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This coming school year will be, in a word, unprecedented. It doesn't matter if you are a 30 year veteran or a brand new college grad, teachers have never faced the kinds of challenges that await them when classes start in the fall: Will classes be in person? What will our curriculum look like? Are productions possible? How do we keep our students safe? How do we keep OURSELVES safe? We don't know what this new year will look like, but we know one thing - Teachers will figure it out! We are going to roll up our sleeves, put on our thinking caps, and tap into our unlimited creativity to come up with a plan for ourselves, our students and our programs. Set a reminder in your calendar because you don't want to miss this PLC!

Theatre is an art form designed to bring people together. But what do you do when you can’t teach your students face-to-face? Whether it is a family vacation, unexpected emergency or natural disaster, there will be times when you will need to teach your students from a distance. You will need to engage your students in Distance Learning. But distance learning comes with its own set of challenges: Do you have the right materials? Do you have the right technology? Do your students? Join us for a crash course discussion about the strategies and challenges associated with Distance Learning.

Playwriting is an easy to adapt activity for distance learning. But there are still some obstacles: how do you deal with writing insecurity? How do you handle peer feedback? How do you present work digitally? Playwright Lindsay Price will take you through exercises and a game plan for incorporating playwriting into your distance learning framework.

As many teachers take on a new and unexpected challenge of teaching remotely, we will take this PLC to check in, share tips and tricks, and offer support to each other.

Monologue writing is an activity that is easily adaptable for distance learning. It’s also something that students can do without technology. Join us for a walk through a "no internet necessary" monologue writing project with added video conferencing options.

As many teachers take on a new and unexpected challenge of teaching remotely, we will take this PLC to check in, share tips and tricks, and offer support to each other.

As we face the prospect of not seeing our students again for the rest of the year, it is time to start thinking about how to retool traditional lessons for distance learning classrooms. For this PLC we'll be talking to Steven Stack, author of the DTA course The Empathetic Classroom to answer the question: How do you adapt something that was made for classroom instruction, into something suitable for distance learning? Check in for our tips and ideas!

Right now teachers are being stretched thin. In this crisis they are expected to be counsellors, curriculum developers, IT specialists, cheerleaders and everything else their students need. Not to mention all the hats they wear at home for their own families. Teachers are taking care of everyone, but who is taking care of them! When you talk about caring for teachers, you need to start with self care. Because you can't take care of everyone else unless you first take care of yourself. So take a break, put on your favorite yoga pants, and join us for an energizing discussion on Self Care and Wellness.

The closing of schools forced a lot of teachers to move their productions online or to an alternative performance model. This shift to virtual performances challenged directors with a whole new set of questions: Does the show have to be live streamed? Can I capture the performance? Is there a way to design lights and sound online? What about costumes? What about radio plays? How do I edit my virtual performance? So many questions! That's why we have dedicated an entire PLC to the ins and outs of virtual performances. We will talk with teachers who have successfully navigated these uncharted waters and learn the tricks and tips that will make your online production shine!

Ready or not, the new school year started. And what a start! We were confronted with a mind-boggling array of unknowns and tackled them with a mix of trepidation and creative moxie. Because as drama teachers, that's what we do: We solve problems. And then we share our brilliant solutions with our fellow drama teachers because it takes a village. And we are Village DTA! We are here to help because when one of us succeeds, ALL of us succeed. So join the village for a start-of-year "check-in" where we will talk to drama teachers about the struggles and solutions they have faced so far.

Mid-September and the school year start has been like no other. Whether you're teaching at a 'social distance', mask on, or you've got a hybrid situation, or you're fully remote, we are all in this together. Checking in with our panellists and fellow teachers is a great way to ground yourself, to get those affirmations that we're all doing the best we can, and to share the struggles with people who really 'get it'. Join us to check in on the school year so far.

Theatre teachers and their students are ready and eager to rehearse their fall shows. There's just one problem: How do you have a rehearsal when nobody is in the same room?? Holding a virtual rehearsal raises a lot of questions - Should the entire cast be called? Are warm ups really necessary? Can your stage manager work in virtual break- out rooms with small groups? And what time of day (or night) might work best for maximum involvement? It's a whole new world of rehearsal, so we will explore these and other pressing questions in this vital PLC.

This school year started with theatre teachers around the world determined to produce a show with their students - And after weeks of learning new performance platforms, and jumping through new copyright hoops, those shows are finally ready! But will anyone be watching? How do you market a production when both the performers AND audience are virtual? Can you actually expand your audience? And what about tickets?? We will tackle these, and many other questions when we dedicate this PLC to Marketing Your Virtual Performance.

The drama classroom is all about connection and engagement. How do you connect to students who do not feel comfortable turning on their cameras in a virtual classroom? Theatre Educator Karen Loftus has been working with no camera students and shares her insights.

As we reach the halfway point of what can arguably be called the most challenging school year ever, now would be a good time to take a little time to reassess the situation and recharge our batteries. We have expended a lot of mental and physical energy since the start of school, and if we have any hopes of crossing the finish line with our students we are going to need to make sure we have something in the tank. That's why this PLC is going to focus on Self Care. Join us to talk about ways to refocus and refuel before starting the second half of the year. Remember: In order to help someone else you have to start by helping yourself!

Checklist for teaching in the digital era: Technology Training - Check! Lesson Planning - Check! Classroom Management - Ummm...? Of all the teaching fundamentals that need reassessment in the digital era, classroom management might be the hardest to get your head around. Do you have to follow school rules when no one is at school? How do you discipline students who are sitting at home? Can you have classroom management without an actual classroom?? Join us for a discussion of how to manage your virtual classroom in the real world.

Now more than ever, theatre are teachers looking for ways to expand their history curriculum to include BIPOC issues and cultural awareness. Many theatre teachers are looking to include more diverse history materials to enrich discussions with their students. That's why we want to invite you to a PLC where we explore content and share ideas that will help you bring Black History into your theatre classroom. Join us for this insightful and exciting conversation!

We are halfway through the spring semester with the starting gun a distant memory and the finish line not yet in sight. But the marathon goes on. What better time to check in on each other and see how we all are holding up! Join us for this PLC check-in to get the fresh ideas, collegial commiseration and positive feedback that just might get you to the end of the race.

As we approach the end of another difficult year, we face one last hurdle before we wrap up our classes with a little bow: Assessment! Assessment in the Drama classroom can be hard enough, but assessment in a VIRTUAL Drama classroom can present some real challenges. How do we fairly assess students who we may never have seen in person? Or started virtually and then went hybrid? Or a "half and half" class? There has to be a way to give honest, useful, feedback to ALL of our students, isn't there? Join us for this PLC and find out...

One of the more valuable lessons that we learned during the pandemic was that "Less is More" when it comes to our curriculum. We found that even though we didn't cover as much material, we were able to cover that material in much greater depth. This led to students taking a deeper dive into materials that normally they might skim across. And that, in turn, led to a better understanding of materials. So...Wait, we cut down on our curriculum and increased learning? How did that happen?! Join us in this PLC where we will discuss a "Less is More" approach to your curriculum and find out!