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Who Is Springboard to Action and Why It Matters

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Every so often, someone reaches out to me and asks if I can help spread the word about an organization that’s making a real difference in theater education. I’m always willing to consider it.  That’s part of my mission statement.  When I see a program that opens doors for students and inspires teachers, I’m always eager to share it. Today’s spotlight is on one of those opportunities: Who Is Springboard to Action and Why It Matters.

Who Is Springboard to Action and Why It Matters

Who is Springboard to Design and Why It Matters

Springboard to Design encourages and mentors high school students from underrepresented populations to explore the process of theatrical collaboration and the many avenues of American Theatre design. Led by renowned members of the contemporary theatre in the heart of NYC, the Springboard to Design curriculum includes workshops, seminars, and access to important work on and off Broadway.

Springboard to Action

Instructors consist of award-winning artists who create a collaborative environment for students, as they explore costume, set, lighting, projection, hair, makeup, and sound design. How wonderful this is for the students! Knowing that someone who the students can relate to because of their background or culture or ethnicity is important.  Such an approach ensures that the program is not all about teaching and learning—it’s about connection.

Springboard to Design is an initiative by Design Action, an intergenerational coalition of BIPOC and white designers working to end racial inequities in North American theatre. The program was incubated in collaboration with the American Theatre Wing in 2021. In the summer of 2025, Springboard to Design was hosted at The Harvey Fierstein Theatre Lab housed in The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts in the heart of Lincoln Center.

Who Is Springboard to Action and Why It Matters

Benefits of Springboard to Design

In case you want to share this information with your students, here’s a quick list of how this program benefits students:

  • Accessibility – Tuition, housing, and program costs are fully covered, making it possible for all students to attend.
  • Representation Matters – Students work with professional designers who reflect diverse backgrounds and lived experiences.
  • Professional Mentorship – Award-winning artists guide students through real-world design challenges.
  • Hands-On Training – Workshops let students experiment with costume, set, lighting, projection, hair, makeup, and sound design.
  • Career Exploration – Students discover design pathways beyond acting, expanding their vision of what a future in theatre can be.
  • Community Building – The program fosters collaboration, teamwork, and friendships with peers who share the same passions.
  • Networking in NYC – Students gain exposure to Broadway professionals and experience theatre in the cultural hub of the U.S.
  • Recognition – Being part of a nationally recognized program (Anthem Award winner) adds prestige to a student’s portfolio or college application.

Isn’t this is exciting?  I wish I had students that I could introduce to this program.  If you need an answer to the question, “How is theater useful in the outside world”, read: Why Theater Education Matters: Developing Key Life Skills

Who Is Springboard to Action and Why It Matters

Breaking Barriers for Future Theater Artists

The program includes workshops and mentorship from award-winning artists. Students explore costume, set, lighting, sound, hair, makeup, and projection design in the heart of New York City. Here’s the exciting part—the SB2D program is FREE to all students.

Springboard to Design (SB2D) gives students the chance to dive into the world of theatre design and discover new artistic possibilities, no experience required! With housing available and tuition fully covered, this program is built to remove barriers for the next generation of theatre designers. Thus, students expand their sense of community, collaboration, and imagination.

Springboard to Design is all ready a winner!  The program was recognized by the 2022 and 2023 Anthem Awards as a Bronze Winner for Education, Arts, & Culture – Community Engagement.

Who Is Springboard to Action and Why It Matters

Application Details and Deadlines

The applications for the 2026 program are open from September 15th to December 15th, 2025.

The application will include a few short essays, a brief introduction video, and an original piece of artwork.

There is a $25 application fee. If for any reason you are unable to afford the fee, or if it causes stress on family finances. If so, please contact us to receive a voucher. This application fee goes directly back into the program and helps keep the week-long experience free for students.

The Power of Finding Your Community

I can only speak from personal experience.  When I attended college I finally found people who were just like me with the same interests and goal.  I was much more willing to show up for myself.  Sounds to me like Springboard to Action is the opportunity and growth we’d all like to give our students an opportunity to attain.  For more information about the program, go to Springboard for Action.

I give drama teachers advise nearly weekly.  If you have any questions or need some help, just email me at DhcBaldwin@gmail.com

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.

Did you know I have the secret to boosting student engagement?  My new book, “We’re Live! Radio Theater #101” explains my journey to implementing this unique tool in the classroom. Check it out here

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.

An Integral Part of Theater Education

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.

 

The Five Reasons Your Students Will Love Set Design

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The Five Reasons Your Students Will Love Set Design

One of the things I appreciate about the subject I teach is its varied subjects within it. However as we know, not all students think the same way as I. I thought you might appreciate the five reasons your students will love set design–or at least that’s my hope.

If you are teaching theater and have reluctant students, I’d suggest teaching them about set design.  I’ve yet to find a group of students who did not enjoy learning about it.

Many students love theater, but they are unwilling to perform and consequently they quit studying it and take another class instead.  The reason?  They just can’t find a place for themselves within it.  Technical theater is a wonderful place for inclusion!

The Five Reasons Your Students Will Love Set Design

The Five Reasons Your Students Will Love Set Design

Truthfully, I think teaching set design is crucial for a student’s studies in theater arts. Let’s face it–a set design can make or break a production. Understanding its value and encouraging your students to appreciate it too will not only enrich their learning, but make them a more rounded arts person.

Think about it.  The audience sits and looks at the set for the entire performance.  Sometimes the set doesn’t change.  That’s a loooong time to imagine the place.

I could wax poetic about my love for teaching set design.  I am that much of a cheerleader for it.  But here are some reasons your middle and high school students will love set design:

  1.  It’s highly creative–The sky is the limit when one is learning about set design.
  2.  It’s immediately gratifying–When you design a set and create a model of it (either with paper or through a set design software app.) you can watch your idea take shape right in front of you
  3.  Themes and motifs can be explored effortlessly–your ELA teacher will appreciate that you teach these concepts to your students
  4.  It’s a great way to learn cooperatively–If you have your students work in pair or teams, the design process is eye opening to them.  As in life, everyone has an idea. They should all be heard and incorporated into the design if at all possible.  Students learn to listen, adjust their opinions and consider others.
  5.  Set design skills can carry over into other subjects such as math or social studies.  What a terrific way to apply what you learn.  Design a set, measuring, ratios, etc. come into use.  Researching a local such as France for a set design can be a super integration for a social studies or geography class.

The Challenges of Set Design

The Five Reasons Your Students Will Love Set Design

For Your Gifted Students

I used to challenge my students who needed something more difficult to design their set using a turntable in the center.  Wow, that’s a great challenge!  Not only is it tough to build, but will it work sufficiently?

Or what about a staircase?  Students quickly learn that designing a staircase to scale is much more complex than just label a rectangle a set of stairs.  Once a model is built the student sees the error of their measurements and that’s helpful, too.

How about a bridge?  Again, it’s easy to design but difficult to execute.

A Little Trivia Break

  • Did you know Judy Dench wanted to be a set designer when she was young?
  • Or that Maurice Sendak (author of Where the Wild Things Are) became a set designer after his career as an author? (Me neither!)
  • How about the fact that real-life historical locations provided inspiration for the Hamilton musical set design? While the set isn’t literal, it draws inspiration from actual places. “One of the cool things about Hamilton is almost every single location is one that you can research and find actual visual support for, whether it’s on the internet or in history books, or if the actual location still exists,” says David Korins, the set designer. “We did a lot of research in my office, getting everything from what the Schuyler Home actually looked like to what it looked like in New York City in 1781 and 1776. And we put it all up on a big huge board on a wall in my office, and we picked and chose.”
  • If you want more information about the history of set design, check out this blog post, Past Present and Future Set Design 

The Five Reasons Your Students Will Love Set Design

Teaching students that “less is more” can be easily demonstrated through set design.  In the photo above, you see a simple set from the 2018 revival of Carousel.  It contains a cyclorama with a cloudy night sky projected upon it and four miniature sail boats are part of the ground row.  The rest of the set is wood pallets. Students understand this concept that’s why it’s one of the five reasons students love set design.  Isn’t it effective? If you are need advice concerning selecting a production, check out this blog post: Critical Steps in Selecting a Play or Musical: Budget & Royalties

Permit me to brag a little

This is Brandon Davis.  He was a student of mine when he was in middle school.  He’s really made a great name for himself as a set designer.  When I had Brandon in my drama class in sixth grade, he was quiet, creative and loved theater.  You can see his work below and  at www.brandonptdavis.com

 

 

If you aren’t aware, I have a store with Teacherspayteachers.com.  In it, I sell drama education resources. In this particular case, let’s discuss my set design unit.

There are two–one for middle school and another a bundle of technical theater units  for high school.

 

The Five Reasons Your Students Will Love Set Design      The Five Reasons Your Students Will Love Set Design

The Five Reasons Your Students Will Love Set Design

Here is my middle school design unit description:

During this eight-day unit over set design students learn about the history of set design, famous designers, develop a critical eye about what makes up an award- winning set design, create a ground plan for a fairy tale story of their choosing and draw a rendering. If you’d like a free lesson concerning set design, click here. Set Design, the Rendering

Here’s a added benefit–the students must work with ratios and measuring. (Hello math class!) The first two assignments are completed individually, but then the fun begins! The students are paired up to create a model working together towards the goal. There is even room for parents to celebrate the end of the unit with your students.

Included in the unit:

  • An overview of the unit for the teacher
  • Rationale for teaching design
  • History of scenic design
  • Set designer’s responsibilities
  • Teacher’s Script–what I say and how I say it!
  • Warm-up for day one
  • Procedures for each day (8)
  • Lecture notes including links
  • Information about the message color conveys
  • Rendering examples
  • Stage curtain sheets for rendering–one vertical, one horizontal
  • Step-by-step directions for model building including photo examples
  • Cheat sheet for various set pieces
  • Assignment sheet for each step of the design process
  • Exit slip prompts for 4 days
  • Grade sheet EDITABLE in a separate folder
  • Source page

The Five Reasons Your Students Will Love Set Design

High School Set Design and Others

As you would expect, my high school unit is more challenging.  It includes studying three styles of theater–modernism, expressionism, surrealism.  After reading a play of their choosing, the students select one style and design the set for that production.   They build a model of their design or use software to design it in three dimensions.

Additionally if you want to take this idea even further, I have a theater artist biography and one pager assignment available. I  have several planned, but for now I can offer you Ming Cho Lee.

The Five Reasons Your Students Will Love Set Design

If you are looking for advice a production’s design, check out this blog post: Critical Steps in Producing a Play or Musical: Set Design

In particular, I appreciate this quote from  George C. Wolfe, playwright and director of Angels in America: Millenium Approaches who said:

“I love working with a set designer because, in many respects, you meet the set designer before you meet the actors. So it’s a chance for me as a director to figure out what I’m thinking and to explore how the space is going to actually be activated.”

I hope I’ve convinced you to teach design to your students.  Maybe your students will become a set designer as mine did!

If you want more advice concerning set design, check out: Critical Steps in Producing a Play or Musical: Set Design

Need something for a substitute?  Check out Exploring Theater Professions Video and Class Discussion Lesson.

What technical theater lessons have your students enjoyed learning?  I’d love to know.  Contact me at DhcBaldwin@gmail.com

The Five Reasons Your Students Will Love Set Design

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How to Teach Play Production to Your Students

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How to Teach Play Production to Your Students

How to Teach Play Production to Your Students
DIRECTING THE MIRACLE WORKER

Let’s consider how to teach play production to your students today.  As I’ve mentioned previously, I was thrown into directing my first production when I was quite young–twenty three years old to be exact. This is how to teach play production to your students.

Ten years and an umpteen amount of me directing productions later, I began producing for the theater company.  Let me tell you, I had NO idea what I was doing but after having directed and experienced that side of it, producing wasn’t all that difficult for me. You can read about my directing experiences here:  Eighteen Ways To Make Your Directing Experience Less Stressful, Part One or Eighteen Ways to Make Your Directing Experience Less Stressful, Part Two

In fact, I discovered I was good at it!

Many times in an educational setting, our students only learn about the “fun stuff”– acting and improvisation.  But there is a whole big world of other facets of theater which are not only essential but interesting! Plus, reluctant performers may find themselves in the other aspects of theater.

How to Teach Play Production to Your Students

How to Teach Play Production to Your Students

By teaching play production to your theater class, students are given an opportunity to dip their toes into various responsibilites.  One responsibility which is largely overlooked is the job of the producer. Check out this resource if you want your students to have a comprehensive look at play production.

If we can give our students opportunities to learn through play production, then by all means let’s do it!

The Ten Steps in Play Production

How to Teach Play Production to Your Students

So, let’s consider this idea for your class. Here are ten steps for play production.

  1.  Class reads several plays (I suggest you check out: Don Zoldis plays.  They are terrific for something like this.)
  2. After discussing the pros and cons, the play is selected
  3. Order the scripts
  4. After scripts arrive, read thru again, students volunteer for the responsibility of which they show most interest
  5. Set a budget
  6. Hold auditions and cast production
  7. Begin rehearsals
  8. Hold several run thrus, a cue to cue (if need be) and dress rehearsals
  9. Perform
  10. Process the experience

Tips and Reminders for Play Production

How to Teach Play Production to Your Students

When setting the budget, you may need to teach your students how to approximate their ticket sales if you are charging for the performance.  Make sure you include any monies the department has ear marked for the play. You are the authority on what needs to be included such as scripts and royalties.  Not all students are aware of these expenditures. Looking for something free to use in your class tomorrow?  Check out:  Lin Manuel Miranda Biography and One Pager Assignment. 

I’d suggest you do everything you can to streamline this learning experience.  Nailing down your expectations for each part of the production is key here.  Create checklists for each responsibility will help with this challenge.

If the student actors aren’t rehearsing their role, they are helping the design chairs to complete their checklists. Need some checklists to de-stress opening night?  Pick up my FREE ones here:  Director’s Helper Checklists

How to Teach Play Production to Your Students

If you are presenting a one-act play, I’d suggest two or three week daily rehearsal period. If a full length play, four or five weeks of daily rehearsal will be needed.  You may need to be more liberal with this rehearsal period, however.

What is a Play Producer?

How to Teach Play Production to Your Students

Although a production would not follow this pattern in the professional world, allow your producer to lead the production.

This term can have many meanings within theater, but it usually refers to a person who manages all aspects of a production, from overseeing the budget to hiring the director and other artists. Producers have to understand both the creative and business sides of theatre.
Who is best to be a producer?  Anyone an learn how, however the students with the leadership qualities are most successful–communicative, diplomatic, fair, “big picture” people.  Do allow your producer to watch over everything–provide feedback, communicate with chairs, oversee the budget, etc.

How to Teach Play Production to Your Students

How to Teach Play Production to Your Students

There is such power in cooperative learning.  Unfamiliar with this phrase? Cooperative learning is the instructional use of small groups so that students work together to maximize their own and each other’s learning.

In a recent study through the Journal of Effective Teaching,  students taught with cooperative learning strategy performed better than those taught with th individualistic learning strategy. The experimental group obtained a higher mean score of 89.91 as compared with the mean of 79.75 for the control group. The difference between the means scores of both groups is significant.

Please know the first time you attempt this, it could be difficult  with lots of starts and stops.  However, over time the students will embrace the experience and ask for more. You may end up stepping in as an actor if someone is conveniently “sick” the day of the performance or maybe the costume designer never comes through.  Who knows?

If you stay engaged with the students as they experience a class production experience, help them navigate the twists and turns while they learn and act as supervisor, this could be the highlight of your year!

My Producer Unit

How to Teach Play Production to Your Students

You may not be aware, but I have a Producer unit.  You can find it here: Drama Producer Unit

This unit includes:

This 7 day unit about the theater producer is suitable for high school students and perhaps gifted middle graders. Students read a play or musical, choose a theater scenario, study the responsibilities of a theater producer, examine style, metaphor, create and set up a budget/income for their production and finish with sharing their ideas on a concept board. Through this unit, students develop a keen eye for what it takes to be a producer and critique their peer’s work as well.

 

The product includes:

  • Warm-Up Exercise
  • The Rationale Teaching the Unit
  • Teacher Script to Introduce the Unit –what I say and how I say it!
  • Quora article with questions to answer
  • Blog Post about Broadway Tricks of the Trade
  • How to Use Metaphor in Design
  • Questions to Consider when Producing a Production
  • Procedure for Each Day
  • Photocopying List
  • Musical and Play List Titles of Most Popular Productions in High Schools
  • Three Theater Scenarios for the Students to Choose From
  • List of Publishing Companies of Plays and Musicals
  • Sources & Live Video links list including clip suggestions
  • Two Assignments–one a short essay and another creating a concept board
  • Assignment Rubric
  • Peer evaluation activity

I hope you’ll consider planning a class play production in the near future.  I’ve found it to be one of the most gratifying experiences of teaching.  Observing my students as they learned how to work with one another, see their exhilaration when they show finally comes together and listening to their “aha” moments is a wonderful thing. Maybe you just want to start small and teach your students about costume design?

What class play productions have you produced?  I’d love to hear about them.  Contact me at DhcBaldwin@gmail.com!

How to Teach Play Production to Your Students

 

 

 

 

 

The Reasons Thematic Units in Teaching are Successful

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The Reasons Thematic Units in Teaching Are Successful 

I love this time of year.  Once we reach October, it is such fun for several months. Let’s talk about the reasons thematic units in teaching are successful, shall we? 

You know, I’m such a kid at heart. I still get all excited about the season! It’s fun, fun, fun! 

When the Halloween season was upon us when I was a child, I could hardly contain myself.  It was really tough to concentrate in class.  We didn’t do a lot of learning using themes, but I wish we had.

Let me tell you,  our teachers have it figured out–thematic units work.  

As a child, I don’t remember learning through a theme.  Of course, that was back when we had desks with a top which raised and used a pencil sharpener which was screwed to the blackboard at the front of the classroom.

The Reasons Thematic Units in Teaching are Successful

Yup, it was pretty much like this.

What is a thematic unit in teaching?

“Thematic unit is the organization of a curriculum around a central theme. In other words, it’s a series of lessons that integrate subjects across the curriculum, such as math, reading, social studies, science, language arts, etc. that all tie into the main theme of the unit. Each activity should have a main focus toward the thematic idea.”

As most people know, a teacher needs various teaching methods to reach the students.  Thematic teaching is sly.  It encourages learning using a back door approach.

Sort of like saying, “Oh, neat!  Let’s celebrate Halloween through costume design today.” Here is a lesson to use.

Generally, students are very intrigued.

The Reasons Thematic Units in Teaching are Successful

The Reasons Thematic Units in Teaching Are Successful

When I was looking for some information which support this approach, I found a lengthy blog post about the subject.  Here are some highlights from it at Forensicoutreach.com:

Thinking outside the box: encouraging understanding beyond the syllabus

Consider this: was there ever a time an issue (perhaps in the arena of current affairs) was raised by a friend or a colleague, to which you hadn’t very much to contribute due to insufficient interest, and therefore knowledge, in that particular area? Once you’d done your homework, so to speak, it probably provoked several questions in your mind that weren’t previously there — simply because you hadn’t had enough material to really examine it.

The involvement of a relevant subject (or theme for our purposes) — drawn into the classroom to help drive a particular unit objective home — has been shown to consistently elicit intriguing questions from enquiring young minds for very much the same reasons. Simply put, entrenching the curriculum firmly within a wider, topical context allows students to look at the same matter in a radically new and different light.

It’s this new lens that allows students to probe the subject with relative ease, and makes thematic teaching (in some cases) more effective than a simple reading assignment.

Making it work: including resources not commonly utilized

We’ve found that classrooms have (perhaps in days of yore) invested in several teaching aids that are seldom used. It’s a frequent finding as we step into the shoes of a teacher for a day at the over one-hundred different institutions we’ve visited: a skeleton in the corner; and unused chemistry slime set; or even crime scene tape, found underneath the cupboard in the room’s front standing area. Thematic teaching allows you to make use of these valuable resources in ways that aren’t limiting or formulaic. Build your unit theme with what is already available to you.

Thematic Units are Wonderful

The Reasons Thematic Units in Teaching are Successful

In another blog post from edtechlens.com, more points are made:

1. It’s more fun to teach and learn using a theme. (Boy, that’s the truth!)

Chris believes fun is a key ingredient in learning. “If children are happy, they are confident, and so are teachers. This magic combination makes teaching and learning so much more effective. Children become inspired and wider-thinking. Teachers may still be exhausted, but now it’s an exhaustion that makes them feel fulfilled and valued,” she says.

2. It harnesses curiosity to motivate learning.  (Probably the most important asset!)

“To me it’s the most natural way to learn,” says Chris. “A child or adult finds something that intrigues them, maybe a foreign stamp or a stone. They want to know more and so they start on a journey of collecting ideas and information. With the stamp, the child finds out about its source, the geography of its people, the music of their homeland, the art work within it. They investigate its richness, draw its setting, sing its songs, write letters to find out more, investigate in books and on the internet. The learning is never sluggish, but is vibrant and exciting.”

3. Educators transition to being facilitators of learning. (Yes, they do.)

“The teacher is no longer a provider of facts copied from the board and learned for homework,” Chris says. “Instead, because the boundaries of exploration are far wider than the teacher can predict, he or she becomes a learning manager.” A learning manager guides children while keeping open the opportunity for self-guided discovery.

4. It teaches children how to learn.  (Such a necessary part of learning–becoming an independent learner.)

With theme-based learning, children are thinking for themselves, following the thread of a topic to explore and discover more. Chris says, “It gives them a taste of moving from one related area to another related area and one builds on another. It’s a way of learning throughout life.”

Thematic Learning in Drama Class.

We use thematic learning in a drama class, too.  In fact, I would imagine every drama teacher uses a theme without even thinking about it.

Here is one for tableau using a holiday theme:

A snowman with a green scarf celebrating the winter season

Tableau Exercises Holiday Themed

Here is another on the Broadway musical, A Christmas Story

A Christmas Story, the Musical

Because I know they work, I created several thematic units which are available through my store, Dramamommaspeaks at Teacherpayteachers.com.

Here is one for Halloween:

Drama Units Halloween Theme  

or a smaller one--Bundle: Halloween Drama Lessons, Designing and Fun

or my newest: Set Design Halloween Themed

or design and make a Halloween costume using only garbags and masking tape!

If you’d like a free guide and lesson plan from me, click here LESSON PLAN

Winter Thematic Units at the Ready

Maybe you are skipping the fall season opportunities for thematic learning and winter is more your style.

Check out: Bundle: Drama Lessons and Plays Winter Theme

 

 

If you ask me, bundles are the way to go.  You always get a discount of some kind and many times I give another free lesson as a thank you for purchasing from me.

I have many more, so do check them out at Dramamommaspeaks

Each lesson includes will save you heaps of time, low prep, step by step instructions and extras.

  • a letter to teacher
  • procedure
  • warm up
  • teacher’s script
  • materials list
  •  lesson
  • exercises
  • extensions
  • source list
  • video clip list, hot linked for you

So, if you are thinking about using drama in your classroom check me out.

Here are two new ones:  The Cask of Amontillado and The Monkey’s Paw

The Reasons Thematic Units in Teaching are Successful The Reasons Thematic Units in Teaching are Successful

What thematic units are you using at present?  How are they working for you?

I’m always interested in hearing what a teacher is doing or needs created for their classes. These thirty-eight years of teaching should benefit someone other than myself, you know?  Ask away.

Contact me at dhcbaldwin@gmail.com

Deborah Baldwin, Dramamommaspeaks