this lesson instead! By acting out the steps it takes to bake a cake, students can practice creating complex physical settings with one another. Students may practice collaboration, imitation, creating body objects and problem solving. There is … Read more
Animals and Their Homes Lesson What are the parallels between the ways we work together in drama and how parts of a habitat work together to sustain animal life? In this lesson, students in grades 3-5 can work together to create animal statues, and eventually create full habitats with only their bodies. Students will have … Read more
The Nutcracker 2: Mouse and Toy Soldier Fight Lesson Capture students’ imaginations with this climactic battle scene! Designed for grades 3-6, this lesson provides an engaging way for students to learn about physical choices, collaboration, and conflict through creating a pantomime of the battle from The Nutcracker. You can also use this as an opportunity … Read more
The Nutcracker 1: Brother and Sister Quarrel Lesson Any student with siblings will have plenty of experience to draw on for this lesson! Based on the imaginative story of the Nutcracker, this lesson asks students to work in partners, creating a silent drama about a sibling quarrel. Emphasizing the drama tool of the body, this … Read more
Making the Thundercake Lesson A roll of thunder. A pitter pat of rain. A creaky old door. What connects all these things? They are sound effects that evoke a mysterious, scary mood! Based on the book Thundercake by Patricia Polacco, this lesson is designed to teach students in grades 3-5 how to create mood using … Read more
Civil War Drama Lesson Drama is a great way to engage students with historical events by encouraging them to think deeply about point of view. In this lesson, designed for grades 4-8, students will practice concentration, collaboration, and transformation while using Body Objects to communicate different settings. This lesson encourages students to think about point … Read more
Park Bench Lesson Middle school can be a really hard time for students to feel connected to their bodies, but embodying physical choices is a key part of being an actor! We devised this lesson to give students in grades 6-8 a fun opportunity to practice using their bodies to portray emotions, reactions and create … Read more
Reader’s Theater Lesson Whether or not you are new to Reader’s Theater, this lesson will provide you with innovative ways to bring it into your classroom. Providing a bridge from drama to theatre as well as an excellent opportunity for vocal work, Reader’s Theater is a versatile learning tool and tons of fun for all! … Read more
Sound Catch: Advanced #2 Activity Building on Sound Catch and Sound Catch: Advanced #1, participants add gestures and facial expressions to their sounds as they continue to deepen their characterizations.
Sound Catch: Advanced #1 Activity Building on Sound Catch, participants transform sounds into conversation as they role play characters. They will explore how voice can reveal emotion and subtext. Then you can move on to Sound Catch Advanced activity #2.