growing up

Creative Dramatics for Tweens: Build Confidence First

July 9, 2025 By dhcbaldwin Leave a Comment

Creative Dramatics for Tweens: Build Confidence First

I’ve wanted to blog on this subject for a long time–Creative Dramatics for Tweens: Build Confidence First. It’s easy to assume that the best way to begin a drama class is with scripts in hand or with a monologue or duet scene. After all, that’s what theater is all about—character, dialogue, blocking, memorization. Right?

Not quite.

When you’re working with middle school students, traditional scripted drama can be overwhelming. Many students at this age are still learning to navigate their emotions. Additionaly, they are learning how to communicate effectively, and build trust with their peers. That’s why I believe the best way to start middle school theater is not with a script, but with creative dramatics.

What Is Creative Dramatics?

Creative dramatics is an unscripted, process-centered approach to theater. It includes improvisation, storytelling, pantomime, role play, and drama games. Unlike traditional scripted drama, it emphasizes exploration over performance. Additionally, it is less about perfect delivery and more about self-expression, teamwork, and discovery.

In short—it’s play with purpose.

Why Traditional Drama Doesn’t Work Right Away

Middle school students come to drama class with a wide range of abilities. Plus, they join us with different comfort levels, and backgrounds. Some are eager to perform; others are terrified of speaking aloud. When we hand them a script and ask them to “act,” we’re assuming they already have skills they may not have yet.

As we are aware, times have changed one generation to the next. I was from the generation where parents said children were, “to be seen and not heard.’ My parents let my teachers deal with me at school–they did not intervene at all. My daughters weren’t raised as strictly but guardedly. However, we did not ask them for their input in making decisions about and for them. This latest generation is much more hands-on.

Modern parents are often more involved in their children’s lives than previous generations. They attend more events, know more about their kids’ social-emotional development, and are quicker to advocate in school or healthcare settings. This shift is partly due to greater access to parenting research, a cultural emphasis on emotional intelligence, and a desire to break cycles from their own childhoods.

How Developmentally Appropriate Drama Builds Success

How does that play out in the drama classroom? In drama class we deal with our emotions right from the first day. If a student is uncomfortable sharing emotion, they will shut down on a teacher before they have even begun.

This is the primary reason for beginning the school year or even second semester with creative dramatics and not jumping into more a more traditional theater class. Take.your.time.

Here are a few reasons traditional methods may fall short:

They’re still figuring out who they are. Think of it–they enter your classroom as basically a 5th grader and leave the school as almost a 9th grader. That’s huge growth! Identity is a work in progress at this age. Asking them to take on another character can feel like too much when they’re unsure of themselves to begin with.

Reading aloud is a challenge for some. Not every student is a confident reader. Struggling through a script in front of peers can be a confidence killer.

Performance anxiety is real. Scripts and staged scenes can cause fear of failure, embarrassment, or judgment.

Additionally, they haven’t built ensemble yet. Trust is a crucial part of theater—and it takes time. Without it, collaborative scene work suffers. Students must feel safe in order to take chances and make mistakes in front of their peers.

What Creative Dramatics Offers Instead

Simply put, creative dramatics gives students the freedom to play, explore, and make choices.

Here’s why it works so well for middle schoolers:

Confidence Grows Naturally
I found that activities like studying movement and storytelling encourage participation without the pressure of “getting it right.” Students learn that all ideas are welcome, and that builds a safer space for risk-taking.

It Emphasizes Play
Middle schoolers need movement and laughter. Games and creative exercises channel their energy in productive ways—and make class genuinely fun. Students have shared with me that the warm-up games are their favorite part of their school day! One exercise that is always successful is The Three Headed Monster. Want a copy? Pick it up here: Three Headed Monster

Why Creative Dramatics Works for Every Student

It Builds Ensemble
Middle schools are generally as large as a small high school. That means your students may not be familiar with each other. Several elementaries can funnel into one middle school. Therefore, group work, partner activities, and group-based improvisation help students learn to listen, collaborate, and trust one another. These are the same skills that will serve them when they do move into scripted work. Check out this bundle: Group Based Improvisation Exercises

Skills Are Introduced Organically
Voice, body language, emotion, conflict, character motivation—these are all explored through creative dramatics. Often students aren’t even aware that they’re developing them. Because you have focused on participation rather than performance, your timid students have an opportunity to challenge their fears without criticism.

It Welcomes All Learners
Some students didn’t choose to take drama. Others are English language learners or neurodivergent. Creative dramatics gives everyone a way in—regardless of background or ability. My favorite memories of teaching middle school have always been when a secial needs student get to participate in the performance. Or the ELL students show their classmates that they don’t need to be good English speakers to win at a game! Need something for a substitute teacher to teach? Check out: Emergency Sub Plan Bundle

What It Looks Like in Practice

So, what does creative dramatics actually look like in the classroom? A middle school drama classroom is joyful, dynamic and always fun!

Here are a few ways to begin your middle school drama class:

Tableaux exercises where students freeze in poses to tell a story or capture a scene–pick up Fairy Tales with Tableau
Improvisation games like “Yes, And…” or “What Are You Doing?”
Story circle activities where students help shape a narrative such as Magic Circle
Movement builds expression and clarity without words such as Creative Movement
Character walk explorations where students invent physical traits for imaginary people. This first begins with a charater analysis such as Character Analysis

None of these require a script. All of them build foundational theater skills.

When to Introduce Scripts

Scripts do have a place in middle school drama. They come after the ensemble is built, the fear is reduced, and the students are comfortable in their own creative voices.

When that time comes, try:

Class plays where the entire class is involved, such as The Brave Little Tailor
Reader’s theater as a gentle transition, such as The Magic Lake
Radio theater is non-threatening and requires very little preparation for you or the students, try Bow Wow Blues

Once they’re ready, traditional drama becomes much more successful—and meaningful. It’s worth noting you should also not begin the year delving into theater history. If you’d like a free lesson for this subject, check out: The Origin of Theater

Final Thoughts

Here’s some advice: don’t be like me and get all caught up in the quality of the performance. When I first started teaching middle schoolers, I was too focused on the final performance. Some students can only equate a play performance as doing “theater”. They may not come out of their shells until they are standing in front an audience (hopefully, someone else’s class of students are serving as audience).

What is key here is that your students are LEARNING. Once you accept this, your teaching will be much more fun and fulfilling. Middle school drama is not about putting on a perfect show. It’s about helping students discover who they are, how they express themselves, and how they connect with others. Want more advice about teaching middle schoolers? Check out: How to Make Your Drama Class More Successful –Lessons Learned from 38 Years of Teaching-Middle School

Where Confidence Begins: Creative Dramatics

If we want them to fall in love with theater—and we do—we need to meet them where they are. That starts not with scripts, but with play. With movement, with laughter and 2ith ensemble.

It starts with creative dramatics.

Have you tried creative dramatics with your students? Drop a comment and share what’s worked for you, or explore my ready-to-use lessons that make the first weeks of drama class engaging and low-stress—for you and your students.

A Movie You Want to See This Weekend

August 7, 2018 By dhcbaldwin Leave a Comment

There is a movie you want to see this weekend about an eighth grade girl. It is aptly titled, Eighth Grade.

I’m thrilled!

Eighth grade is probably one of the toughest times in a person’s life, don’t you agree?

I’m guessing most of you reading my blog have survived eighth grade, too.

That’s why I wrote my middle grade book Bumbling Bea.

If you’d like more information about Bumbling Bea, check it out here: Bumbling Bea

Here’s a trailer from the film:

In my book, Bumbling Bea the main character, Beatrice is a lot like Elsie. Both are the epitome of an eighth grade girl and I’m glad someone has finally shone a light on this awkward age.

Why is this such a difficult time in a young person’s life?

Think about it–everything is changing.

Body

Emotions

Hormones (or as a friend of mine says, “their whores are a moanin'”)

They aren’t little kids protected by their elementary teachers anymore. They are only a few months away from high school which for them feels like adulthood is looming right around the corner.

And it is looming around the corner…

Society thrusts them into young adult hood too fast or we hold them back too much trying to shield them from the world.

Man, what a balancing act for all of us.

I’m excited to see how someone else addresses what it is like for eighth grade girls.

I wrote Bumbling Bea because I think eighth grade girls are forgotten. If you haven’t read my book, here is a quick synopsis just to whet your appetite.

Beatrice thinks she has no acting talent but that doesn’t stop her from auditioning for the annual middle school play. Easy! Except Michiko, a new girl from Japan, shows up and ruins everything! So begins Beatrice’s diabolical plan to scare away Michiko. But Michiko has goals of her own with no plans to leave soon. Then there’s that “other” girl who is such a blabber mouth. What’s a girl to do? Plenty.

This isn’t your ordinary middle school experience either. My story is full of conflict from Beatrice and Michiko, to Beatrice’s parents impending divorce and Michiko’s problems with her demanding mother, to a first cruch, poison ivy, flag dinners, paper airplanes and crazy antics during the play performance.

I’m hoping to see “Eighth Grade” this weekend, but until then I’ll think about my experiences in eighth grade.

I know my life wasn’t as fraught with drama as Beatrice’s.

Times were different from now of course.

We didn’t have cell phones are sexting, but we did have note writing and lots of telephone talking. I remember cheerleading (the closest thing I could get to performing), piano practicing, pimples, my hair on sponge curlers, makeup and panty hose. I had a boy friend for an entire year and I felt so special because of it. (There was LOTS of making out which I’m sure my mother was aghast by but never said anything.)

I was a Girl Scout, too so I was trying to walk the very slim line of being a good girl AND trying to be part of the crowd. Even now I can feel the angst of that.

So remember, if you have time this weekend a movie to see is “Eighth Grade”. Give yourself a little treat or take a childhood friend with you. I’d love to hear from you after you see it.

Until then.

Contact me at dhcbaldwin@gmail.com or DeborahBaldwin.net

How Theatre Saved My Life

May 7, 2018 By dhcbaldwin 17 Comments

This is how theatre saved my life. My imagination (and later, theatre specifically) saved my life. When I was a child, my mother was quite ill and consequently to show concern for her, I controlled my emotions. I didn’t want compound her stress.

I was the youngest in my family. With ten years between me and my next closest sibling, I rarely had anyone to play with or talk to. I depended upon my imagination to comfort me and take me away from loneliness I felt but wouldn’t admit to anyone. I learned how to slap on a smile and pretend everything was good with me. I was quite a little actress.

When I saw movies, I would act them out and sing very dramatically while sequestering myself upstairs on the east porch of our house. It had no heat and I remember freezing to death for my “art”.

I was born and raised in Kansas in a small town. Our only claim to fame is we had two colleges, one university which was a teacher’s college and another one a religious affiliated. Oh, and we had an enormous beef packing plant which made our town smell…..unusual. Ugh!

My Childhood Secret

I thought I was crazy, though. I never told my friends about my make believe playing and when I would visit their houses, they never played make believe. So I decided I wasn’t like everyone else. I played make believe until I was twelve.

My father was a physician and my mother was raised in Japan when she was a child. Consequently, her wander lust was difficult to satiate and we traveled to many countries when I was quite young.

If it wasn’t hard enough being the youngest, my world view was very different from my fellow classmates. Just another thing to make me an oddity, at least in my mind.

My mother wasn’t at all supportive of my interest in theatre. She intimated I could end up like Elizabeth Taylor, “She’s been married seven times. Look at her…”Something was mentioned about me ending up on a “casting couch.” I didn’t know what that was, but by my mother’s attitude I knew it must be bad.

Trying to be the good daughter, I left behind my imagination and became a cheerleader in junior high school. It makes sense if you think about it. That worked for two years and I loved the performing aspect of it. I was a rotten jumper. No one taught me how to do a round off or cartwheel, so I taught myself. But I could yell loudly and lead the crowd in cheers. At least I could do that!

When I was in high school, I found exactly what I was seeking –the stage! I was cast in my first play as Madame Arcati in “Blithe Spirit”. Since I had no previous acting experience, but lots experience playing the piano, I notated my script as if I was playing the piano. I used fermatas for pauses and crescendo and decrescendo signs when I wanted to speak louder or softer. (That’s me in the photo above in the green dress.)

I remember a college theatre professor attended the play and reviewed it. (Who reviews high school productions?) He mentioned that although I was believable it was a shame he couldn’t hear my voice past the stage lights. I never let that happen again, period.

To this day, I grow nostalgic whenever I step backstage. The scent of sawdust, newly painted flats and the warmth of the stage lights are a magical elixir to me. I brush the back of my hand across a velvet grand curtain and immediately I feel I’m home.

In college, I experienced an epiphany. It was the early 1970’s, and society impressed upon me to hide my negative feelings or only express those feelings most accepted by others. I realized by sharing myself hiding behind a character, I could express all my feelings and thoughts. I felt accepted universally.

That’s a heady experience which made me come back for more. Nearly forty years later, I’m happily stuck here.

My Directing Debut

I became a director for a community theatre production of The Miracle Worker because there was no one else willing to do the job. Ha! I have a leader type personality and directing fit into my life. I was quite young to take on such a challenging production but I took to it right away. I saw the potential of affecting people through stories that I created in my own manner.

Now, I adore making a statement through words and actions.

As of this writing, I have directed over 300 plays and musicals with adults and children alike. I chose to direct and act at the community level for most of my career. It’s not that I don’t enjoy professional theatre. On the contrary. I’ve appreciated the professional positions in which I have been employed. If you’d like more information about my teaching experience, go to: The Lessons I Learned from Working as a Drama Teacher

It’s just not where my life’s journey has taken me. I’m always open to work in whatever venue needs me.

I’ve portrayed many beloved roles–Maria in “The Sound of Music”, Marion Paroo in “Music Man”, Dot in “Cricket on the Hearth”, Penny in “You Can’t Take it With You” and many others. Above all, more than any particular role or any special production, I have learned about myself.

Theatre saved my life. It has given me great joy, creative challenges and great friendships (I even met my husband while acting in a show). If you’d like to hear from some of my former students and their experiences, check out: How Theatre Shaped My Life and How Theatre Shaped My Life Volume Two

I don’t know where I would be without it.

How did you find theater? What are your experiences from participating that have shaped your life? I’d love to know. Contact me at dhcbaldwin@gmail.com or check out my website at DeborahBaldwin.net.

I’d love to hear from you!

A Favorite Poem of Mine

May 6, 2018 By dhcbaldwin 3 Comments

Sometimes I write poetry. This is a favorite poem of mine. This particular poem was created for a class while studying for my masters in arts integration.

Little Cedar Berry Farm

Two sweethearts

when freckled, picked berries from a bush

two of them, stationed on paralleled rows

between the full hedges, soft sweet and lush.

Black pups swooned near their necks and birds did crow.

Two sweet children each with a waffled tray

Practiced their skills, dyed their digits to red,

blew back their bangs and dredged aprons of lead.

Around the farm yard bench, the mother bays;

and to all the warm dusk, flirts fearless to be fed

moans for our tawny hands and sweaty heads.

Twelve full quarts they picked. Some berries they ate

then sifted in green boxes, one by one and jostled the rosy nipples of fruit.

Beyond the tall grasses, though nearer the sun

I sat and watched them, yearning to be young.

Motherhood is Grand

This is a photo of me when I was a young mother with our two darling daughters. Now I’m a grandma of three perfect grandchildren. My oldest daughter on the right is turning forty years old in September.

Are you a drama teacher? This blog post might interest you: A Baker’s Dozen of Teaching Ideas for the Frazzled Drama Teacher

or you are considering teaching playwriting to our students? Check out-–A Playwriting Unit or How to Help Your Students Feel Seen

Do you have a favorite poem of yours which you have penned? I’d love for you to share it with me.

Contact me at Dhcbaldwin@gmail.com or DeborahBaldwin.net

Information on this website may be copied for personal use only. No part of this website may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without the prior written permission of the author. Requests to the author and publisher for permission should be addressed to the following email: dhcbaldwin@gmail.com

How to Make Your Drama Class More Successful –Lessons Learned from 38 Years of Teaching-Middle School

December 9, 2016 By dhcbaldwin 5 Comments

http://high schoolThis is a three part series. This is part two of it.

Click here for part one and part three:

https://dramamommaspeaks.com/2016/12/08/how-to-make-your-elementary-drama-class-more-successful-lessons-learned-from-38-years-of-teaching-drama-part-one/

https://dramamommaspeaks.com/2016/12/12/how-to-make-your-drama-class-more-successful-lessons-learned-from-38-years-of-teaching-part-three/

Two of these kids are in middle school and two are in high school. Can you tell the difference?

Drama teachers who are just beginning their careers ask me my secret to success in the classroom. How do I make my drama classes so successful? Heck, I don’t know really. I’m intense, have high expectations of all my students, energetic and enthusiastic about the subject matter.

Secondary level students, especially middle grade kids are a whole different bird than elementary. It isn’t only their maturity level that sets them apart. Obviously, their physical stature comes into play.

Every body part is changing rapidly. In ninth grade, our daughter went through a different size of jeans every three months–one time this size, the next time a smaller size, the third time back up a size and needing a longer length. Around and around we’d go.

And boys? It’s a little easier to spot their changing than the girls. I’ve known many a young man who was a scrawny seventh grader grow to become a muscled ninth grader. Prior to the maturing, the poor boy appears frantic that he won’t grow. Then, whoosh! He turns the bend, grows four inches and carries a look of relief while developing his personal swagger. I don’t blame him. I would, too!

It’s the emotional quotient which divides them from the younger students. Think about when you were in seventh grade. Oh gosh.

I was all over the place-confused, weepy, , silly, snotty and arrogant. Remember my mother was quite ill by the time I was ten years old and I hid any negative feelings I felt because I didn’t want to exacerbate her health issues with the stress of raising me.

So what do we do in theatre classes? We plop these smelly, sweaty emotional bursts of energy on a stage and ask them to show their feelings. Yikes! As if identifying their own emotions wasn’t difficult enough, we expect them to demonstrate someone else’s.

Here are a few pieces of advice when teaching middle grade students:

Give every one an opportunity for success every day. Generally, this can be achieved through a warm up exercise which has no apparent “winner”.
Help those students who are the loner type. Assign them to a group of students who are welcoming and kind.
Do you know the “smile and nod” technique? It is difficult for someone to say no to you, when you are smiling and nodding. Middle school students can be very disagreeable. Try to smile and nod with your request.
Give plenty of time for homework assignments. Students this age have a difficult time making priorities. Ample reminders and extra time that you have built in to the assignment (they don’t need to know this) should help.
Be sincere with them.
Be very organized and prepared for class. They can smell it on you if you haven’t planned.
Be trustworthy. They don’t like to be tricked and can tell when they are being manipulated. If you don’t know the answer it is acceptable to say you don’t know the answer, but you’ll find out for them.
Play fairly. If you say, “Everyone will have a speaking part in our play” you better come through on that promise. They will hold you to it.
Provide many hands-on learning experiences. They need to get up and move around at this age.
Establish class expectations right from day one which includes boundaries as middle school kids will test your limits.
Teach respect through positive criticism.
At the same time, be careful not to over praise them. Over praising doesn’t help anyone to grow. Research has found the opposite. Always have high expectations. They will rise to them if you first believe in them doing so.
Use side coaching when directing or instructing. Like a sport coach, the students will more readily accept your corrections of them if you phrase your correction in threes–a compliment, then the correction and end with another compliment.
If you have a reluctant learner, note the smallest positive attribute you see. By merely noting it, over time the student should open up to you and trust you.
Fear and humiliation play huge roles at this age. My advice: make a fool of yourself and laugh at yourself A LOT. Teach your students how to do the same with themselves.
Kids of this age are very sensitive about their clothing and hair. Never comment first on either. Let the student first mention it to you then you can say something.
At the beginning of each class allow a few minutes for sharing. Some students always have something exciting they want to share with the class. It could be something as simple as a girl went shopping at the mall with her bestie. That means everything to her. Other students who don’t share might divulge something if you can ask the right questions of them. Rather than, “How was your weekend?” try “Tell me about something exciting or unusual that occurred over your weekend?” Many students never have an adult listen to them. You can be their listener.
Be on your game. Students of this age are melodramatic, hyper focus on themselves and can change on you in a moment’s notice.
You have a very lasting effect and influence on middle grade students. Not only are they learning from you, they are observing you in the classroom and around the school. They love with their whole heart, so take good care of it for them.
In any situation whenever possible, temper your true feelings and always think of the middle grade student first.

If you haven’t noticed all ready, I didn’t discuss the actual teaching of the classroom on this post. Generally, everything I suggested with the elementary students will work with middle grade students. But the biggest challenge will be their emotional growth at this moment in their lives. If you can master how to ” ride the tidal wave” with them, you will most surely succeed.

Contact me at dhcbaldwin@gmail.com

I’d love to talk with you.

A Super Review of Bumbling Bea

November 26, 2016 By dhcbaldwin Leave a Comment

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

STORY LINE BUMBLING BEA:In Bumbling Bea, author Deborah Baldwin creates an enjoyable look into growing up. Beatrice has one more chance to play the lead in the school play before she leaves middle school. After all, playing the lead will ensure she will be in with popular girls. She has planned all year towards this goal, she and her alter ego Bumbling Bea. However, things do not go as planned. A new girl has enrolled from Japan. Michiko talented, opinionated, and pretty, gets the lead roll. Beatrice and alter ego Bea refuse to be denied and devise plans to get rid of Michiko. Let the games begin.

Hilarity, missteps, and bungling follow as Bea and Michiko come to terms. My children’s contemporary novel review follows.

CHARACTERS, PLOTTING, AND DEVELOPMENT:

To begin with, I must tell you how much I enjoyed this book. Although classified as a children/preteen book, I found as a mature senior I thoroughly enjoyed this story. Filled with laughter, missteps, and trials of the young trying to grow up, I laughed out loud at Bea’s antics. As I read, I found myself remembering my preteen years and the emotions that ran riot. Author Deborah Baldwin captured the pain and confusion of transitioning from a child to preteen and the situations the immature mind can create.

Baldwin’s pacing of the story was inline with the length of the story. The pace did not lag or bog down, but was steady and smooth. Furthermore, I found the plotting skillful as Ms. Baldwin brought all the threads together to create a solid book.

Lastly, in concluding my contemporary children’s novel review, I found the book well written with well-developed main characters and secondary characters which added to the tension and story-line.

BUMBLING BEA RECOMMENDATION: STARS 4

In addition, I gave Bumbling Bea 4 well-deserved stars. Subsequently, I found Bumbling Bea suitable for children and preteens as well as adults. As a senior I enjoyed this funny look back at the preteen years.

To purchase a copy of Bumbling Bea, go to Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/Bumbling-Bea-Deborah-Baldwin/product-reviews/1500390356/ref=cm_cr_dp_synop?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=0&sortBy=recent#R1O9MYUNK49KNA

growing up

Creative Dramatics for Tweens: Build Confidence First

What Is Creative Dramatics?

Why Traditional Drama Doesn’t Work Right Away

How Developmentally Appropriate Drama Builds Success

What Creative Dramatics Offers Instead

Why Creative Dramatics Works for Every Student

What It Looks Like in Practice

When to Introduce Scripts

Final Thoughts

Where Confidence Begins: Creative Dramatics

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My Childhood Secret

My Directing Debut

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Sometimes I write poetry. This is a favorite poem of mine. This particular poem was created for a class while studying for my masters in arts integration.

Little Cedar Berry Farm

Two sweethearts

when freckled, picked berries from a bush

two of them, stationed on paralleled rows

between the full hedges, soft sweet and lush.

Black pups swooned near their necks and birds did crow.

Two sweet children each with a waffled tray

Practiced their skills, dyed their digits to red,

blew back their bangs and dredged aprons of lead.

Around the farm yard bench, the mother bays;

and to all the warm dusk, flirts fearless to be fed

moans for our tawny hands and sweaty heads.

Twelve full quarts they picked. Some berries they ate

then sifted in green boxes, one by one and jostled the rosy nipples of fruit.

Beyond the tall grasses, though nearer the sun

I sat and watched them, yearning to be young.

Motherhood is Grand

This is a photo of me when I was a young mother with our two darling daughters. Now I’m a grandma of three perfect grandchildren. My oldest daughter on the right is turning forty years old in September.

Do you have a favorite poem of yours which you have penned? I’d love for you to share it with me.

Contact me at Dhcbaldwin@gmail.com or DeborahBaldwin.net

Share this:

Like this:

http://high schoolThis is a three part series. This is part two of it.

Click here for part one and part three:

Two of these kids are in middle school and two are in high school. Can you tell the difference?

Drama teachers who are just beginning their careers ask me my secret to success in the classroom. How do I make my drama classes so successful? Heck, I don’t know really. I’m intense, have high expectations of all my students, energetic and enthusiastic about the subject matter.

Secondary level students, especially middle grade kids are a whole different bird than elementary. It isn’t only their maturity level that sets them apart. Obviously, their physical stature comes into play.

Every body part is changing rapidly. In ninth grade, our daughter went through a different size of jeans every three months–one time this size, the next time a smaller size, the third time back up a size and needing a longer length. Around and around we’d go.

It’s the emotional quotient which divides them from the younger students. Think about when you were in seventh grade. Oh gosh.

I was all over the place-confused, weepy, , silly, snotty and arrogant. Remember my mother was quite ill by the time I was ten years old and I hid any negative feelings I felt because I didn’t want to exacerbate her health issues with the stress of raising me.

So what do we do in theatre classes? We plop these smelly, sweaty emotional bursts of energy on a stage and ask them to show their feelings. Yikes! As if identifying their own emotions wasn’t difficult enough, we expect them to demonstrate someone else’s.

Here are a few pieces of advice when teaching middle grade students:

Give every one an opportunity for success every day. Generally, this can be achieved through a warm up exercise which has no apparent “winner”.

Help those students who are the loner type. Assign them to a group of students who are welcoming and kind.

Do you know the “smile and nod” technique? It is difficult for someone to say no to you, when you are smiling and nodding. Middle school students can be very disagreeable. Try to smile and nod with your request.

Give plenty of time for homework assignments. Students this age have a difficult time making priorities. Ample reminders and extra time that you have built in to the assignment (they don’t need to know this) should help.

Be sincere with them.

Be very organized and prepared for class. They can smell it on you if you haven’t planned.

Be trustworthy. They don’t like to be tricked and can tell when they are being manipulated. If you don’t know the answer it is acceptable to say you don’t know the answer, but you’ll find out for them.

Play fairly. If you say, “Everyone will have a speaking part in our play” you better come through on that promise. They will hold you to it.

Provide many hands-on learning experiences. They need to get up and move around at this age.

Establish class expectations right from day one which includes boundaries as middle school kids will test your limits.

Teach respect through positive criticism.

At the same time, be careful not to over praise them. Over praising doesn’t help anyone to grow. Research has found the opposite. Always have high expectations. They will rise to them if you first believe in them doing so.

Use side coaching when directing or instructing. Like a sport coach, the students will more readily accept your corrections of them if you phrase your correction in threes–a compliment, then the correction and end with another compliment.

If you have a reluctant learner, note the smallest positive attribute you see. By merely noting it, over time the student should open up to you and trust you.

Fear and humiliation play huge roles at this age. My advice: make a fool of yourself and laugh at yourself A LOT. Teach your students how to do the same with themselves.

Kids of this age are very sensitive about their clothing and hair. Never comment first on either. Let the student first mention it to you then you can say something.

Be on your game. Students of this age are melodramatic, hyper focus on themselves and can change on you in a moment’s notice.

You have a very lasting effect and influence on middle grade students. Not only are they learning from you, they are observing you in the classroom and around the school. They love with their whole heart, so take good care of it for them.

In any situation whenever possible, temper your true feelings and always think of the middle grade student first.

Contact me at dhcbaldwin@gmail.com

I’d love to talk with you.

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