Drama Teachers

Teaching drama can be a challenge, particularly if you’re just starting out. So we asked drama teachers: What are your best tips for new drama teachers? We’re all in this togetherAndrea C. says “Don’t forget, even when you’re the only one in the building, you’re not alone. Literally every teacher was new to this and probably can offer advice because they get it.” Shelby-Lynn S. suggests “Make ensemble building your first priority in your classes and rehearsals.” Brian B. says “Build community from day one. Connect the students to each other, the program to the school, the productions to an audience. Every decision should be based on how does it build connections. That’s how you build an educationally, creatively, and administratively sustainable program.” Put your hand upAshley S. says “Theatre teachers wear a lot of hats and you have to have knowledge in a lot of different areas. Asking for help is not a sign of weakness and does not make you a burden. You don’t need to know everything, you will learn little by little and you will eventually feel confident as a theatre teacher.” Heather C. says “Ask for help. Take a day off. Learn to say no. Pick your battles. Have fun with the kids. Remember that you’ll be remembered.” Rachel R. suggests “Listen to your actors once in a while. You’ll often be pleasantly surprised at what they bring to the stage when given the chance.” Take it one step at at timeFrom Twitter: “Start simply. Plan lessons properly and record what works and what doesn’t.” Sara B. says “Tackle one artistic/educational goal at a time. Don’t try to do everything at once. Rome wasn’t built in a day.” Pass on perfectionDan P. says “You’re going to make mistakes and feel like a fraud for a while. One day it’ll click” From Instagram: “The first 6 months don’t count. Make all the mistakes you want and don’t worry about them.” Jeff P. says “Embrace silliness.” Elzabeth J. suggests “Always wear a cape. And always speak as if you were reciting Shakespeare.” Keep the passionShannon B. says “You better be real passionate about your craft, the art of teaching & the students you teach – because you could make a lot more money & work a lot less time waiting tables.? Make the most of your grand opportunity to teach drama and don’t forget to make it fun for YOU! Allow the students the priceless opportunity to witness your joy & hopefully you will inspire them to join you in your passion for the arts!” Inhale. Exhale. Repeat.Elizabeth G. says “Take the time for you and your students to openly & respectfully listen to one another.” From Twitter: “Take time for your self, friends and family!” Bekah S. suggests “Don’t compare. Do you.” From Twitter: “Remember to breathe and to take your breaks! Show students and parents that boundaries are a necessity. Be most important….. have fun and laugh!!” Join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and add your own advice to our list.

Drama teachers: you are not alone! Our quality teaching resources and materials are specifically designed to make your life easier and help your classroom thrive.

We asked drama teachers: What tips do you have for keeping your rehearsals focused? Let’s hear from the front lines! John H. subscribes to short and sweet: • My rehearsal schedule is short. 25 days for a straight play and 32 days for a musical. Shakespeare around 29 days. • Each rehearsal is two hours long. There is no time to fool around. It creates a sense of urgency. • I select hard-working students who have proven to me they know how to rehearse. They prove it in class. If a student shows up late or has poor rehearsal habits in class, I won’t put them in a play. • Give cast members jobs to accomplish when they are not onstage. Today I had actors who did not have lines in the Act we were running help me with the set – staining wood and drilling holes. Simple jobs, but they have to do it right and clean up. • Having everyone working is a key factor. Nick A. runs his rehearsals like this: • Having a specific rehearsal schedule planned for every day. • No phones or electronics allowed except during breaks. • Five-minute breaks every hour or ten-minute breaks every hour and a half. • Clear expectations that they are to be onstage and ready to work at the time rehearsal starts (or immediately after breaks are over), or else they get redressed in front of the cast. Terry S. runs a tight ship: • I know precisely what I plan to accomplish, how far I plan to go – and if I’m not using a specific actor on a given day, they know this and they don’t have to be there. • I generally block 10-15 pages (depending on the play) and redo the scene(s) several times. This allows us to make adjustments and changes – and usually the actors have these pages practically offbook before leaving. • I begin with a warm-up and end with a chat that is always positive. That means I frame the opinions and attitudes about the cast and the show – not the backstage gossip that occurs during rehearsal. No matter what was said backstage, it’s my words they go home with. Aubree F. shares a unique way to deal with electronics: • No phones, period. we started using a “phone bucket” which is left with the stage manager. They can check their devices at break and get them back at the end of rehearsal. We do the same for shows. Chuck Y.’s expectations: • Be where you’re supposed to be WHEN you’re supposed to be there. Come to rehearsal ready to work, and know your material. Stay focused and be in the moment. Kathy A.’s carrot: • Tell students: “If we have a good rehearsal and can finish early, there may be time at the end for an improv exercise.” Enough of them want to play improv games that they’ll keep the others on task as well. Jack S. gets visual: • Post a Goals For Today note on the call board.

We asked drama teachers: How do you make your rehearsals run efficiently and effectively? Let’s hear from teachers on the front lines. Punctuality and Preparedness• Communicate the schedule • Be on time. This means cast and crew • Start on time – just as important! • Have a good warm-up planned for vocals, character development, and physical • Have a game plan for the goals of the rehearsal Attitude goes a long way• Bring good-natured and hardworking attitudes • Don’t expect perfection, but expect dedication • Respect the goals of the rehearsal • Have patience • Know when to stop • Be willing to be vulnerable Reflect and Plan• End on time • Clean up • Have a reflective wrap up at the end for actors, crew, and director. • Communicate the next scheduled rehearsal and plans • Celebrate the hard work done! * * *

We all know a picture is worth a thousand words – so make sure it’s saying the right things about your productions. Your actors’ performances aren’t afterthoughts. Capturing their moments in the spotlight shouldn’t be either. We asked drama teachers: What are your best tips on taking great production photos? Let’s hear from teachers on the front lines. Leave it to the professionalsKatie O. says “Get a professional! I’ve been fortunate the past several years to have students with dads who are pros (or at least very accomplished amateurs). I haven’t taken a production photo in years but we still have some beautiful shots!” Randi G. says “My tip is to get a parent who is a photographer to come in and take the pictures! That is what we did this year (he is a pro) and we got amazing shots, including some super backstage photos. If there isn’t a parent, find someone who is trying to build their portfolio who can come take some shots of one of the final rehearsals.” Jane M. says “My tip is to hire a pro who can capture the whole picture…close ups, full shots, sets, backstage, etc.” Look around youClaire B. says “If your school has a photography course, as a teacher for a star student.” Cassandra G. says “Get alumni photographers.” Heather G. says “We have digital photography programs on campus with phenomenal instructors that take our shots.” Debb A. says “I’ve always had a former student or a colleague that is a great photographer take mine. The photographer comes to final dress to snap pics, and after the rehearsal we’ll hit various scenes to be sure there are good stills with great lighting.” Know the EquipmentJason P. says “Find someone with a good camera who knows how to use it. And make sure they shoot an entire rehearsal after they have seen an entire rehearsal.” Kelly D. shared the challenge of “finding cameras (and especially camcorders) that handle the unique lighting situations of live theatre.” Kerry H. says “Taking action shots in a variety of different lighting is definitely different than shooting portraits or weddings. Make sure you hire someone with experience in this area.” Final TipsAnne D. says “Take them during dress rehearsals when you get amongst the action. Also, focus on individual members of the chorus – future stars are found in those photos.” Rory M. says “Keep moving. And unlike making a video recording spend most of your time dead close to the actors.” (Obviously this is only possible at a dress rehearsal.) Kerry H. says “Taking action shots in a variety of different lighting is definitely different than shooting portraits or weddings. Make sure you hire someone with experience in this area.” And don’t forget….Ron D. says “Ask yourself what you intend to do with the results. Be clear on your intent before you do anything! And tell the parents, so they are not blindsided. Second, be sure that you have permission to take pictures or video of every person. Third, if you use a professional, be clear about who owns the photos. Get it in writing. Lastly, if you intend to video, be double sure that you have the rights from the rights holder to do so. If you don’t, you could open your company, your school and yourself to litigation. Doing your due diligence is part of your job!” Identify the most active moments, the tricky lighting moments, the most colourful moments and so on. That way when you have a conversation with a photographer you’re ahead of the game. Join the conversation on our Facebook Page and add your own advice to our list!

School’s back in session and it’s time to get your students excited about the play and focused on the process. Easier said than done? Not with the right planning and resources in place. We’ve tried to streamline the process by rounding up some of our best tips and guides to help get you started – from choosing the right play to the casting process, rehearsals and kicking off the production process. Choosing a Play:What Play Do I Do Now? Overwhelmed by the many play choices available to you or have specific criteria you’re looking for? We can help make your search a success! 5 Things to Consider When Selecting a Play for Production Mounting a school production is a wonderful learning opportunity for students and staff alike. It’s also a big challenge. Before auditions are scheduled and sets start to take shape, here are five things to consider when selecting the show that your school will produce. The School Play Shopping List Before you start looking through mountains of scripts, check out our shopping list of ingredients and make your search for the ultimate production piece a recipe for success. Auditions:The Ultimate Auditions Guide: Teacher Edition These seven sections take you through the audition process and provide suggestions for some common issues and conerns. Auditions don’t have to be nerve wracking experiences! How Do You Cast School Plays? In our travels to various conferences we’ve heard of a lot of different ways to cast school plays. Here are a few of the casting techniques we have encountered: Rehearsals:10 Questions to Ask During Rehearsal Questions are important in the theatre. They’re more important than answers. Here are ten of the most memorable questions we’ve been given in rehearsal. Getting Excited: How to Get Buy-in At Your First Rehearsal As drama educators, it’s your responsibility to get your students to “buy into” the show–to agree with and accept the show. Think of it in terms of selling your show to your students. Let them know the show’s “selling features.” Demonstrate what’s in it for them. Here are five suggestions to help get students enthused about your show from the get-go. Production Process:Approaching Your Script: What Directors Need to Think About Before Beginning the Production Process Here’s a jumping off point for approaching your script, inspired by the ever-useful “5 W’s” – who, what, where, when and why. How to Solve Common Beginning Actors Mistakes Beginning actors make mistakes. Mostly it’s because, well, they’re beginners! I prefer thinking of them is missteps rather than mistakes – they are things the beginning actor hasn’t considered. And it’s always a great time to change that! Warm-up Round Table: Warm Ups for Different Types of Plays Whether you’re rehearsing Shakespeare or devising an original work, there’s a warm-up just for you. Producing a Show: How a Great Process Will Lead to a Great Product The experience of working on a show is a multifaceted experience, but it can really be broken down into two main parts: the product and the process.

We asked drama teachers: How do you address scheduling conflicts? Between sports and students’ activities, how do you ensure that your rehearsals are attended and your students are prepared? Let’s hear from teachers on the front lines. Schedule, Schedule, and more Schedule.Kathleen S. says, "I give all rehearsal dates and times prior to auditions and they turn in a conflict sheet at auditions. Then, I build the actual schedule around the conflicts in order to minimize the number of missing students." Tatiana B. says, “I put our rehearsal schedule, especially tech and dress in the school calendar as early as possible!” Sarah P. says “Students submit availability upon auditioning based on a detailed calendar in their audition packet. I do my best to schedule them for their rehearsals around their other school-based and religious commitments.” Get commitment up front.Roxanne F. says, “Get learners and parents to sign that they agree to all rehearsals on an audition form.” Lisa T. says, "I give students a detailed schedule of dates and times in a contract that is to be signed by both parent and student.” Collaborate with other school groups.Josh H. says, "Work with the other clubs and sports to know when all major tournaments and events are scheduled before making a detailed rehearsal calendar. This pays off huge in the long run." Melanie F. says, “For students involved in other activities, I work with the other teacher sponsors as much as I can. Cooperation and clear expectations are so important.” Susan B. suggests “If you are able to use the same weeks every year, it also helps. If the whole faculty and coaches know for example, that the third week in May is your tech week, they can cooperate better.” Geoff D.M. says “We work with the local sports clubs. We try and get them onside early and avoid weekend rehearsals where possible.” Find creative solutions.Jody P. explains, “Maybe you can’t be in both the fall and the spring musical because you want to play tennis. I’m sorry, you’ll have to choose one - but I can still use you on my stage crew that I won’t need a lot of until tech week.” Roxanne F. says “Double casting also works well because the learner who misses can catch-up in their own time with the help of the other cast members.” Be tough when necessary.Chris E. says, “They know in advance what the schedule is. Can’t make it? See ya next audition.” Stephen P. says “I tell students that “if you are called then my expectation is they should be at rehearsal” If they miss I’ll say “you missed rehearsal, you better figure out what you missed”. Yes I try to sound mean or disappointed but in a way they know it’s not too serious. The closer to opening it becomes a bigger deal and they will know they are letting down their cast mates.”

Whether you’re an experienced drama educator or brand new to the world of theatre, it always helps to have a plan in place. We’ve rounded up some of our best resources to help ease the transition back to the classroom so you and your students can hit the ground running. First Week Resources:Drama Teachers – What’s Your Goal? It’s easy to get tossed into the whirlwind that is the beginning of the school year. It’s just as important to check in with your needs and goals for the upcoming year. You know what you want for your students, but what do you want for yourself? 10 First Week Activities for Drama Class The first week of drama class can be the toughest of the semester. The activities that work best tend to be games and exercises that are simple and let everyone get to know each other. Lesson Plans for Drama Teachers Looking for lesson plans? Look no further! We’ve compiled a big ole’ list of links plus a printable PDF: Top Ten Tips For Writing Awesome Lesson Plans! 10 Questions Every Teacher Needs to Ask You love to teach, right? Some simple check-ins and self-evaluation can help you hold on to that love for years to come! 3 Get-to-Know-You Games Many games may seem simple or silly, but they are a good way to gauge your students’ abilities and willingness to participate. We have three simple games that can be used as “get to know you games” or even warmups. 3 Tips to Learn Students’ Names Quickly It can be challenging to learn names in a drama classroom. But with a little preparation and some practice, learning names quickly will become easier and easier. Classroom Management:Top 10 Classroom Management Tips for Drama Teachers Whether you are a beginning teacher facing a classroom full of students for the first time, or a grizzled theatre veteran (with the creative battle scars to prove it!), here are our top ten classroom management tips! 5 Ways to Quiet Down a Noisy Drama Class (Without Yelling!) Drama class is fun. But you still need to have your students’ focus and quiet so you can teach amazing lessons without having to constantly raise your voice. Here are five different ways to request (not command!) quiet, without having to yell. 3 Ways to Engage A Large Drama Class With larger classes, it can be harder to get to know students individually and meet everyone’s needs. With a little bit of planning ahead, engaging your large drama class can be a smooth process. Here are three tips that can help. Ordered Chaos: Balancing Structure and Creative Activity in the Drama Classroom The Drama Classroom is a unique place. There must be a balance between creative activity and structure in the drama classroom. How do you set your drama classroom up for success? New Drama Teacher Toolkit Are you new to teaching drama? Whatever you’re going through, you are not alone. Find articles on classroom management, exercises, activities and podcasts where you can hear directly from other teachers.

Whether you’re an experienced drama teacher or brand-new to the field, every drama educator needs more – more resources, more exercises, more help, more time. We’re so excited to introduce a brand new resource that will make your life as a drama teacher easier! The Drama Classroom Companion is filled with helpful articles and hands-on exercises to help build the skills needed for theatrical performance. Written by Lindsay Price and Kerry Hishon, it also addresses real world skills like creative thinking, critical thinking, collaboration, and communication. Each section comes with handouts that you’ll be able to use right away in the classroom, too! And did we mention the BONUS Reflections and Rubric section? No other class encourages students to develop real world skills like the drama classroom – it’s so much more than putting on plays or “playing games.”

A guide to defining your strengths and weaknesses as a drama teacher. Picture yourself at a crossroads. Map in hand. Maybe a couple of tumbleweeds. A farmhouse in the distance, ragged scarecrow – use your imagination. You could go in any direction. The problem is you don’t know where you’re going. You don’t know the destination so how could you possibly choose? And there’s an even bigger problem: you don’t know how to read the map. Does the classroom ever feel like this for you? You struggle to get through each day without a plan. Or you’re overwhelmed with testing and assessments to even think about a plan. Or worse, you’ve been thrown into the drama classroom without any map reading skills with no time to learn them. How can you even think about creating a plan when you barely know the basics? And when you’re in the middle of that struggle, the only thing you can think about is how you want to do better. You want to know more. You want to be able to offer a well-rounded education to your students. They’re your kids. But every Professional Development opportunity in your area is irrelevant to drama or filled with assessment paperwork. In order to do the best for your kids, here are three important questions: • What do you know? • What do you need to know? • How do you get what you need to know? How do you answer these questions? You need a Professional Development Roadmap. Read on to learn more. As we go, there will be actions to take and a lot of questions to answer. We’ve put together a Professional Development Roadmap in PDF format that you can download at the end of the post. There are two types of people – those who will read this post and think about it, and those who will download the roadmap and do the work. I promise you that the ones who dig in and do the work will have far more success. What do you know?This question addresses your strengths. Do this in two stages: Brainstorm and List. Brainstorm: Give yourself two minutes and a clean sheet of paper. Your job is to automatic write every strength you have on the paper without judgement or censorship. Write everything down, big and small. Nothing is irrelevant. Don’t deny a strength because you don’t think it fits the classroom. Write them all down. And even further, don’t stop writing during your two minutes. The brain is a funny tool – sometimes it thinks best when it’s not forced to think. So just keep writing (even if you have to write I am stuck over and over) and you’ll be amazed at what your brain gives you. Do this exercise three times in a row so no strength is left out. Once you have your three brainstorm sessions in front of you, go through them with a highlighter. Highlight every strength you wrote. List: Once you have your highlighted brainstorm, you need something a little more tangible. Look through your pages and list ten strengths from most important to least important. ( Our Professional Development Roadmap has a fill-in Strengths List). And don’t say you don’t have 10 strengths! You are a teacher. You made it to the classroom. You have something to offer so acknowledge it and write it down. This is your known list. This is what you know. What do you need to know?Many drama teachers come into the drama classroom with one speciality. They did tech in school. They’re actors. They sing. But in order to teach students fully, the drama teacher has to know something about a lot of different subjects. It’s not just acting – there’s projection, and movement, and different styles of acting. Then there’s theatre history. Then playwriting. And don’t forget stage management! The list goes on and on. The best drama teachers aren’t specialists, they are generalists. They are the GP’s of the theatre world. So how do you become a generalist?First off make a list of all the different areas that encompass theatre. Don’t worry about whether you know anything or not just yet, just make a list: Theatre history, set design, improvisation, projection, directing, mask, mime, movement, playwriting and so on. (our PDF has this done for you!) Next, beside each item on your list rank your knowledge: • N = Not-confident. I don’t know enough to confidently teach it yet. • C = Confident. I know enough to teach a short unit on this topic. • E = Expert. I know enough to teach a multi-week unit on this topic. Don’t judge your knowledge. This has nothing to do with whether you’re a good teacher or not. You are simply gathering data. You’re gathering information that you can act on. Write down an N, C, or E beside each item. When you look at your completed list, it’s time to assess. Take two minutes and automatic write your reaction. Does it overwhelm you? Scare you? Does it inspire you? Does it seem impossible? Does it seem doable? Write for two minutes without stopping to get your reaction out of your brain and on paper. This is especially helpful if the list seems too big to take on. And then address your list. Don’t just leave it in a drawer. Address the areas where you marked down “N.” Write those out separately in their own list. If your “N” list is long, then start with ten. Choose the Top Ten items that you want to add to your toolkit as a drama teacher. Now that you know what you need to know, it’s time to figure out how to deal with it. How do you learn what you need to know?You now have a list of strengths and have identified areas to work on. Don’t let this list scare you. Be systematic in dealing with it. Take one item at a time and repeat the following process: Let’s say that one of the items on your list is mask. You know nothing about mask. You’ve heard other drama teachers talk about it, maybe you’ve seen it in a show. You know your students would benefit greatly if they could communicate physically instead of verbally, but you don’t know where to start. Take these steps to get what you need to know.1. Define what scares you: What stops you from learning to teach mask? What scares you and why? Get your reservations out of your brain and on to the page. 2. Identify why learning mask is important: What are your students going to learn through mask? How is mask an important skill? The more you identify the student outcomes, the easier it will be to specify what you need to learn to teach those outcomes. Instead of thinking Oh I need to teach them mask, focus on the fact that learning mask will enable students to determine how body language can communicate thoughts and ideas. Students will learn how to present a character non-verbally. Students will have a safe learning environment to express ideas visually. 3. Gather local information: What’s going on in your area? Are there any local workshops? Is there an opportunity for drama teacher Professional Development on mask? Don’t worry if there’s not. This is just one of the steps in this process. Do a little hunting. Let everyone in your network know that you’re looking for mask information. 4. List people who can help you locally: Brainstorm a list of people you could reach out to face-to-face. It could be another teacher in your district who might know something about mask. It could be a local community theatre. Call them up and offer to buy them lunch and pick their brains. You may be thinking I could never do that! I could never just call someone! This is about giving the best to your kids. If you have to do something out of your comfort zone to achieve that goal, you’re going to do it, right? The key to asking a stranger for help is to have an intro, an offer and a plan. • • The intro: When you reach out to someone, you have to put your best foot forward. Provide a context. Identify who you are and what you do. That way you’re not a stranger out of the blue. • The offer: If you’re asking someone for help, it’s important to give something back. Offer to buy them lunch or at the very least coffee. Do not expect information for free. By providing an offer, you’re showing that you respect this person’s time and knowledge. • The plan: You’ve got your meeting. You’re ready to learn. Never sit down and say tell me everything you know. That’s unfair. Thank this person for talking to you. Ask them how their year is going in their classroom, or in their rehearsals. And then come to your meeting with at least five specific questions about mask. Relate them to your student outcomes – I never know how to get my students to stop acting like themselves in their characters. Do you have any specific exercises? Or do you have any suggestions for where I can buy masks? 5. Look for a community: It may be that your local options are zero, nil, zilch. There’s no theatre in your area and you are the sole drama teacher in your district. If that’s the case you’re going to have to look farther afield. Thanks to the internet the world has become a much smaller place. There is no reason for you to struggle alone. Research drama teacher organizations. Is there something at the State or Provincial level? Is there a National organization? Is there a Facebook group? What you’re looking for is other like-minded people, a community. They may not be within driving distance, but they’re going to be a great help. For example, the Theatrefolk Facebook page has over 20,000 likes which means it’s filled with drama teachers who check in on a regular basis. When we post a question like: “I have large classes of middle-schoolers (27-32) and whenever we try to do monologues or scene work, I find I just can’t be in all places at once” the answers flow in. Find a community and start asking questions. 6. Look for online resources: The internet can be a gold mine. You don’t have to be limited to your local resources. You can reach out and make contact with a drama teacher across the country and you can gather resources from around the world. The internet can also be overwhelming. I typed “learning mask” into Google and it came back with 35 MILLION results. You don’t have time to sift through 35 million results! When you’re looking for resources you have to be specific. Identify keywords that link to your student outcomes and will narrow down your search. So instead of “learning mask” you really want mask exercises. And you don’t want posts on how to make masks. And you want the exercises to be specific to your grade level. When you look for online resources ask yourself these questions: Can I apply this resource to improving my knowledge of the topic? Do I understand how to teach this resource? Does this resource help with student outcomes? 7. Look for conferences and workshops: At this stage, don’t worry about logistics. Don’t put roadblocks in your way – I can’t pay for this, I don’t have time for this. We’ll get to those in a minute. You are simply gathering information. You need to learn about mask. Where can you learn about mask? What conferences are out there? That’s all you want to know at this stage. Where can you get Professional Development in this topic area? How do you use your PD Roadmap?Let’s talk about conferences. Conferences are a great place for Professional Development. If you have the opportunity to attend one you can learn from seasoned teachers or even professionals in a specific field. But conferences can also be a bit of a trap. I’ve been to many conferences where teachers seem to be at a loss for what workshops to take. They go to the ones their friends are going to so they won’t be alone, or they go because they know the instructor. And it’s clear these teachers aren’t getting the most out of their experience. That’s why you need a PD roadmap. You need to identify both your strengths and the areas that need work. Take this document to conferences and only sign up for workshops that are going to address your “needs work” areas. Better still, contact the workshop co-ordinator for a conference and request that they bring in somebody to offer workshops that will improve your knowledge base. You can also use a conference for networking. Sit down at a table of strangers at lunch and ask them what exercises they use in their classrooms. Make it known you’re looking for help with teaching mask. If someone makes a relevant comment in a workshop, pull them aside after a workshop and buy them a coffee. Step out of your comfort zone. It’s what’s best for your kids. RoadblocksBefore we wrap up, let’s talk about roadblocks. When you start addressing your “N” list a number of roadblocks instantly come to mind – cost, time and location being the biggest ones. These are not inconsequential. And thus it’s easy to dismiss doing the work: I don’t have time to go to that conference. Or My school board will never cover the cost of that workshop. Or Why should I learn how to run a lighting board? We don’t have one. Remember, you’re not trying to become a specialist in these areas. You want some knowledge that you can share. Because for every topic that you don’t pursue, you’ll have a student in your class who will benefit from it. So start brainstorming. Write down every idea – go big! Don’t self-censor or judge. Some things to consider: • If time is your issue, many colleges and universities offer / distance learning / summer programs. • If money is an issue, think about the long term benefits of investing in a workshop. What is the value of being able to give your students the education they need? • Consider online workshops. These can be done on your schedule, and you don’t have to take time away to get to the workshop. At Theatrefolk we offer the Drama Teacher Academy , a website that primarily offers online courses just for drama teachers. We know how busy you are! • Do some research on different sources of funding. There might not be anything specific to Drama PD. But what about technology funding? Or media funding? Or library funding? Any online course could be considered use of both technology and media. Does your district have technology funds? Media funds? Think outside the box. • Your administration expects you to partake in Professional Development. Will they pay for PD if the training is documented to align to standards and 21st Century skills? For anyone interested in our Drama Teacher Academy we have an Executive Summary just for school boards that outlines the courses, Common Core connections, and addresses both student and teacher outcomes. Contact us if you want a copy. You can become a well-rounded drama teacher.