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In this lesson, we’ll look at how we use physical clues to help the audience infer a specific setting for a scene. Students will improvise a short, silent, pantomimed scene in small groups that shows a clear setting – using gestures and movements only.

In this lesson we’ll look at how verbal and nonverbal clues communicate relationship to an audience. Students will improvise a short scene in pairs that shows a clear relationship between two characters using clue words and body language/expressions.

The final project will allow students to demonstrate their improv skills in a two-person scene.

In this lesson, students will use a variety of methods they’ve learned so far during this unit to communicate meaning in a scene: setting, pantomime, relationship clues, objectives, stakes, and tactics. Students will complete a Rehearsal Checklist.

In this lesson, we’ll look at multiple perspectives that can lead to a conflict. Students will take an objectives quiz to demonstrate their understanding of objectives, conflict, and stakes. This could be graded as a daily work grade or an assessment, and will give you a snapshot of students’ current understanding.

In this lesson, we’ll look at multiple perspectives that can lead to a conflict. In pairs, students will improvise a short scene in which each character has an objective that conflicts with the other character’s objective.

In this lesson, we’ll look at multiple perspectives that can lead to a conflict and strategies employed to resolve it. Students will improvise a scene using 2+ tactics in partner groups. Some groups will perform for the class and receiving coaching and feedback on the Tactics Rubric.

In this lesson, students will use a variety of methods they’ve learned so far during this unit to communicate meaning in a scene: setting, pantomime, relationship clues, objectives, stakes, and tactics. Students will complete a Rehearsal Checklist.

In this lesson, students will use a variety of methods they’ve learned so far during this unit to communicate meaning in a scene: setting, pantomime, relationship clues, objectives, stakes, and tactics. Students will perform their final partner scene in front of the class for assessment. They will also complete an Audience Feedback Sheet in which they give their peers feedback on Rubric skills.

In this lesson, students will use a variety of methods they’ve learned so far during this unit to communicate meaning in a scene: setting, pantomime, relationship clues, objectives, stakes, and tactics. Students will complete a Rehearsal Checklist.

7 posters for the drama classroom, designed to support the objectives of the building improvised scenes unit.

Use this exercise in the middle of a monologue project, to get students to the heart of the monologue, using improvisation techniques.

Are you looking for a great vocal warm up that will improve their listening skills? Use rounds!

This is a curriculum overview for a scene study semester at the middle school level, designed specifically with 7th and 8th graders. The goal for each unit is to build off the knowledge and skills gained in the previous unit so students are gradually adding to their abilities as they progress through different types of scene performance assessments. Students begin with the acting basics they need to create a successful scene: ensemble skills, improvisation, projection, vocal clarity and expression, characterization, pantomime, objective and tactics. They will learn script structure, blocking, and stage directions and how to give, receive and apply feedback. They will explore aspects beyond acting such as directing and simple set design. Students will then continue to practice many of the same acting skills but in new contexts. While there will be some new acting skills added, such as memorization, use of levels, and character physicality, more focus will be placed on learning off-stage skills, such as directing, props, and using theater to identify and address issues in our society through a culminating Theatre of the Oppressed unit.

The two big questions we’re going to answer in this course are: What is feedback? And, What is useful feedback? Now, if you asked a hundred people to answer these two questions, you’ll likely get a hundred different answers, but at its core, all the answers will focus on giving notes that will improve the work, which, in this case, is our student’s plays. And, as a teacher, that’s what your hope is, right? To help your students improve as writers, one work at a time. We want our students to write, and to grow through their writing. If we want our students to get better, we need to get better. Understanding the definition of feedback, and understanding how to provide useful feedback is the key to all of us getting better. Join Nick Pappas in this course designed to give you the tools to help your student writers find their voice.

In this fifth lesson, students continue to practice classroom norms and continue to practice giving strong feedback. In the performance task, students will practice giving strong feedback by giving a specific suggestion for improvement.

Students continue their exploration of playwriting by learning about Aristotle’s Unities of time, place, and action. They apply the Unities in an improv.

This lesson includes a series of improv games to focus students on “the other” rather than “the self,” on listening, on sharing their energy with scene partners, and on collaboration in acting.

In this sixth lesson, students continue to practice classroom norms and continue to practice giving strong feedback. In the performance task, students will give peers strong feedback through using body language and vocal tone to encourage and show eagerness for peers to improve.

In this lesson, students will work in groups to create transitions in improvised tableaux and movement pieces. They will also participate in a “ren run” to practice improv blocking.