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5 Easy Drama Games for Emergency Sub Plans

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If you are reading this blog post, you are probably a. collecting materials for the next school for your theater class or b. sick as a dog and you need help fast!  Either way, you have come to the right place. I only offer sound teaching lessons or advice to teachers–no gimmicks!  Today, let’s talk about 5 easy drama games for emergency sub plans.

In some ways, I don’t want to divulge this secret I have.  The site I’m going to share with you is full of fabulous theater improv. games and exercises. But in the interest and support of theater teachers around the world, I would like to introduce Hoopla to you.

Who is Hoopla?

Hoopla is the United Kingdom’s first improvisation theatre, established for over twelve years.

From their website, “Hoopla is an improv comedy (also known as improvised comedy, impro and improvisation) company based in London, UK. Hoopla were founded in 2006 by Steve Roe and Edgar Fernando.

Hoopla run a selection of improv classes and courses across London and also an improv comedy club in London Bridge featuring a selection of groups from across the UK improv scene. Hoopla are the founders of the UK’s first ever improvised comedy club. Hoopla also do improv based corporate training.

The aim of Hoopla is to make improv fun and accessible for everyone from all backgrounds. We’re especially focused on teaching beginners improv and we love introducing people to improv for the first time in a fun, friendly and safe way.

Also, Hoopla encourages and supports a growing improv community with shows, courses, networking events, socials and more.”

5 Easy Drama Games for Emergency Sub Plans

History of Hoopla

From their website, “Hoopla was founded in January 2006 by Steve Roe and Edgar Fernando, two old school friends who have known each other since they were 4 years old. Hoopla was originally based in Balham SW London, near to where Steve and Edgar grew up.

Originally it was just them and some school friends from their old GCSE drama group running a free workshop once a week, to have fun after work and keep the joy of drama and play in adult life. But it rapidly grew to friends of friends and then friends of friends of friends, and with word of mouth Hoopla soon became the UK’s biggest improv company.

Not surprisingly, Hoopla now teach 1000s of improv students a year in various venues around London and run shows five nights a week featuring improv groups from across the world. Don’t know much about improvisation?  Check out: What You Know About Improvisation In Theater And What You DON’T Know About Improvisation In Theater

5 Easy Drama Games for Emergency Sub Plans

In 2010 Hoopla’s shows moved to The Miller in London Bridge and with the help of the amazing staff there and a large community of improvisers the venue was converted to the UK’s first ever improv theatre.

The company is honored to have been involved in the huge rise of improv in the UK over the last decade and to be part of such a great improv community.”

The games I’ve included games would be best for middle school students and larger classes.  They take little to no set up and are easy to implement.  Here are several of their drama games that would work in a pinch if you needed something a substitute teacher could lead. 

5 Easy Drama Games for Emergency Sub Plans

1. Curveball Story ⚾️⚾️

Directions: 
This is played in pairs (trios work too). One person makes up a story. As they tell it, the other will call out random words that need to be incorporated into the story. Wait for the last word to be folded in before giving another.🌟

Variations
Similar to What If? where the other person says something like “what if it started raining?” “What if you jumped on a boat?” and they incorporate that into the story.

🌟Grades 3 and up would have gobs of fun with this warm-up. Use vocabulary words for the random “curve ball” or maybe characters from a book, or particular facts from a science lesson. Looking for additional warm up exercises?  Check out: Drama Class Exercises for the First Two Weeks of School

5 Easy Drama Games for Emergency Sub Plans

2.  Book Club

Directions:
Two improvisers have a book each given to them from the audience and all their lines of dialogue come from those. The third person makes sense of those lines in the context of the scene. A location or relationship call-out helps at the beginning.

NOTE: I took quotes from Charlotte’s Web and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire to show you.

Example
Player A (No book): Thanks for helping me out today

Player B (Book): If I can fool a bug… I can surely fool a man. People are not as smart as bugs..

Player A (No book): Perhaps you are right. Go bugs!

Player B (Book): It is deeply satisfying to win a prize in front of a lot of people.

Players A (No book): I bet! So what will you do with the prize?

Third player enters

Player C (Book): It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends.

Player A (No book): Oh hi Kim! That’s a nice to thing to say after losing so terribly.

Player C (Book): Numbing the pain for a while will make it worse when you finally feel it.

Player A (No book): Well, that’s good know.

Player B (Book): Salutations are greetings; it’s my fancy way of saying hello.

Player A (No book): Wow, you win one game and now you think you are special!

Player B (Book): It matters not what someone is born, but what they grow to be.

Teaching Purpose
It’s fun! Students learn how to accept and justify offers given. Got introvertive students?  Check out: Drama Games for the Introvertive Student

5 Easy Drama Games for Emergency Sub Plans

5 Easy Drama Games for Emergency Sub Plans

3. Car Journey 🚗🚕🚙( I renamed it, Family Vacation)

Everyone has stories of a family vacation or journey.  I think this is what makes this exercise so successful–it’s a universal theme! 

Directions:
Begin by having five people on stage in a car set-up.

Tell them they are on their way somewhere they don’t normally go (a convention, concert, festival, theme park, etc.).

They must be silent for the first 30 seconds of the scene.

Lastly, inform them that they cannot stop the car or get out.

Ideally they will establish relationship before any dialogue happens.

Variation
After you’ve done a few of these, ask the same casts to return to the stage and perform their return trips. They can swap places in the car.

With elementary students, you may need to get their creative juices flowing by asking them about what people talk about while they are traveling somewhere. 😊

I would think middle and high school students would have no trouble with this exercise.

Variation
After you’ve done a few of these, ask the same casts to return to the stage and perform their return trips. They can swap places in the car. (How fun would that be?)

If you choose to try this with elementary students, you may need to get their creative juices flowing by asking them about what people talk about while they are traveling somewhere. 😊
5 Easy Drama Games for Emergency Sub Plans

5 Easy Drama Games for Emergency Sub Plans

4. Columns/Pillars 👉👉

Description:
For this game you need 2 volunteers from the audience. They stand/sit at the front sides of the stage, and act as pillars for the players. 2 players do a scene, and whenever they need a word they tap one of the pillars on the shoulder.

The pillars say whatever comes to them, and the players then justify why that has been said. Some words fit perfectly, others will be completely random!

Example
Gary: Thanks for helping me fix this car, Denise.

Denise: No problem Gary, I’m glad I could (PILLAR) “help”.

Gary: I really appreciate it, you know I’m so nervous about the race tomorrow.

Denise: You shouldn’t be, you’re (PILLAR) “Batman”. The others don’t stand a chance!

Gary: I know, I’m just scared that if I don’t win I’ll also lose my (PILLAR) “cook”. He only wants to work for winners.

Denise: He does make great (PILLAR) “statues” out of chocolate. I’m sure you’ll win. Hand me the (PILLAR) “oats”.

Gary: I would never think to use oats to repair a car. You’re a genius.

⭐️Additional Tips for Playing

Give the pillars a chance to practice (e.g., “this morning for breakfast I had…”)
Repeat the word after the pillar has said it
Listen, and justify what has just been said

Remember to thank your lovely volunteers!

5 Easy Drama Games for Emergency Sub Plans

5.  Oracle

Directions:

The Oracle involves four people, set behind each other. (It will look a little like the photo above.) First, one person is at the front sitting on the floor, second one behind sits on a chair, the third one behind that standing and lastly, the fourth one stands on a chair. In this way, we can see all their faces. Oracle is a brilliant low stakes word-at-a-time short form game.

To begin, the host simply takes big life questions from the audience, like ‘Is there a God?’ and ‘Why are we here?’ or ‘Will the United States win the World Cup?’ and then asks the Oracle, who answers it a word at a time (per person). When Oracle is in action everyone’s arms wave to the side. If Oracle is in silent contemplation everyone’s hands are together in a kind of ‘prayer’ pose.

It’s funny, simple and daft. And being word at a time you can guess how wise oracle sounds. Sometimes very. Sometimes just plain ridiculous!

Example–

Audience question: What is love?

Player A: Love

Player B: is

Player C: hot

Player D: chocolate

Player A: on

Player B: a

Player C: rainy

Player D: day.

In this game listening and being obvious are important, as you follow what the previous person has said. You don’t have to make complete sense or try to be funny; just say the first thing that comes to you.

5 Easy Drama Games for Emergency Sub Plans

I hope these games/exercises work out well for you.  If you’d like more warm up exercises (and you can expect me to have many favorites over the 38 years of teaching and directing), check out my collection of warm ups for middle school students.  You can pick it up here.

A collection of theater warm-up exercises for middle schoolers.

What do you leave for your substitute to teach while you are absent?  I’d love to hear about it.  Feel free to email me at DhcBaldwin@gmail.com.

Dramamommaspeaks Blog Author Deborah Baldwin

 

An Amazing Play That Most Theater Teachers Never Produce

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An Amazing Play That Most Theater Teachers Never Produce

There’s an amaing play written by Playwight Aurand Harris that most theater teachers never produce. Busy theater teachers/directors have no time to consider plays other than those from their past successes. They simply don’t have the brain space left to do so. That’s where I come in.

It’s title?  The Orphan Train published by Dramatic Publising.

An Amazing Play That Most Theater Teachers Never Produce

Synopsis

The play tells the story of nine orphans on an “orphan train” that left New York City on May 28, 1914. The train travels to Midwestern towns in search of homes, any homes, anywhere for the orphaned and unwanted children. There’s Mary, Evie, spunky Pegeen, Annie and Little Lucy, a quiet one.
Other orphans include Frank (who later becomes Frankie, a small girl), Raymond, Lucky and Danny the song-and-dance boy. And there are the men and women hoping for children. The lonesome whistle wails as the train chugs between encounters of anxiety, laughter, wistfulness, rejection and acceptance. Eight stories unfold, each a memorable surprise.  Cast size: 6m., 7w., 6 boys, 6 girls, or 11 (1m., 1w., 3 boys, 6 girls) with doubling.
An Amazing Play That Most Theater Teachers Never Produce

An Amazing Play That Most Theater Teachers Never Produce

Probably the first reason a teacher/director might not consider The Orphan Train is the size of the cast–13. There is a way around this issue.  Have you ever double cast a production?  Although it appears as extra work for you, long term it is a Godsend.  Usually, one of the two actors double cast in a role will always be in attendance so you can progress through your rehearsal calendar as planned. Also, ifyou are short on males, a female can portray one of the male characters. Or vice versa.
If you’d like more information about double casting, check out: Double Casting a Show? Here’s Advice

Technical Requirements of The Orphan Train

I directed The Orphan Train with middle school students.  One reason I selected it is that there is no need for a set.  We legged several platforms and placed them together making different levels. Stage pieces consisted of black boxes and several wooden chairs.
The necessary stage properties are minimal as I recall.  That’s another plus to selecting this production for your season.
An Amazing Play That Most Theater Teachers Never Produce

Costume Design for The Orphan Train

Usually, I designed the costumes for my middle school plays partly because I have an intense interest in costume design. However, I took a chance with this play and did something completely different–I asked the students to find their own costumes. My budget paid for those students who could not afford it.

My color palette for the production was black and white hopefully denoting a black and white photograph.  To this end, I asked the students to bring in costume pieces for their character of either black, white or even gray. I guessed that most of the students could find what they needed quite easily and I was correct.  It worked great!  When they created a tableaux at the end of the show, they looked like a vintage photograph.

An Amazing Play That Most Theater Teachers Never Produce

(We used this photo as a template for our show tee shirts! )

Light Design for The Orphan Train

I was fortunate.  My principal at the time was very supportive of the arts (in fact, all of the principals I worked for were supportive of the arts), and purchased lighting equipment for us.  Lighting the show was fairly simple–I used the stage lights (on little dimmers if you can imagine) and then our light board, trees and several ellipsoidals and fresnels.

Sound Design for The Orphan Train

My husband and I are avid music lovers.  We listen to all types of music.  Consequently, we knew of music which would be perfect for pre-show, intermission and post show.  We used period music such as Popular Roaring 1920s Music from the Year 1926.  The sound of trains was another thing we used between scenes–steam engines puffing, rolling around, train whistles, etc.

An Amazing Play That Most Theater Teachers Never Produce

Historical Significance of The Orphan Train

When I began researching the play, I found this entry in Wikipedia.com, “The Orphan Train Movement was a supervised welfare program that transported children from crowded Eastern cities of the United States to foster homes located largely in rural areas of the Midwest. The orphan trains operated between 1854 and 1929, relocating from about 200,000 children.

The co-founders of the Orphan Train movement claimed that these children were orphaned, abandoned, abused, or homeless, but this was not always true. They were mostly the children of new immigrants and the children of the poor and destitute families living in these cities.Criticisms of the program include ineffective screening of caretakers, insufficient follow-ups on placements, and that many children were used as strictly slave farm labor.

Charitable Institutions Aid to Orphans

Three charitable institutions, Children’s Village (founded 1851 by 24 philanthropists ), the Children’s Aid Society (established 1853 by Charles Loring Brace) and later, New York Foundling Hospital, endeavored to help these children. The institutions were supported by wealthy donors and operated by professional staff. The three institutions developed a program that placed homeless, orphaned, and abandoned city children, who numbered an estimated 30,000 in New York City alone in the 1850s, in foster homes throughout the country.

The children were transported to their new homes on trains that were labeled “orphan trains” or “baby trains”. This relocation of children ended in 1930 due to decreased need for farm labor in the Midwest. The phrase “orphan train” was first used in 1854 to describe the transportation of children from their home area via the railroad. However, the term “Orphan Train” was not widely used until long after the Orphan Train program had ended.

An Amazing Play That Most Theater Teachers Never Produce

Interviewing An Orphan 

We lived in Missouri at the time in which I directed the play. We’d heard there were several people still alive who rode the Orphan train many years prior.  With a little extra work, a parent volunteer found one of the children (now adult) who was an orphan and traveled by Orphan Train.  

This lovely lady came and spoke to our cast about what it was like to ride the train.  Although that was many years ago, I recall she said that the family she ended up with were not very nice to her but she grew up with them.

You always want a story like this to have a happy ending, don’t you?  However, it’s important that our students see life as it can be sometimes, especially in a case such as this one.

An Amazing Play That Most Theater Teachers Never Produce

Maybe you found this blog because you are interested in integrating drama into your core class.  I found a terrific site with plenty of information and teaching suggestions–The Orphan Train.  Start here to build your unit around The Orphan Train.  

Additionally, you could purchase a class set of this play to use as a read aloud. (Make sure you check it out before you purchase for your entire class–you don’t just want to take my word for it.  I remember there are several swear words which you may want to switch out with others not as flowery.)

The cover of a costume design lesson.

Use the script to study set or costume design.  This particular lesson would be helpful to you if you study costume design accompanying the play.  Or use this unit to study set design to accompany the play.

Have I convinced you to check out The Orphan Train play?  If hope so.  If you have any questions about directing this play or any other questions, please feel free to email me.  I receive emails every week from teachers needing a veteran teacher to give them advice.  That’s what I’m here for. Want a FREE lesson great for middle grade students?  Go here:  Lin Manuel Miranda

 

How to Excite Students With Drama Integration

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I have an Instagram Profile which I maintain regularly. My followers are comprised of teachers who see the importance of drama but are unconfident using it. They are looking for a teaching method about how to excite students with drama integration.

Usually that’s not what they mention, however.  It’s more implied by statements such as “I just can’t get my students to do anything.” Or “They are too busy being too cool for school.”  Or, “They are completely checked out in my class.”

No one wants to say aloud what they are really thinking, “Help someone!”  I can tell by the number of likes I receive and my checking out their own IG account posts, these teachers want to use this fabulous tool with their students, but aren’t convinced they can do it with success. I’m here to tell you that you can!

How to Excite Students with Drama Integration

How to Excite Students With Drama Integration

I’m continually seeking the perfect magic words to get these teachers to cross the bridge from belief to action.  Understanding these are very busy people with far too much on their plate, I know it’s difficult to take a few minutes and consider strategies for student engagement.

There I sit smiling at them through my IG profile.  Drama integration has been a part of my life since I was ten years old in fourth grade and played Queen Isabella.  That was in 1966!  My teacher had me enraptured right from the beginning by our class performing a short play about the meeting between Queen Isabella and Christopher Columbus. ( I always thought it was so funny because the boy who played Christopher was named Christopher himself!)

But I digress…

If you are someone searching for a way to integrate drama into your classroom, you’ve come to the right blog.  I thought I could give you my opinion, but sometimes we learn better from people of which we are unfamiliar.  Let’s see what other teachers and researchers have discovered.

How does drama help in the classroom?

How to Excite Students With Drama Integration

Drama encourages them to think and act creatively, thus developing critical thinking and problem-solving skills that can be applied in all areas of learning. Through drama, children are encouraged to take responsible roles and make choices – to participate in and guide their own learning.

How does drama help in the classroom?

Drama stimulates them to think and act creatively, thus developing critical thinking and problem-solving skills that can be applied in all areas of learning. Through drama, children are encouraged to take responsible roles and make choices – to participate in and guide their own learning.

Drama helps in the reading classroom

Plays inherently come with built-in strategies to help students read better. The acting out of play dialogue compels readers to work more closely with the text to interpret it and project meaning into the experience. As a result, students show improvement in vocabulary, comprehension, and retention.
Researching the drama integration subject, I ran on to Jane Udalla’s article, “The Effect of Drama Based Instruction on Reading Comprehension which states, “Drama-based activities can help struggling readers to “feel” the story, because students report being able to experience the emotions of the characters, the students made personal connections to the text and characters while experiencing comparable emotions, and this experience inside the story changed students’ ability to comprehend.” Because it is made real to them, the story reading stays with them.

How to Excite Students With Drama Integration

Drama helps in a social studies classroom

Michelle Pieczura states in her article Decidedly Dramatic! The Power of Creative Drama in Social Studies , “Creative dramatics, a highly effective method for integrating arts education into core curriculum, produces a positive and lasting impact on student learning, in terms of creative and critical thinking, language development, listening, comprehension, retention, cooperation, and empathy and awareness of others. Creative dramatics not only has the power to bring curriculum to life, but also to stimulate active involvement in the development of conceptual understandings.” Personally, I think social studies is a fabulous place for a drama integration.  If you would like more information about how to integrate drama into social studies, check out my post: The Reasons Teaching Multiculturalism in the Classroom is Vitally Important

Drama helps in a math classroom

How to Excite Students With Drama Integration
I know it’s difficult to believe, but drama can also make a math classroom sizzle with excitement! Here is one example.  In the article, The Effects of Drama on At-Risk Students, by  Patrick Kariuki and Steven G. Humphrey stating, “In a higher education classroom, a teacher used stories of mythology to help students understand statistical problems. This teacher reasoned that storytelling is effective because it allowed him to share with students certain symbols such as myths that everyone could understand. It also placed unfamiliar concepts in a more familiar setting.” If you are intrigued by this idea, check out how to use Native American folk tales: 370 Million Indigenous People Want You to Know About Their Cultures

Outside help for your school

Photo Gallery of DramaMommaSpeaks

Maybe you would like to provide a full-scale musical production at your school as a way to engage students more fully? The Jump Start Theatre program is your answer.

The JumpStart Theatre program creates sustainable theatre arts programs in middle schools where there previously were none.  Participating schools are chosen through a rigorous application process and receive training, materials, and budget support to produce their first full-scale musical production. The support continues for three years until the program becomes self-sustaining.

Non-theatre teachers are equipped with skills and resources to produce their school’s first musical through a proven combination of bootcamp style training and hands-on mentoring. The Educational Theatre Foundation operates JumpStart Theatre through a national network of regional theatre company partners who are selected based on their track-record of success in running educational programs for children.

JumpStart Theatre partners are:  Alliance Theatre, Atlanta, Ga.; La Jolla Playhouse, La Jolla, Calif.; Mountain City Center for the Arts, Frostburg, MD; Stages St. Louis, St. Louis, MO; and The Children’s Theatre, Cincinnati, OH.

How to Excite Students With Drama Integration

How to Excite Students with Drama Integration

Here’s how I can help you. A fabulous way to use drama in your classroom is through radio theater.  Now. hear. me. out! Radio theater, now in existence for 100 years, is the predecessor to podcasts. I understand the actress Amy Poehler is starting a podcast series, Say More with Dr? Sheila. It will feature 30 comedic episodes spread across three seasons, starring Poehler as a couples therapist with questionable methods and credentials. Each ten-episode season will focus on a central character and distinct theme; however, characters will make crossover appearances across stories and seasons.

The great part of that news is that if one actor does this, more will come!

I know you are curious how to use it and you have come to the right person to learn and get advice.  In fact, I have several products to help you learn how to teach with radio theater.

Each product comes with two or more short videos to teach you how to use radio theater plus PDF resource guides full of games, advice, links, diagrams and reflection sheets. Plus, I have radio play scripts available (The Invisible Man, The Monkey’s Paw, Cask of Amontillado, Bow Wow Blues, The Frozen Pirate, It Could Always Be Worse, The Brave Little Tailor,etc.) You can find them here:  Dramamommaspeaks Products

How to Excite Students with Drama Integration

As teachers we know that teaching strategies play an important role in classroom instruction. Without the use of a strategy, teachers would be aimlessly projecting information that doesn’t connect with learners or engage them. Strategies help learners participate, connect, and add excitement to the content being delivered. And that, my friend, is where drama integration comes in!

I hope you’ll consider integrating drama into your classroom. I am always here to help you should you need me.  Just email me at DhcBaldwin@gmail.com

How to Excite Students with Drama Integration

Overcoming Fear and Anxiety When Speaking English As A Second Language

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Overcoming Fear and Anxiety When Speaking English As A Second Language

Overcoming Fear and Anxiety When Speaking English As A Second Language

One of the most valuable aspects of theater class is how it can be integrated into core subjects.  Today, I want to speak about overcoming fear and anxiety when speaking English as a second language. Personally, I think the best way is by taking a theater class. Let me explain.

If you are unfamiliar with the term, “ESL”, simply put it means English as a second language learner.  “ELL’ means the same thing, but we also have World language learner. 

Since I taught theater classes for over thirty-eight years, my teaching experience is vast.  Not only have I taught middle school students for a large portion of my career, but I worked with elementary and high school as well.

However, my favorite grade level is middle school.  If you’d like more information about my reasons, go to: Striking a Balance with Students in Their Middle School Years. 

When I taught a pre-elective drama class in Missouri, the ELL students were integrated into my class. There are many funny experiences of these sweet students trying valiantly to learn English and still be a child.  (Sometime ask me about the time I sat two girls together from warring tribes, the Tsuti and Hutus, without understanding their tribes were mortal enemies. Yikes!)

Overcoming Fear and Anxiety When Speaking English As A Second Language

Overcoming Fear and Anxiety When Speaking English As A Second Language

A sidenote:  My grandparents were missionaries in Japan where my mother was raised until she was eighteen years old.  When I was a child, my mother gave free boarding to international college students because she said, “They make me feel like I’m home in Japan.” Because I was raised around these people, I am very comfortable with people of all different nationalities and find them extremely interesting and generally quite friendly.

Being the observant person that I am, I noticed the ELL students were petrified to speak in front of their peers and did not fraternize with the native speakers.  I thought this was sad, but understandable.  Neither knew each other and neither was willing to be the first to extend a friendly hand. (Truly, it should be the native speaker.)

One year, I was looking for something different to offer after school as part of my career ladder responsibilities.  Remembering the native speakers and the ELL students sitting apart in the cafeteria not speaking to one another, I approached the ELL teacher about me sponsoring an after-school drama club specifically for them.  She jumped at the idea!

It seemed simple enough, right?

Three ELL Drama Club Problems to Overcome

Overcoming Fear and Anxiety When Speaking English As A Second Language

I planned to have six weeks of drama club and then a performance at the end.

The first problem:  The students would need transportation to take them home from school since they had no other means of travel.  We applied for money from the state for this and they came through handsomely.

The second problem:  How do inform the students and their parents about the club?  Easy.  Mrs. Zumwalt would take care of that for me.  (I must say, co-teaching with another teacher from my school was fabulous.) She took care of communication with parents and the students, while I planned the weekly activities.

The third problem:  What were my goals for the club? I knew that ELL students needed to overcome their fear and anxiety about speaking aloud.  The best way I knew to do this was by integrating drama.  Obviously, I wanted to strengthen their speaking of English.  But what else?  Drama games are always a hit with all of my students and I noticed the ELL students enjoyed them when we played them in class.  For particular games I used, see: Drama Games for the Introvertive Student, but I needed many more.

Readers Theater Resources on the Internet

Overcoming Fear and Anxiety When Speaking English As A Second Language

I took to the internet and looked for websites that shared particular games that ELL teachers used in their classroom, hoping to find some which integrated drama. Although this was many years ago, I looked at sites such as Fluentu.com.  I ran on to several books which were helpful, too–Enlivening Instruction with Drama and Improv: A Guide for Second Language and World Language Teachers . The ESL / ELL Teacher’s Survival Guide: Ready-to-Use Strategies, Tools, and Activities for Teaching English Language Learners of All Levels.

Generally, I relied on my go-to drama games and exercises that are successful with all students.  I always suggest to new teachers that they purchase a copy of Viola Spolin‘s book,Theatre Games for the Classroom.  IIt is an excellent source for creative dramatics exercises to use in any elementary and middle school classroom.

My plan included ending the club with a production of some sort.  I turned to Aaron Shepherd’s readers theater website, Aaron Shepard’s RT page as I was familiar with his work. His script, The Legend of Lightning Larry which is still one of my favorites.

I selected readers theater because students read from a script rather than memorize lines and sit together when they perform (safety in numbers, you know). Both attributes would help the students as they slowly overcame their fear and anxiety when speaking English.

If you are unfamiliar with the strengths of using readers theater in your classroom, check out: The Reasons Reader’s Theater is Successful with Our Students.

Overcoming Fear and Anxiety When Speaking English As A Second Language

The day arrived to perform the play.  I was very excited, but very naïve.  I thought the students’ parents and siblings would attend.  Parents attended every other time my students performed in my class.  We sent out invitations both through email and hard copies. We baked cookies, had punch ready and decorated.

No one attended.

Why?  Transportation issues.  I never occurred to me that transportation could be an issue, but of course it could be!

The important thing, however, is that the students had a blast doing the play.  The local newspaper came out and photographed the students performing.  Just think of how wonderful that would be for an immigrant to be acknowledged in their community’s newspaper!

The next year, we participated in the school’s diversity celebration. Using a book titled All the Colors of the Earth  and a song from the movie, Making an American quilt,  the students performed a movement piece to it using multi-color flags.  I narrated most of the poem and one student echoed me in several places in the poem.  It was a tremendous success! The student body and teachers applauded for them.  It makes me cry just to think about it now.

ESL Drama Club of Smithton Middle School

My Advice

If you are on the hunt for drama activities for ELL, ENL or World Languages students, I hope you’ll check out the materials I’ve mentioned above.  However, if you want to purchase from someone who is a veteran teacher and has first hand experience teaching creative dramatics to students, I’m your gal.

Earlier I mentioned readers theater scripts.  I have adapted several multicultural folk tales into readers theater scripts. Here are a few.  You can check them all out at: Dramamommaspeaks Readers Theater Units

I hope my experiences are helpful to you. If you have any questions or need advice, please don’t hesitate to email me. You can find me at DhcBaldwin.net or DhcBaldwin@gmail.com

Dramamommaspeaks Blog Author Deborah Baldwin

The Top Reasons Teachers Succeed Teaching with Radio Theater

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If you follow my blog, then you know this is a subject I speak about quite frequently. Why?  First and foremost, teaching with radio theater is a marvelous teaching tool! When you really like something do you tell a lot of people? So let’s talk about the top reasons teachers succeed when teaching with radio theater!

The Top Reasons Teachers Succeed Teaching with Radio Theater Performing Arts
Temple Theater/Caroline’s Center for the Performing Arts

My journey with radio theater

I taught a pre-elective drama class to 500 sixth graders for thirteen years.  Ending the six weeks with a performance was a challenge for me.  I’m a creative being and just can’t do the same thing over and over (as my good friend, a Home Economics teacher, could making cookies and sewing pillow cases).  Consequently, after about a year I ran dry on ideas of short class plays. To solve the problem, I began adapting multicultural folk tales into short class plays.  You can read about it here. The Reasons Teaching Multiculturalism in the Classroom is Vitally Important

Although this was a terrific answer to my problem and the students were happy, it wasn’t working enough for me. I remembered that I had once participated in a radio theater performance. I loved the format!  When the performance ended, I realized it would be a terrific unit to create for my class.

Photo Gallery of DramaMommaSpeaks Me directing the radio play, It’s a Wonder Life

I scoured the internet (which was brand new at the time BTW) and ran on to the Museum or Radio and Television website.  They offered family workshops producing a radio play.  Excitedly, I wrote them begging for guidance about my teaching plan and they were very generous sending me six radio theater scripts.  I’ll never be able to repay them for helping me to start my program.

The first time I directed a radio theater play, I noticed the students were immediately engaged!  Had I run on to something which could make all of us happy?

After several years of using those scripts and adapting other short stories I found, I took a chance and wrote my own.  That’s when Bow Wow Blues was born.

In 2017, at the encouragement of a good friend, I uploaded my script Bow Wow Blues in my TPT store.  I guess teachers and students really like it of which I’m flattered.  To date I’ve sold over 500 copies.  If you’d like to learn more about Bow Wow Blues, go to:  Bow Wow Blues Script and Radio Theater Unit

creative dramatics lesson plans

The Top Reasons Teachers Succeed When Teaching with Radio Theater

Having ate, slept and breathed radio theater for over thirty years, it is very easy for me to defend its use in the classroom.

  1.  It’s creative–Talk about using your imagination!  I’m a stickler for using live sound effects.  It’s not enough to honk a bicycle horn.  Sometimes the sounds are difficult to duplicate.  That is where the creativity comes in.  Supporting creativity and problem solving is a natural part of radio theater. Ever heard of “complicating the sound?”
  2.  It’s a perfect example of differentiated instruction–Because a teacher gives students choices as to where they’d like to serve in the cast or sound effects team, it gives them an opportunity to learn at the pace in which they are comfortable.
  3.  Listening skills are strengthened–Everyone’s listening becomes more attuned to one another, plus listening for one’s cues and creating sound effects teaches students to focus their attention.
  4. Speaking skills are polished–There is nothing worse than a “mush mouth” actor.  Radio theater reinforces one’s enunciation, rate of delivery, and diction which all come in to play when a student reads aloud. A teacher can strengthen students’ intonation, vocal flexibility and breath support.
  5. Reading skills are cultivated–Because a teacher spends many days rehearsing a radio theater script, and a reader reads something repeatedly, they can’t help but become a better reader!
  6. Language skills are honed–students become better communicators as they work together giving suggestions for the sound effects, discussing the play with their classmates as well as acting their role

The Top Reasons Teachers Succeed Teaching with Radio Theater

7.  Cooperative and collaborative learning are such a necessary part of this experience–This is a perfect example of                      working together to learn something. Everyone must put aside their differences and work together toward the                        performance.

8.  Radio theater is adaptable. Many of the radio theater play scripts I teach with are from previous eras–what a super way         for students to learn about  the past? A history teacher could use a radio play in their classroom. I know that several                 Language Arts teachers have used several of my plays, in particular The Monkey’s Paw and The Frozen Pirate. If you’d           like  more  examples of a historical script go to: Creative Dramatics Lesson Plans: Nine Reasons to Teach Radio Theater

9.  Learn marketable skills–Being proficient in speaking through a microphone and familiar with running sound equipment         has valuable skill that makes them employable in the outside world.  Ever wondered about sound design?  Check out               this  post: There’s a Place for Everyone in Theater

10.  It’s just plain fun  and engaging! I like to teach students in a manner which they don’t even know they are learning.  I               strive to make each lesson so enjoyable that students remember the experience and keep coming back for more!

The Top Reasons Teachers Succeed Teaching with Radio Theater
CRT First: ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ as Old Time Radio Play – UConn Today

These students performed radio theater during the Covid quarantine!  Many teachers found radio theater to be a life saver during the quarantine.

What’s holding you back?

Fear does crazy things to our psyche, yes?  Sometimes we are anxious and we don’t even know what about!

If you are like me, you like to be well informed on something you teach. That’s understandable.  If you’ve never even seen a radio play performed let alone a radio script, you will need to trust me on this.  Do you trust me? 

Ask yourself these questions:

  • Do I need to have a teaching?
  • rationale in place before I teach radio theater?
  • Do I need to know what to say when I begin each lesson?
  • Do I  present the information in a particular order?
  • Should I require the students to take notes as I teach them?
  • Would trivia about particular radio shows or famous movie stars who got their start on RT pique my students’ curiosity and urge them to dig deeper in their study?
  • Should my students make a sound effect and be required to share it with the class?
  • What about a cooperative learning assignment?  Would that be helpful? Could they create a commercial for radio?
  • Would a group of theater games and exercises be helpful in teaching the concepts of radio theater? 
  • Should I collect several audio clips of actual radio shows of which the students can listen and learn?
  • Should I include enrichment in the unit, such as history about a famous radio show broadcast like War of the Worlds?
  • Do I need to find a floor plan that shows me how to set up the stage or in my classroom for a performance?
  • What sound effects should I collect to use? Do I need to purchase any or would some everyday objects suffice to create the sounds?

The answer to these questions is resounding YES. 

Save Yourself Time and Work

Cover of a Radio Theater

Would it be nice not to have to spend countless hours creating this unit? What if instead of spending your free time and weekends researching, collecting materials and organizing your lessons you could purchase a veteran theater teacher’s unit and on-line course to learn everything? Would it be nice if it costs a fraction of its actual value?

What if the course came with videos for each module and individual guides full of links, tips, advice, materials lists, reflection sheets? Then look no further.  I’ve got what you want.

How to Direct Radio Theater 

Theater Games and Exercises for Teaching Radio Theater

How to use Amplification and Sound Equipment

Teaching Tool Radio Theater to Boost Student Engagement History of Radio Theater

Teaching Tool Radio Theater to Boost Student Engagement The Rationale

You’ve heard me say this before, but I’ll say it again–Remember, I’ve been you.  I know the struggles and challenges, the sleepless nights, the knot in your stomach on Sunday night, the students who need a little extra “somethin’ somethin'” to tease their interests.

Here’s recent proof that radio theater works

Recently a theater teacher and I were chatting on Instagram about her use of radio theater in her classroom. You can read it here: Struggling with Your Students Engagement?

And I’m not the only person who thinks radio theater is useful. Here is professor using radio theater in her college classroom. Theatre Students use Zoom to Create Old School Radio Drama
The Top Reasons Teachers Succeed Teaching with Radio Theater
If you haven’t discovered it yet, I’m thorough. I want to give you every advantage to be successful
while learning about and teaching with radio theater.
After 38 years in the classroom, I’ve found this to be the most useful and effectively unit I’ve created
to engage students in my classroom.
So, I ask you: How many hours would this take you to create yourself?
I believe that having this work done for you means I’m paying it forward to a busy teacher who already has a lot on on their plate for a fraction of the price your precious time is worth.
Do you have any questions or concerns?  Please feel free to email me atDhcBaldwin@gmail.com. I’d love to hear from you.
Woman behind DramaMommaSpeaks

 

The Importance of Shakespeare in Theater Education

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Occasionally, I receive emails from people wanting to post on my blog.  Usually, the subjects do not jibe with theater education whatsoever (the last one was about gambling sites). Not this time, however! This is a guest blog post by Reed Jayla  concerning The Importance of Shakespeare in Theater Education.

 

Shakespeare in Theater Education

Theater education and drama have been integral to school curricula worldwide, and their impact goes beyond the stage. A study from the University of California on highlights that drama’s effectiveness spans across subjects and grades.

Enhancing creativity, collaboration, communication, and overall academic performance are just some of the ways theater education guides students to navigate today’s media-rich world. But even though it benefits us in the modern world, students and teachers alike may be baffled as to why drama instruction is rooted in classic works like those produced by William Shakespeare.

Shakespeare’s work is essential to any theater teacher’s canon, and for a good reason. Shakespeare’s influence is owed to him being a pioneer in the field of literature and theatre. He is credited with inventing various words and phrases still used in literature and everyday speech today. His works have also contributed to modern storytelling, with themes and concepts still seeping into today’s media.

Up to now, his plays are regularly performed in theaters worldwide. Outdoor festivals also feature the Bard’s productions in what is known as Shakespeare in the Park, where theater companies stage Shakespearean plays for free to the general public. Through these avenues, Shakespeare’s work is made accessible to people from all walks of life and can be instrumental in building an appreciation for theater, playwriting, and the arts as a whole.

Shakespeare in Theater Education

Even though Shakespeare is long gone, there are reasons why his work remains essential reading and acting materials for any theater student. Here’s why:

The Importance of Shakespeare in Theater Education

It provides an understanding of modern works

As mentioned, Shakespeare popularized many themes and stories; despite their age, they’ve remained prominent in film, TV, books, and other art forms we enjoy now.

Many of his famous plays have been made into various adaptations. For instance, films such as 10 Things I Hate About You, West Side Story, and The Lion King are movies based on the English playwright’s works, but many people may not be aware that they’re consuming Shakespeare at all, as these were reworked to suit modern audiences of the time.

Tales of love, death, and power are as relevant today as they were back in Shakespeare’s day, so it’s no wonder his plays  remain a relevant and persistent part of today’s cultural zeitgeist.

Shakespeare in Theater Education

Understanding his plays and their themes provides a strong foundation for comprehending and executing modern works. For instance, reading or acting in Romeo & Juliet gives students a good sense of how to portray a tragic romance in another production, even in one that isn’t entirely related to the Shakespearean play.

Studying Hamlet or Othello could allow students to practice darker roles such as that of Claudius and Iago. Without an appreciation for the origins of the popular plots and themes still being used today, students lack a deeper connection and understanding of the roles they wish to play.

It challenges aspiring actors

The Importance of Shakespeare in Theater Education

 

The work of The Bard can be daunting to learn, primarily because most people aren’t comfortable with the language or the iambic pentameter utilized in his works. Research from Lancaster University published in the Sage Journals perceived that difficulty with Shakespeare was commonly due to the use of “archaic words, borrowings from other languages, coinages, and false friends” — the latter referring to words in one language that look similar to words in another. But these are all the more reasons his plays are essential for students to learn and act out. Starting with something more challenging can make future endeavors seem like a breeze in comparison.

Depending on the production, Shakespearean actors need to analyze the nuance behind every character, including the unique historical context in which they were written. Maryville University’s insights on English and history majors acknowledges how these two branches of liberal arts can be combined to get a well-rounded worldview.

Shakespeare in Theater Education

Although English majors and dramatists focus on the language and literature, interest in political and cultural events that have influenced or continue to inspire the staging of Shakespearean plays is essential for young actors. They are challenged to communicate complex ideas from different periods of history to a wider audience in a unique format.

Shakespeare’s plays push learners out of their comfort zone and allow them to develop acting techniques they may not have been able to obtain without a knowledge of his works. Actors must interpret and deliver lines effectively and naturally while staying in character. There is also little to no room for improvising in his plays, so memorizing all the lines is a must. These things may seem like a challenge for students just starting in the craft, but it is necessary for building experience that can take them far in the industry.

It equips students with important skills

The Importance of Shakespeare in Theater Education

Shakespearean plays are complex, which can enrich a student or actor’s skill development. As mentioned, attention to detail is required to convey every line properly and truly set the scene. An actor must practice proper vocalization, breath control, and the ability to enunciate so that viewers will understand what is going on.

Directness and intention are also important elements in Shakespearean line delivery—an actor cannot “sing” the words and phrases but must be clear when speaking. This access to know-how can be a strong foundation for developing more skills; once students know the rules and the basics, they can start bending them in the future.

Shakespeare in Theater Education

Shakespeare’s works also require a lot of strong emotion from the characters being portrayed, which aspiring actors will need to take control of should they want to deliver a good performance. Shakespeare’s comedies depict mood and feeling in a unique manner. They touch on human emotions stemming from love, pain, and mystery—using a variety of tones that enrich the plays’ genuine portrayals of life. Understanding the complexities and nuances of the characters and scenes can help students harness their feelings in a way that makes dialogue powerful but not over-the-top or underwhelming.

Considering the archaic language, being able to deliver emotional lines and scenes in a masterful way that captures the character and situation well is an impressive feat in itself. Students bring this confidence with them in other productions and will vastly improve their performance, no matter the script used. These skills are invaluable for any other work, and having them in one’s toolkit heightens the chances of success for a student.

Finding success through Shakespeare

The Importance of Shakespeare in Theater Education

Some students may find studying the Bard’s plays an unnecessary endeavor, but there is proof that experience with his work can yield much success in the theater and acting industry as a whole. Backstage highlights how any prolific actors and actresses have gotten their start through Shakespeare, and students who want to emulate their career paths can do the same.

Actor Sir Patrick Stewart started off his impressive career in the 1960s by performing in some of the Bard’s works. Sir Ian McKellen also studied his plays during his days in Cambridge and went on to perform in many of these all over the world. James Earl Jones made his acting debut in a production of Othello and has been involved in more Shakespeare plays over the course of his career.

The works of William Shakespeare will continue to remain an integral part of the world of theater education. The advantages of studying and acting out his work go beyond the opening night and extend further in a student’s other acting ventures. If you’re considering putting on a Shakespeare production, your young actors will need all the practice they can get. Check out my post “Ten Steps in a Play Rehearsal in Youth Theater” for a comprehensive guide on conducting rehearsals for youth theater, from auditions to read-throughs to blocking and more.

Looking for some resources for teaching Shakespeare?  Check out:  Shakespeare Card Games

Thank you, Reed for writing this blog post for me.  I know everyone will enjoy it!

What’s your opinion of teaching theater students about Shakespeare?  I’d love to hear your opinion.  You can contact me at DhcBaldwin@gmail.com.

Woman behind DramaMommaSpeaks

Author bio: Reed Jayla is a freelance writer and aspiring author, whose work spans topics of all kinds. She is interested in the arts, from theater and film to art and music. When she isn’t writing, Nancy enjoys cooking and baking for friends and family.

 

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