Honors College at Scholar Commons
From Start to Strike: A Lesson Plan for the Whole Theatre Experience
Introduce young thespians to all aspects of the theater. A syllabus for a one-semester drama course provides lessons that take learners from the history of drama to the many facets of play production.
Curated OER
Scene Writing: Literacy and Playwriting
Drama is ever-present in our daily lives and eloquently depicted on stage. Middle schoolers practice writing scenes based on different prompts and frameworks, and then perform those creative scenes for their classmates. The activities...
PBS
Reading Adventure Pack: Robots
Two activities work with a fiction and nonfiction book about robots‚—Robot Dreams by Sara Varon and Robot by Roger Bridgman. Scholars read each story, then build a robot out of found objects, examine robot sensors, and search for...
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Off to Adventure!: Challenge Activities (Theme 1)
Off to Adventure! is the theme of an English language arts unit comprised of a variety of challenge activities. Scholars enhance skills and reinforce concepts by taking part in a grand book discussion, giving an oral report, and writing...
Curated OER
Whose Side Are You On?
Learners role play, persuading and staying neutral during arguments. In this viewpoint instructional activity, students examine the viewpoints of soldiers in the Spanish-American War and role play. After a discussion, some learners try...
Media Smarts
Scripting a Crime Drama
Develop novice script-writers. Small groups sift through a sample script, noting any script-writing conventions to share with the whole class. Using these conventions and plot structures, these groups compose a script for a 10-minute...
Curated OER
Fifties/Sixties Musical Playwriting Workshop
Students write a coherent script based on characterization, theme, conflict and emotional tone as found in the songs' lyrics and develop an understanding of the enjoyment that comes through discipline and hard work leading toward a...
PBS
Reading Adventure Pack: Green Eggs and Ham
A reading of Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss and a nonfiction book of your choice begins a reading adventure pack comprised of three hands-on activities. Following the reading, scholars craft a food mobile made of colorful fruit and...
Curated OER
The Lion, the Witch and The Wardrobe: Literature and Theater
Students read and discuss the literary elements of "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" by C.S. Lewis. They explore the elements of dramatic performance and create a TV news program based on life in Narnia. They videotape their...
Curated OER
In Search of Caesar's Ghost
Students collaborate in small groups to choose a scene that they write in place of a scene in Shakespeare's play "Julius Caesar". In this dramatic expression lesson, their scripts include roles, lines and stage directions. Students...
Curated OER
Weather Forecast
Students forecast the weather. In this weather activity, students are assigned a day to give the weather forecast. Students write a script and video their weather forecast.
Curated OER
Hollywood
Pupils listen to a play, or perhaps, take turns reading portions of it aloud. Afterward, they thoughtfully analyze and discuss the components of a well-written play. Next, a theme is assigned, and each person writes a play in conjunction...
Curated OER
Dramatizing Your Story
Students write a script, planning and recording improvisations based on personal experience and heritage, imagination, literature and history.
Curated OER
Creating an Original Opera
This may be a lot to ask of a high schooler, but then again, who knows? Pupils work in groups to explore, write, and then perform an original opera. They view versions of The Magic Flute and La Traviata, then compose a plot, characters,...
Curated OER
Giving Beyond Measure-The Diary of Anne Frank
Students read and analyze the play "The Diary of Anne Frank" based on the book of the same name. They identify philanthropic concepts and values in the play and discuss the ways in which specific characters actions affect the events....
Curated OER
Shakespeare 2000
Comparing the more modern film Ten Things I Hate About You to The Taming of the Shrew leads to an understanding of how Shakespearean plots can be applied to modern-day situations and characters. As a culminating activity, groups select a...
Curated OER
Using Visual Art to Create Scenes
High schoolers review scene structure and the elements beginning, middle and end. They view a piece of art to stimulate an idea for a improvised scene. Students work in small groups, create and then perform their scenes for the rest of...
Curated OER
Picture Word Book
Students create a book. In this vocabulary and word identification lesson plan, students make a book by gluing pictures on construction paper, then the teacher writes words in the book to label each picture.
Curated OER
Simple Machines
Have your class conduct research to learn all they can about simple machines. They use the web, take notes from a video, write a script, then make a film describing various simple machines found in real life. These videos are then...
Curated OER
Thornton Wilder's Our Town: The Reader as Writer
Students read a play and create their own play using Thornton Wilder's Our Townas a resource. In this play lesson, students analyze how theatrical elements contribute to a play's meanings and effects. Students recognize differences...
Curated OER
Costume And Make-Up Shakespeare Style
Students create original costumes and make-up for a puppet presentation of a scene from Shakespeare in this week long creative project. Performances of the Shakespeare scenes end this lesson geared towards state and national standards...
Curated OER
Exploring Pioneer America
Fourth graders research pioneers who had a strong influence on westward expansion. In this westward expansion lesson, 4th graders write an essay about four pioneers and an interview script about one. Students work in pairs to present...
Curated OER
Settling Nroth America: Improvisation and Playwriting
Students map the classroom by marking the movement of the first Americans' migration from Alaska down into North America. To improve their skills in map-reading and sense of direction, students identify physical features of the map and...
Curated OER
Creating Plays from Children's Stories
Students explain how individual elements (e.g., plot, theme, character, conflict, etc.) comprise the structure of a play. They write an original one-act play with developed characters, specific setting, conflict, and resolution.