Title of Unit s4

Teacher name:...... Class:...... Creating Drama and Intro to Shakespeare Year 8 English Unit Outline Unit duration Objective: Students are required to look at different aspects of performance and the ways in which 8 Weeks (Approx 20 lessons) performance can be used to convey different emotions, scene s and characters. Students will work in small groups, and Students are required to look at various examples of Shakespearean drama. It is anticipated that in doing so they will become familiar with his unique writing style and begin to understand the talent the playwright possessed. Exposure to devices such as the five act play scaffold, the features of Shakespearean comedies and tragedies, stock characters and soliloquies will enhance their understanding of the text and the context in which it was written. Ultimately students will come to the realisation that Shakespeare often wrote about ordinary people and that his plays remain a source of entertainment because of their ageless quality. Big ideas/key concepts Why does this learning matter? The key concepts I want students to learn about are: The learning matters because:  The different ways texts can be transformed. It is important to understand that the way we move, our expressions, and our tone of  The ways the human body, and movement can convey different voice impacts the ways that people react to us and understand our meaning. emotions. It is important to realise that words alone are not the only way of communicating.  Writing can be timeless when it deals with human nature (which doesn’t change) It is important to gain an understanding of the life and times of Shakespeare and the  Well chosen language can evoke all sorts of emotions in the factors which shaped his desire to write the plays he did. Students become familiar responder with the language used in such plays. Place in scope & sequence/Building the field Target outcomes 1 A student responds to and composes texts for understanding, This unit follows a study of film unit, which required students to look at interpretation, critical analysis and pleasure the concept of transformation from a written text into a visual text. 6 A student draws on experience, information and ideas to imaginatively Students also looked at the ways certain characters were transformed and interpretively respond to and compose texts as a result of the situations in which they have been placed. 9 A student demonstrates understanding that texts express views of their broadening world and their relationships within it 11 A student uses, reflects on and assesses individual and collaborative skills for learning. Assessment:  Construction of a performance based on two texts relating to bullying – 10% What the students need to know/ have done at the end of this unit: . Students should be able to work together as a team . Students should be able to work together to improvise a performance. . Students should be familiar with the different ways that movement and expression can be used to create certain emotions/ characters/ scenes. . Students should have an understanding of the Medieval England, the Globe theatre and the life and times of Shakespeare. . Students should be familiar with the different types of Shakespearian texts . Students need to be familiar with the features of the three different types of plays written by Shakespeare and be able to identify plays as comedy, history or tragedy when given a plot summary. Students Students Learning Experiences Variations/ Registrations Resources Quality learn about: learn to: Teaching Introduction to drama  Mind-map: What is Drama?  Small group work: Students to break into groups of 3-4 Quality Student participation Butchers students, and using butchers paper, write or illustrate answers Learning paper Environment 11.15 11.1, 11.8, to the following questions: 11.9  What is the purpose of drama?

 Where do we find drama?  How do we create drama? Significance  Code of Cooperation: As a class, create some rules of Background performance (what is acceptable/not acceptable when people knowledge are performing). Engagement  Board notes: Improvisation Improvisation is when action is created without using a written Students’ Self script. Television programs, such as “Thank God You’re Regulation Here!”, use improvisation as a way of creating a funny performance. Not only is improvisation an entertaining form of Social Support dramatic performance, but it is a valuable tool for exploring and developing drama work. Improvisation requires a High performer to think quickly and to be inventive and Expectations imaginative. It is an important element for building plays because it allows the performer to explore character and ideas through action. The Elements  Charades: Play a game of charades with the class, using of Drama movie titles, song titles, TV programs, etc. Explain to students Worksheet that charades is a good drama warm up that uses elements of improvisation.  The Elements of Drama (worksheet): Have students complete the mix and match activity. Once the worksheet has been completed, have students complete simple illustrations for Metalanguage each of the terms in their books. (optional) Warm up activities (clear a space in the room so students have room to move around)  Mirror activity (Focus activity): In pairs, one student is to move 1.17 1.8 (slowly at first) and the other student is to mirror their movements (this can also be completed as a three way mirror 11.15 11.1, 11.8, if there are an odd number of students). NO SPEAKING, just 11.9 movement for this activity.  “Show me” activity (focus activity): All students should stand in a space by themselves. Students should remain focused, and not look at what others are doing. Explain to the class that they are going to use their bodies to make numbers. Tell students to make the number 1, hold for 5 seconds. Allow another five seconds, then repeat the above with the numbers as follows: 2, 7, 9, 3, 8, 5, 6 and 4. Repeat this activity using letters as follows: A, C, K, P, O, S, X, Z, B, W, V and Z. Students Students Learning Experiences Variations/ Registrations Resources Quality learn about: learn to: Teaching  Cooperation and communication warm up: Get students to 1.17 1.8 pair up. Tell them they are not to speak to their partners, and together they are to create the following objects: A pair of 11.15 11.1, 11.8, chopsticks, Knife and fork, A cup and saucer, Egg on toast 11.9  Cooperation and communication warm up: Have students get into groups of 3-5 students to create the following objects: A vase of flowers, A cup of coffee, A garbage bin  Movement warm up: Advise students that you will be giving 1.17 1.8 them an instruction for how they are to move around the Engagement room. Have them start walking around the room in a large Students’ Self circle to start with. Instruct students to move as follows: 11.15 11.1, 11.8, Regulation 11.9 - Move as though you are made of jelly. - Move as though you are made of molten metal. Social Support - Move as though you are made of crystal. High - Move as though you are made of snow. Expectations - Move as though you are made of fire. - Move as though you are made of sloppy mud. - Move as though you are made of mist. - Move as though you are made of brittle twigs.  Movement warm up: Students are to begin by walking around the classroom. Teacher calls for students to ‘become’ certain animals (e.g. cat, dog, horse, sheep, crocodile, snake, eagle, mouse, elephant, giraffe) and students have to move and interact like that animal. Group work: Students read through: “Stagecraft - Making Drama: Engagement 1.17 1.8 Improv with given place and time” sheet. Have each group pick “Stagecraft - one of the places and times, and on a sheet of butchers paper Making Students’ Self Regulation 11.15 11.1, 11.8, students are to brainstorm how they would act out the scene they Drama: have picked. Students are to then plan (not write a script) a short Improv with 11.9 Social Support performance based on their time and place. given place and time” Rehearse: Students are to rehearse their scene sheet High Perform: Students are to perform their scene. Expectations Butchers paper Assessment Task: Students are to plan, rehearse, and perform their assessment task over 5-6 lessons, using the playbuilding skills they have learnt in previous lessons. 11.15 11.1, 11.8, The teacher may want to start each lesson with warm-up activities 11.9 that students are already familiar with to get the class ready to rehearse and perform. It is necessary for students to have several lessons in which to plan, rehearse, and finally, perform, as rehearsal is a vital aspect of any dramatic performance. Students Students LearningLearning Experiences Variations/Variations/ Registrations ResourcesResources QualityQuality learn about: learn to: Teaching Introduction and Interpretations of Shakespeare 6.8 6.5  Brainstorm: what do we know about Shakespeare? (Where was he from, play names, poetry, when did he write?). Students Background are to guess how many plays Shakespeare has written (37). knowledge  Board notes: Shakespeare  Although Shakespeare lived and worked in London, he came from a quiet market town called Stratford-upon-Avon. He went Engagement home regularly to see his wife and three children. Shakespeare lived in the late 1500s, early 1600s. His plays are now performed all over the world in hundreds of languages and he is known as one of the greatest writers of all time. He wrote plays about human nature and how people behave. Even though the language is difficult to understand, his plays are Background still relevant today. Shakespeare left school at 15 and started knowledge work. By 1592 he was writing plays in London. He died in 1616.  KWL Chart: As a class, students are to write what they know, what they want to know and what they have learnt about Shakespeare (to be updated at the end of each lesson) Shakespeare’s Time and his Plays 1.2, 1.4, 1.6  Comprehension: Students read through ‘An Interview with john Class set of Engagement Shakespeare and complete the questions in their books. sheets ‘An 6.8 6.5  Jigsaw activity – Students are divided into home groups of 3. interview with From their home groups students allocate one student to John Student self- regulation 11.5, 11.9 become the expert on the features of comedy, history and Shakespeare.’ tragedy. Students separate into expert groups and learn about Plot the features (making notes in their books), and then return to summaries of Substantive their home to teach them. Students use their knowledge to Shakespearian communication assist them in classifying a number of Shakespearian plays plays from plot summaries provided. Computers with internet access To be, or not to be… (Hamlet) 1.2, 1.4, 1.6  Review: Review the 3 different types of Shakespearian plays TV/ Video and how we can tell the difference. 6.2, 6.3  Reading: As a class, read through the plot synopsis from previous lesson. 9.3  Synthesis: Students are to choose one act and they must illustrate it in comic form in at least 6 frames  Viewing: Students to watch through The Simpson’s version of Hamlet.  Discussion: Who were the main characters? Who were they played by? What do we think this play is about? Did we like this version of the play? How does this demonstrate the universality of Shakespeare’s plays? Students Students Learning Experiences Variations/ Registrations Resources Quality learn about: learn to: Teaching Something wicked this way comes… (Macbeth) Deep  Plot Overview: Teacher to read through overview of Macbeth’s Macbeth Plot understanding 6.3 plot (which is also displayed on the SMARTBOARD). overview  Viewing: Students to view the 12 minute Macbeth as filmed by Background WCCHS Year 10 2007. SMARTBOARD knowledge  Background knowledge: Students are to work in pairs to compile Dr Who Engagement a list of all the witches they remember seeing in the media (e.g. 9.7, 9.11 9.1 9.6 episode on Buffy, Charmed, The Wizard of Oz, Tin Man, The Simpson’s…). For DVD each one they must answer the following questions – Student self- regulation - How is the witch represented in the story (is she good/ bad, ugly or beautiful, rich or poor, etc) Engagement - How is the witch important to the plot of the story? Higher Order - Does the witch feature as the main character? Thinking  Teacher to explain that witches were commonly featured in Explicit Shakespeare’s plays, and back in Medieval Europe, people SMARTBOARD believed in witches and often used to blame them for things such Quality Criteria as plagues, failed crops, stillborn babies etc. Dr Who  Viewing: Class to watch Dr Who episode set in Shakespearian episode on Narrative times. DVD  RAKE exercise: Students draw a RAKE chart in their books (see, hear, smell, taste, touch, feel, think). View the first 10 minutes of the episode of Dr Who again. Students to imagine they are 6.2 attending the theatre in Shakespearian times and fill in the RAKE (allow students 2 minutes for each heading, then move on). Record on the blackboard.  Empathy task: Students to write a diary entry pretending they are attending a play in Medieval Europe. They must include information from at least one of each of the headings in the RAKE table. Students Students Learning Experiences Variations/ Registrations Resources Quality learn about: learn to: Teaching I had rather hear a dog bark at a crow than a man swear he loves me (Much Ado About Nothing) 6.3  Viewing: Students to watch Clickview episode of Shakespearian Comedy (only the bits pertaining to Much Ado About Nothing) SMARTBOARD  Defining: As a class, students are to come up with a definition of – Clickview comedy from the video. Shakespearian  Discussion: What are the features of a Shakespearian comedy? Comedy What is the plot of Much Ado About Nothing specifically?  Board notes: Much Ado About Nothing This is a Shakespearian Comedy, which deals with two couples. Claudio and Hero are a young couple, about to be married. Just DVD Player before the wedding, Don John tricks Claudio into thinking that Hero Engagement has been unfaithful. Claudio leaves her at the altar and she is so DVD – BBC upset that she wants to kill herself. version of Connectednes Beatrice and Benedick are an older couple. Both of them say that Much Ado s they never want to get married. Benedick is the only man who about nothing believes that Hero has done nothing wrong. He and Beatrice help the Narrative truth to come out. In the end they get tricked into realising that they Class set of are in love, and get married. 6.6 ‘Much Ado  Viewing: Students to watch the BBC version of Much Ado About About Nothing AND/OR Students to watch modern day version of Much Ado Nothing’ About Nothing  Discussion: How do the themes in Much Ado About Nothing relate to our lives today? Close study of a play (Optional – if time permits) 6.3  Teacher is to select a Shakespearian Comedy (e.g Much Ado about Nothing, The Twelfth Night, A Midsummer Night’s Dream) that students will be using for the next 4-5 weeks to use for a close study.  As a class, begin reading excerpts from the selected play. Have students nominate characters to read. This should be a reading only; students should not be up and performing at this point. 1.9 Activities while reading  As the play is being read, have students create a summary of what 6.2 happens in each scene (teacher may scaffold this on the board). When reading the first scene, have students pay particular 6.3 attention to things like dialogue, stage directions, etc.  In pairs, small groups, or as a class, have students discuss each of the characters that have appeared in the play so far, and have them write a brief summary for each character, including details about the characters, traits, motivations, dialogue and actions.  As a class, pick something that has happened so far in the play that involves a conflict. Identify what the conflict is, the purpose of the conflict, what has caused it and the consequences this conflict may have on the development of the story.  Have students pick ONE of the characters from the play, and have them create a detailed drawing OR description of the character based on the information provided in the play so far. Students Students Learning Experiences Variations/ Registrations Resources Quality learn about: learn to: Teaching 1.9  Board notes: Monologues When we read fictional texts – for example, novels – the way that characters communicate with each other is through talking. This is known as dialogue. We also use this term when referring to the speech used in dramatic texts such as plays. However, in novels, we can often find out what the characters are thinking as the author tells us throughout the text. In plays, we can find this out by the actions and expressions of the character on stage, but it is difficult to really know what the character is thinking. In dramatic scripts, when a playwright wants to tell the audience what a character is thinking, they often use what is known as a MONOLOGUE. The word monologue, comes from the Greek word “monologos” which means “speaking alone”. It is when a single fictional speaker – usually a performance actor - gives an extended speech, either as if alone on stage or as if speaking to a fictional audience. The personality of the character and significant events in his/her life are revealed by the speech. This is also sometimes known as monodrama.  Mind-map: As a class, pick ONE character from the play, and create a mind map about what might be included in a monologue for this character. Individually, in pairs or as a class, have students start creating a monologue for that a character or another character from the play of their choice (½ to 1 page long) 1.9 Activities after reading the play  Discussion: What did you think about the play (did students 6.5 6.2 like/dislike aspects of it, and why?)  Have students complete the following questions about the play: 6.6 9.3 1. Who was favourite character? Why? 2. What was your favourite scene in the play? Why? 3. Do you think the play would be better if it was being performed on stage with actors, props and costumes, instead of reading it? How would this make a difference to your opinion of the play? 4. What message do you think the playwright is trying to convey through the characters and the play?  Create: Imagine this play is being performed in your area, and you have been asked to design a poster to encourage people to come and see the play. In your poster, you should include:  The name of the play  A sentence summing up what the play is about  A picture or illustration that is representative of the play  Who the play was written by  Critical response: Character analysis - Students are to compose an analysis of one of the characters in the play. Use the scaffold provided to give to students to assist them in completing this task. Evaluation of Unit Teacher Evaluation Comments/Variations How did the unit ‘rate’ in these areas ? Time allocated for topic Student understanding of content Opportunities for student reflection on learning Suitability of resources Variety of teaching strategies Integration of Quality Teaching strategies Integration of ICTs Literacy strategies used Numeracy strategies used

Date commenced:

Date completed:

Teacher’s signature:

Head Teacher’s signature: