Mantle of the Expert

In Mantle of the Expert, the teacher will put students in groups (usually in groups of 4 or 5). The teacher will reveal an issue or topic (usually a controversial issue) that will be discussed and then assign each group a role or field in which they are experts. The students will come up of several points to address the issue/topic and then present it to the rest of the class. One possibility is to do a 'town hall meeting' type of presentation where the group of experts will come to the front of the classroom and share their opinions, thoughts, ideas, etc. After the group presents their points, the rest of the students can ask questions or comments. Don't forget to remind the students to be kind to one another!

Picture Walk

During the Picture Walk, students will be standing in a circle/semi-circle. Students will be asked to create a tableaux to represent a piece of information they have learned. For example, if doing a picture walk about polar bears, one student might stand on their tip-toes with their arms raised up high and a little curved to signify that polar bears are really tall. Once everyone is in their tableaux, the teacher (or one of the students) will walk by each student to observe the 'picture' and can guess what that student is trying to depict. After a walk around the whole circle/semi-circle, the teacher can then go through each one and have the students state what fact they were trying to represent.

Teacher In Role

Teacher in Role is when a teacher dress up and acts as a different person/character for an entire lesson. For example, the teacher can act as a noble from the Medieval Times, or he/she can act as a scientist. The teacher must remain in control/manage the class, encourage involvement from the students, describe the narrative, and create opportunities for all students to interact with the teacher. The teacher can also decide whether or not students must participate in the role-taking as well and act accordingly.

Pinwheel Poetry

Pinwheel Poetry is a really interesting drama activity to do! It is usually linked with a familiar text (e.g. a story, TV show, etc.). Each student will write a line or two in the perspective of one of the characters from the text (can be chosen by the teacher). As a whole class or in groups of about 5 or 6, the students will stand in a circle, facing outward and having their backs face each other. One by one, they will slowly rotate and as a student faces the front/the audience, they will say the line(s) that they wrote. This continues until all of the students in the group have said their line(s).

Musical Gist

For the Musical Gist drama strategy, the teacher will put students into groups and give each group a different phrase, rhyme, chant, etc. to say. To help the students remember the phrase or how to say it, the teacher can also provide a rhythm to use when chanting the phrase. While reading a story (or another text), the reader will stop at different parts and have a group come in and chant their phrase over and over again, sometimes varying in volume, rhythm, etc. This will go on until the reader decides to stop them. Multiple groups can also do their chant, either at the same time or with one group starting off before another group follows. This is especially fun to do if you have appropriate music playing in the background!

Stop Motion Animation

The Stop Motion Animation drama strategy is very fun, incorporates technology, and would be great as a cross-curricular activity with media literacy. In groups, students will be asked to create a scene by doing multiple tableaux. With a camera, a picture will be taken for each tableaux. These pictures will then be put in order and then played as a short film with a few seconds for each picture. The short film can be done through programs/apps such as "NFB Pixstop" or can even be set up on a PowerPoint (the animation and timing settings can be changed so that it acts as a normal video).

Graffiti

Graffiti is an expressive drama strategy that once again uses body language and does not involve talking. This can be done individually, in pairs, or in groups. As a response to a story, idea, phrase, or issue/topic, students will be writing or drawing in the air. Usually this is done by using one's hand/finger, but other creative ideas include using any body part (e.g. head, elbow, knee, bum). Students can also consider doing their graffiti at different levels in the air. Throughout a student's graffiti presentation, the other students can guess what is being written or drawn in the air. The teacher will then ask the student(s) to explain what was done. As an extension, the teacher can also have the students write down/draw what they did on a piece of paper.

Corridor of Voices

For the Corridor of Voices strategy, the students will form two lines about 2-4 feet apart, each student facing another student on the opposite line, forming a 'corridor' by raising their arms up. Students can link hands or they can just be forming an arch with their arms and hands. Students in the lines will be continuously chanting (depending on the topic, each student might just say one opinion, piece of advice, feeling, or thought). As they are chanting, students on one end will one-by-one walk inside the 'corridor' and travel all the way to the other end. It is important that the students keep shuffling down to make room on the other end for that 'travellers'.

Mirroring

Mirroring is another fun and light activity to do with the students, even as a warm up drama activity. Students will be in pairs, identified as Student A and Student B. The A students will be acting out while B students will be facing their partner and mirroring the movements of the A students. If there is an odd number, one group can have three students and there will be 2 B students an 1 A student. The teacher can then choose when to call out "Freeze!" to have them hold a pose, and then when the teacher days "Defrost!" students A and B will switch roles (so B students will be the actors and A students will be the mirror).

Coral Reading & Choral Speaking

Choral Reading and Choral Speaking are very similar with one another, both involving the students being in groups. With Choral Reading, students are simply reading a text out loud using different elements of choral work (number of voices, tempo, rhythm, dynamics/volume, and rhyme). They are not required to memorize the text that they are reading.

Choral Speaking is when students are given texts to memorize (usually very short texts) and interpret. If reading a book while doing choral speaking, students are giving a phrase in the book to act out or interpret.

Alter-Ego

Alter-Ego is a strategy that is very similar to the concept of the devil and the angel on a person's shoulder. This is usually done in groups of at least 3 students. One person is sitting in a seat contemplating an issue or a dilemma. The other 2 students will be standing on each side of the person in the seat. They will then take on opposing views (e.g. the 'angel' or positive view, and the 'devil' or negative view). For example, if the student in the seat is facing the decision of whether or not to buy junk food for lunch or stick to his/her sandwich, a student on one side will continuously be saying to buy the junk food and reasons for why he/she should buy it, while the other student will do the opposite and advise the person not to buy junk food and why they should not buy it. This strategy visually demonstrates the internal battle people face when making decisions.

Writing-in-Role

Writing-in-Role is a strategy that allows students to take on the role of a certain person or character. They will then write a journal, letter, diary, etc. (teacher usually decides) in the perspective of the role they are in. For example, if a student is taking on the role of Ghandi and the journal topic is on life in general, the student will have to think like Ghandi and then write a response based on what would be Ghandi's reactions/feelings. This activity, of course, also allows students to practice their writing skills.

Caption Making

Caption Making is a strategy that combines Tableaux and writing. Some might say that this is a real life comic book scene! Students, usually in groups, create a still image like with the Tableaux strategy. In addition to this, they will be holding up paper (or speech/thought bubbles) where they have written an explanation of what the scene is about, what their character is doing in the scene, what their character is thinking/saying during that Tableaux, etc.

Gibberish

Gibberish is just what it sounds like! This strategy allows students to act out a scene or tell a story without the use of real words. They use non-sense words to speak, however use their facial expressions, tone and speed of voice, as well as their body language to communicate with others. This activity is a great way to have students let loose, especially those who are usually uncomfortable with drama!

News Report

News Report is a very fun drama activity to do with the students and is very flexible in terms of cross-curricular opportunities! Students work together to act out a news report. They will be reporting information about a person or event, real or fictional. For example, one or two students could be news reporters at the news station, another student can act as the news reporter who is 'out in the field', while the other students are being interviewed. This activity can be done through improvisation or can be planned ahead of time. Teachers usually provide the students a topic or problem (does not always have to be controversial!), and then allow the students to have the creativity of addressing the issue and engage in storytelling.

In A Group Of...

In A Group Of... is another easy strategy that has students doing activities or forming different positions and/or shapes by working by themself or with other students. For example, if a teacher calls out "in a group of 3, form a triangle", students will have to find partners so that they become a group of 3 and form the shape picked out by the teacher. Students are usually moving/walking around the room until the teacher stops them and calls out a new command. Teachers can even combine this with other strategies, such as "in a group of 5, create a tableaux".

Tap-In

Tap-In is a simple strategy where the teacher goes around to each student, taps them lightly (e.g. on the shoulder or arm) and then has that student share their opinion, thoughts, or their explanation (if doing the Tap-In as a follow up to a Tableaux/Position Mapping activity). If students are not ready to share, the teacher can simply skip that student and come back to him/her after.

Position Mapping & Position Mapping in Role

Position Mapping is a strategy that involves an object in the centre of the room (e.g. a chair). The teacher can explain to the students that the object represents an issue (e.g. discrimination, comfort with drama) and then the students must pick a spot in the room, relative to the object in the middle, which describes their views, feelings, and/or knowledge of the issue. For example, when discussing the comfort with drama, students can be sitting on the chair (the object in the middle), while others are about to walk out the door of the classroom. This would of course represent students being extremely comfortable with drama, and some students not wanting to have anything to do with drama. The teacher can then choose whether or not to have students explain their position (e.g. through the "Tap-In" strategy).

Position Mapping in Role is very similar, however students must take their positions based on their role. For example, if the object in the middle of the room represents the issue of discrimination, students can take on the role of Martin Luther King and stand really close to the chair because discrimination has affected him (Martin Luther King) a lot. Or, the student can be in the farthest corner all curled up because he/she is a newborn baby who has not yet been affected by discrimination.

Tableaux

Tableaux are when students create a still image through the use of their bodies. Usually done in groups, students hold a pose that creates a scene (e.g. from a book, from a TV show, of a photograph or piece of art, etc.).Students must keep in mind their physical positioning with each other, their body language, and facial expression. No talking is involved.

Connection Chains/Webs

Connection Chains (or Connection Webs) can be used to help students make connections with each other based on different information. For example, given a certain topic, they can make a connection based on locations, people involved, interests, etc. Students can also be given a certain character (being in role) and find connections based on the characters that each student will play. Links can be made as long as the students are touching (e.g. feet-to-feet, hands, link elbows, etc.). Once everyone has had a chance to make a link, one person can start to explain how he/she made a link with another student, and then the next person will explain his/her link, etc. If there is a student who does not have two links (in other words, if one hand is touching another student but the other hand is not linked to anyone else), that student will be one end of the chain and will start the explanation of his/her link first.

Welcome!

 

 

 

Welcome everyone! This is an edublog that discusses some Drama Strategies! So be prepared to learn about several strategies that can be fun to use in classrooms! There is also a theory section that links with student learning and how the theory can be supported in drama activities. There are two more sections of this website that list some recommended drama activities for younger and older students. Lastly, I have provided my personal thoughts on drama as a whole, hoping that this will encourage teachers to utilize these strategies in their classrooms.

 

Time to bring in the DRAMA!

 

-Miss Naidas