For the language arts class that I co-teach, we have been reading the play "A Christmas Carol" out loud with class members taking parts. In hearing some kids, it occurred to me that the students were pretty nervous reading parts and very hesitant about getting into character. I was thinking that before reading a dramatic piece, it may be useful to have students do some theater exercises, like throwing an invisible ball of energy to each other, doing voices to get them loosened up,etc. I feel like there are time constraints to doing this, but I feel that theater is something that is alive, and if we let them have some fun, we will help facilitate an enthusiasm for the art and craft of theater.
I'm curious if other people have used more acting type exercises when they read plays out loud first, and what that experience was like. Also, I am looking for some feedback on what people have found successful, especially with middle school and junior high.
When I taught Shakespeare two years ago, I did more work with how students read a play. We used a curriculum that focused on students reading the general story outside of class and then focused on acting out specific scenes of the play. Also, we tied a final assessment to their ability to act it out.
ReplyDeleteWith A Christmas Carol it is so hard because we are expecting them to read with emotion before they even know the plot of the story. That is challenging for students (and even me at times) to do. I wish it was a longer unit so we could actually focus on the play element of the story. As it stands, we are just reading it to get the point of the story. Oh, changes for next year.
I've done acting out of Greek Myths. That worked pretty well but I took volunteers. Some students understand how to get into character but even I struggle with that. Changing voices and physical behavior isn't an easy thing. So if they are willing to act, let them go with it. Or just let them read it. That type of expression isn't easy for a lot of people.
ReplyDeleteWhen students acted out conflicts (for the Health unit), I found that emotion came a lot easier for them because largely they acted as themselves and the acting was very relevant to their daily lives.