Appendix H: Planning Your Program

• addresses all aspects of the art form: process, presentation, theatre skills, and performance
• promotes the exploration of drama both for its own sake and within integrated contexts

• How the Arts Mirror and Influence Society
• The Arts Within Cultures and Across Time
• Musical Theatre
• Design
• Filmmaking
• Arts in the Media

DRAMA
Exploration and Imagination Critical Analysis Expression and Trust	Context Social and Cultural Making Connections	Drama Skills Body and Voice Drama as Metaphor Elements and Structures Role Technique Making Connections Context Expression and Trust

DANCE
Presentation and Performance	Creation and Composition	Dance and Society	Elements of Movement

MUSIC
Thoughts, Images, and Feelings	Context Historical and Cultural	Structure Elements of Expression Elements of Melody Elements of Rhythm Form and the Principles of Design

VISUAL ARTS
Image-Development and Design Strategies Creating/Communication Perceiving/Responding	Context Creating/Communication Perceiving/Responding	Visual Elements and Principles of Art and Design Creating/Communication Perceiving/Responding	Materials, Techniques, and Processes Creating/Communication Perceiving/Responding

Organizing for Instruction

When planning a drama program and sequencing lessons, teachers may consider whether they have:

• addressed the prescribed learning outcomes
• set appropriate goals
• mapped out a sequence of lessons
• included opportunities for students to explore and express themselves through drama
• included opportunities for students to research ideas and topics
• included opportunities for both individual and group work
• included opportunities for students to reflect on their own work
• included opportunities for looking at and responding to dramas of others
• included a range of cultural content
• addressed a range of learning styles
• included activities and strategies relevant for both male and female students
• connected the lesson to things relevant to students and their communities
• made plans for assessing the extent to which students are achieving the learning outcomes

Learning Styles and Instructional Strategies

In order to meet the needs of the widest range of students, teachers are strongly encouraged to use a variety of instructional strategies when planning and implementing a drama program.

Types of instructional strategies and learning styles include:

• direct instruction (e.g., structured overview, lecture, demonstration, didactic questions)
• indirect instruction (e.g., problem solving, case studies, inquiry, concept mapping)
• independent learning (e.g., research, computer-aided instruction, homework, learning centres)
• experiential learning (e.g., field studies, experiments and exploring, games)
• interactive instruction (e.g., co-operative learning groups, debates, problem solving, interviewing, role play, improvisation)

Classroom Management

Drama is fun and informal, but there are often no textbooks or desks to help establish control in a drama classroom. Because the success of the class depends on establishing a relaxed but controlled atmosphere, it is best to develop a classroom routine as soon as possible. More specifically, drama teachers can establish a good working atmosphere by:

• making concentration a major topic in the early weeks of the course (the quiet intensity of students working on a concentration exercise helps create a business-like atmosphere)
• telling the purpose of each lesson and exercise (all students in the class should know why a particular game or exercise is being used and should be aware of the goals of the course)
• organizing a beginning ritual (e.g., students enter, put coats and books away, and sit in a circle)

Choosing partners should be done in a variety of ways so that students have opportunities to work with others outside their usual peer group. Two approaches are:

• Have students count off in fives; the teacher then announces, "All the ones meet here, twos in that corner," and so forth.
• Take as many long pieces of yarn as half the number of students in the class; the teacher holds all yarn pieces in the middle with the ends dangling; each student grabs an end and is paired with the student at the other end.

Responding to Dramatic Presentations

Developing studentsı skills as members of an audience and as discriminating observers is an important part of a drama program. Students should be encouraged to approach dramatic presentations thoughtfully and discriminatingly, withholding their judgments until they have enough information to respond in an informed manner. They should learn to go beyond their initial reactions in order to come to an understanding of what they have seen and how it was done. Students should also be given opportunities to express and support their personal responses. Class discussion can help students learn that the same dramatic presentation can mean different things to different people.

The seven-step process below is designed to help teachers guide their students to create more significance and derive greater enjoyment from their experiences as members of an audience for drama. The first encourages discussion before viewing, and the other six are undertaken following the performance.

• Preparation
  • The teacher provides students with contexts for viewing the particular dramatic presentation.

• First Impressions
  • Students share their initial responses; there are no wrong answers.

• Descriptions
  • Students objectively describe what they saw and heard.

• Analysis
  • Students continue to organize their thinking about how dramatic presentations are made.
  • Students consider how several different dramatic artists work together to produce a dramatic presentation and how the elements functioned within the work.
  • The teacher encourages the use of the language of dramatic art.

• Interpretation
  • Students attempt to express what the dramatic presentation means to each of them, incorporating what they gleaned from the two preceding steps.
  • Students recognize that responses will be influenced by their own experiences and perceptions of the world.

• Gathering Background Information
  • Students learn as much as they can about the dramatic presentation and the writers or dramatic artists involved with it.

• Informed Judgment
  • Students reflect upon the three questions that guide dramatic criticism: What is each artist trying to do? How well has he or she done it? Was it worth doing?

Working with the Drama Community

Whether engaged in improvisation or script development, learning set plays, or responding to drama, studentsı opportunities for learning may be greatly enriched when actors or directors from the community are involved. Teachers are encouraged to arrange for field trips and classroom guests whenever possible. It is particularly useful to use experts when dealing with culture-specific dramas or dramatic traditions in order to avoid misrepresentation, offence, and misappropriation of culture.

When working with guest actors and directors, teachers should:

• arrange for a meeting to discuss appropriate learning outcomes and expectations and which areas of the curriculum are to be addressed (e.g., include the elements of movement and the historical, cultural, and societal contexts)
• prepare students for the experience (e.g., discuss expectations for process and etiquette, and produce useful background information)
• determine the needs of the guests (e.g., music, space, temperature)
• debrief with students and guests

• What might the particular student actors be reasonably able to accomplish at that grade level?
• What safety factors must be kept in mind?
• What warm-up and cool-down activities need to be incorporated?
• Is there a plan established for rehearsing the various parts of the drama?
• What are your criteria for success?

• professional drama studios, companies, and associations
• community, provincial, and national arts councils
• college and university fine arts departments
• school and public libraries
• drama teachersı associations
• cultural associations
• community and recreation centres
• arts periodicals and publications
• arts broadcasting (radio, television)
• continuing education programs
• cultural festivals
• Internet web sites for drama

When planning a drama program, consideration must be given to health and safety issues, sensitive content, and facilities and materials.

Creating a Safe Learning Environment

It is essential that teachers address the following questions prior to, during, and after an activity has taken place:

• Is the activity suitable to the studentıs gender, interest, confidence, mental and physical age, and physical condition?
• Has the instruction been sequenced progressively to ensure safety?
• Are the students being properly supervised?
• Have students been given specific instruction about how to use the facilities and their bodies appropriately?
• Are the facilities suitable and in good repair?

Students should:

• wear clothing and footwear appropriate for the activity
• follow established rules and routines
• select tasks that are within their ability
• move in the designed space with control and respect for others
• recognize hazards in the drama areas

Sensitive Content

The study of drama can involve classroom activities that raise matters about which some students or their parents may feel a degree of sensitivity or special concern (e.g., drama in religious or cultural contexts, social pressures on adolescents, human sexuality, standards of personal behaviour, assertive communication). The following are some suggested guidelines for dealing with such matters.

• Inform parents of the objectives of the curriculum before addressing any sensitive issues in the classroom, and provide opportunities for them to become involved.

• Be aware of district policy and procedures regarding instruction involving sensitive topics (e.g., policy for exempting students from participation in classroom activities).

• Be aware of provincial policy and legislation related to matters such as disclosure in cases of suspected child abuse.

• Obtain the support of the school administration before engaging in any potentially sensitive instruction.

• Inform an administrator or counsellor when a concern arises.

• Be aware of warning signals for eating disorders, suicide, and child abuse (e.g., excessive perfectionism, compulsive exercising, depression, very low or high body weight).

• Obtain appropriate in-service training or consult with those in the school who have relevant expertise (e.g., the teacher counsellor) before beginning instruction in a new, unfamiliar, or potentially sensitive area of study.

• Establish a classroom environment that is open to free inquiry and to various points of view.

• Avoid dealing with controversial issues until class members have had enough time together to become comfortable with each other and to have learned an appropriate process for addressing those issues.

• Promote critical thinking and open-mindedness, and refrain from taking sides, denigrating, or propagandizing one point of view.

• Talk to the students about the need for touching as part of various dramatic portrayals and of its use as an instructional technique that can help them in their drama learning.

• Demonstrate on your own body frequently so students will be aware that this is one of your teaching tools.

• Ask students for their permission before touching them.

• Touch briefly, using the back of the hand, the flattened palm, or the fingertips.

• Never touch a student correctively unless others are present and watching.

• Where possible, stop short of touching, and mime the action parallel to the studentıs body.

• Learn to read studentsı non-verbal cues. Let students know that they can talk to you privately if touching makes them uncomfortable.

The drama room should be a large open space on a single level, with good ventilation. The facility should be reasonably isolated so as not to disturb other classes. It should have the capability of being blacked out and lighted for dramatic work. A carpeted room is a distinct advantage for rehearsing in small groups.

Specifically, the drama studio should have secure lighting bars, a selection of lighting instruments, safety chains, gels and gel frames, and a lighting control system. In addition, the studio should be equipped with a CD and audiotape player, and secured speakers.

Secure storage for costumes, props, make-up, and scenery is essential. A well-lighted area equipped with mirrors and a sink is useful for make-up. The sink is also useful for mask making, puppet making, and in set painting.

Props, small boxes, risers, a bench, and several sizes of reinforced tables are handy items to have in the drama studio. Boxes, tables, and risers will be used in a wide variety of situations. Some flats and a door flat for entrances assist learning.

The drama teacher should have an area for storing resources. Bookshelves, filing cabinets, and a desk are necessary for an organized drama program.

Careers Related to Drama

The following list offers suggestions to help students and teachers research careers in drama. There are, of course, many other options.

Administrators

• Company management
• Tour management
• Marketing, publicity
• Fundraising, development
• Educational programming
• Financial administration
• Community arts council
• Festival organizers
• Artistıs representative or agent
• Producing, presenting
• Facility management (e.g., theatre, community centre, parks and recreation program)
• Front-of-house management
• Concessions, ushers
• Archivist
• Retail
• Security

• Playwright
• Composer
• Music editor
• Film music editor
• Orchestrator

• Consulting for various industries
• Freelance, independent
• Festivals, spectacles (e.g., Olympics, Canada Day)
• Artistic director assistant
• Casting
• Commercial
• Industrials
• Videos, film, and television
• Musical theatre

• Dinner theatre
• Stock or repertory theatre companies
• Summer theatre companies and festivals
• Night clubs
• School performances
• Independent or freelance
• Film, video, television
• Musical theatre
• Advertising
• Industrials
• Amusement parks and tourist attractions
• Professional storytelling

• Private studios
• Public or private school systems
• Colleges, universities
• Conservatories
• Recreational and community centres
• Company teaching, rehearsal director

• Lighting design
• Sound design
• Set design
• Costume design
• Stage management
• Technical direction
• Lighting and sound operation
• Carpentry
• Electrician
• Painting
• Wardrobe management
• Cutters and sewers
• Millinery
• Wig makers
• Shoemaker
• Film and video production and post production
• Film and video operation

• Kinesthesiologists
• Drama therapy

• Journals
• Newspapers
• Magazines
• Biographies
• Historical
• Academic
• Broadcast journalism
• Industrial
• Publicity, promotion
• Development
• Communications specialists

Table of Contents

Province of British Columbia
Ministry of Education
Standards Department İ 1995 Copyright

Maintained by: Fine Arts Coordinator - Drama

Revised: January 28, 1999

Ministry of Education Home Page