Download Middle School Theatre - Central Magnet School

Middle School Theatre
Scope & Sequence
Four Semester Plan
Week One: Imagination – This week will be all about creativity. We will play a lot of games and get students
comfortable with one another. We will use props and turn them into something they are not, and take an invisible ball
of clay and make it into something that you can use.
Week Two: Pantomime – We will answer the question “what is pantomime?”. Students will pantomime a daily chore,
pantomime emotions, we will practice using our entire body to tell a story without words.
Week Three: Movement- We will talk about different types of movement (high, low, fast, slow, sharp, smooth, etc.)
Students will write their name with their body and use all the different types of movement. Students will then create
their own movement based on an emotion. Students will then combine their movement with a partner and then
combine their movement with another pair. Students really seemed to enjoy this activity this year and were really good
and using their entire bodies and the entire stage.
Week Four: We will talk about storytelling and what is important to a story (beginning, middle, end, climax, problem,
resolution, etc.). Students will be split into groups and in these groups they will tell a familiar fairy tale through
pantomime. Then students will add improvised dialogue to their story. They will finally fracture their fairy tale and
change the way it is told. This worked really well this semester and I feel that it is really important for students to start
with pantomime and use their entire bodies and then add words. This helps students to become a complete performer
using their body as well as their voice.
Week Five: Voice and Speech- This is a week that we will talk about how to use your voice. We will talk about pitch,
inflection, volume, diction, etc. We will do several activities where students have a line that they say and they change
the emotion they say it with or they change the motivation that they say it with. Students will learn that the way that
they use their voice can totally change the meaning of what they are saying.
Week Six & Seven: Creating a Character – we will read the book Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak and
students will write a description of their monster: what it looks like, what it’s personality is like, what they do in their
spare time, special powers, etc. They will then draw a picture of their monster and present their monster to the class.
From there students will create a walk for their character and then finally a voice for their character. They will then
work on a monologue as their character. (This will more than likely take more than one week.) This is basically
setting the foundation for students to begin character analysis.
Week Eight: Improvisation – students will take their prior knowledge to help them improve scenes. Students will be
given characters to portray and will be put in pairs and we will watch how these characters interact. Students will then
use different props to pantomime a scene. Students will also be given certain clothing articles (hats, jewelry, jackets,
tutus, etc.) to help them become a character on the spot. We will also be doing some improve with free association.
Lastly, I will give the students a scenario and split them into groups. They will act out the scenario on the spot.
Week Nine: Theatrical Figure Presentations – Students have been given a theatrical figure to research and they will
present their information either in a power point or in an essay form.
Week One: Theatre Etiquette (Page 168 of The Stage and the School) Students are required to see a show during the
9 weeks and because of this I think they need to spend some time talking about what to expect when going to the
theatre as well as how they should act. Students will also complete a play report and this is the time to go over the
information they are required to provide in this report.
Week Two: Characters for the Stage (Chapter 2 Theatre Arts) During this week we will talk about many different
types of characters including the protagonist and antagonist, ingénue, bit parts, etc. We will also be doing a character
analysis which will help students to learn how to break down a character and really get to know the ins and outs of the
role they are playing.
Week Three: Stage Environment (Chapter 3 Theatre Arts) During this week we will be talking about stage directions
and different types of stages, movement onstage, entrances, exits, etc. This is the week that we will be talking about
blocking and also talking about how to move onstage while staying in character.
Week Four: The Body (Chapter 5 Theatre Arts) During this week students will learn about how every part of the body
influences the show and helps the audience understand your character and the story as a whole. Students will make
observations of other people and how other people move, dress, act, etc. Students will work on communicating without
speaking and talk about how costumes and make-up change how a character is portrayed. Leading, emotions,
pantomime, etc.
Week Five: The Voice (Chapter 6 Theatre Arts) Students will learn about pitch, resonance, volume, breathing, accents,
articulation, etc. We will read from different scripts and students will learn how their voice changes the meaning of
what they say. We will add on to what they have done in the 6th grade by giving students more mature scenes and
subject matter, rather than just a line. Students will learn that they have to empathize with the character and take on
their qualities in order for their voice and body to tell the story of the character accurately.
Week Six: Auditions (Chapter 9 Theatre Arts) During this week we will talk about the dos and don’ts of auditions. We
will talk about how the audition process works, how to fill out an audition form, what to prepare for an audition, doing
your research and knowing the show and the characters in the show before the audition.
Week Seven: Auditions Continued (pg 262 Your Turn to Audition) Students will choose their own monologue to use as
their audition piece and at the end of the week we will do a mock audition and students will present their monologue,
do a cold read and maybe even a dance audition.
Week Eight: Local Theatre (Chapter 13 Theatre Arts) Now that we have completed the mock audition students will
do research on upcoming auditions and shows in the community. We will talk about the difference between
professional and community theatre. We will also talk about who is involved in community theatre and how students
can volunteer and get involved.
Week Nine: Theatrical Figure Presentations – Students have been given a theatrical figure to research and they will
present their information either in a power point or in an essay form.
Week One: Observations ( Chapter 2 Basic Drama Projects) During this week we will talk about how you learn to act
like someone you are not. We will talk about how to do your own research in the real world. We are going to spend
time this week in other classrooms and in common spaces throughout the school where we can make observations in
our journals of the differences in the way that different people look, act, walk, etc.
Week Two and Three: Character Development (Chapter 10 Basic Drama Projects) During this week students will
take the observations that they made and create a character based on this. They will answer many questions based on
their character in order to get a well rounded character. They will then write on a topic from their character’s
perspective in order to create a monologue. They will then perform this monologue. (this may take more than one
week.)
Week Four: Stage Directions & Blocking (Chapter 6 Basic Drama Projects) During this week we will review stage
directions, and we will talk about different areas of the stage. We will talk about the differences in the stages of the
past and current stages. We will review different types of stages and talk about the advantages and disadvantages of
both. We will talk about how stage directions and walking onstage changes depending on the type of stage you are on.
Week Five: Open Scenes(Chapter 16 Basic Drama Projects) During this week students will be given short scenes that
they will decide the meaning and what is happening. Students will also block the scene themselves using the other
students in the classroom. Once they present their short scene they will then be asked to adjust their blocking for a
different type of stage.
Week Six: Director (Chapter 14 Basic Drama Projects) Students will talk about the jobs of the director and how
blocking, character development and script analysis are all part of the director’s job.
Week Seven: Attending a Play (Chapter 17 Basic Drama Projects) During this week we will talk about theatre
etiquette and what to expect when watching a show. I would like to take this group to see a show outside of school and
show them how theatre can be a wonderful experience that can change your life. (Obviously this is something that
might change when this lesson falls) I think that going to see a show is a great way for all of the topics we have
covered to really come to life.
Week Eight: Critique a Performance (Chapter 29 Basic Drama Projects) Students will write a review of the show
that we saw. We will talk about how to write a critique and state your opinion. Students will use the suggestions
within the book to help them create a fair critique of the performance. Students will then be split into groups and each
person will talk about a specific part of the show (acting, writing, directing, staging, technical aspects, etc.). The group
will then present the information to the class.
Week Nine: Theatrical Figure Presentations – Students have been given a theatrical figure to research and they will
present their information either in a power point or in an essay form.