Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
Spotlight on a regional teacher
Amy Gill – The joy-fueled teacher
2
President’s welcomeWelcome to our very first Drama NSW e-magazine! The Committee are thrilled to launch this fantastic e-publication and we hope that it is a useful resource for all members.
2016 is going to be another busy year. Our 2016 State Conference: Create.Innovate.Connect. is scheduled for Friday 6 and Saturday 7 May 2016 at The King’s School, Parramatta. This is one huge conference you won’t want to miss! For the full program and registration details, visits www.dramansw.org.au.
Our Annual General Meeting is fast approaching. This is a meeting that all members are welcome to attend as we report back on 2015 and elect our new 2016/2017 Committee. The meeting will be held at 5:30pm on Tuesday 5th April 2016 at the Ruth Cracknell Room, Level 2, Roslyn Packer Theatre, STC 22 Hickson Rd. Walsh Bay. If you would like to attend, please send an RSVP via [email protected]. As a member of Drama NSW you are also welcome to nominate to join the management committee. If you are interested, please email me at [email protected].
Looking forward to seeing you many of you at the AGM or at the state conference!
John Nicholas SaundersPresident
From the Vice PresidentIn 2015 Drama NSW experienced a make-over! A bright new logo, a new large committee and a big, game changing conference at NIDA! We want to provide more for our members which is why we have created the new Drama NSW e-magazine.
This magazine is by teachers for teachers and aims to celebrate your creativity and hard work as Drama teachers. The e-magazine hopes to provide practical, ‘pick-up and go’ activities and ideas for the classroom. The e-magazine will showcase teachers, their students and their work from around the state through regular sections focusing on innovative classroom pedagogy, regional teachers, Top 5’s and advertisements for upcoming professional development, resources and performances.
This e-magazine will be produced three times a year. If you would like to have your work, students, school productions or Top 5 featured drop me a line at [email protected] Equally, if you have something interesting and different you would like to contribute I would love to hear from you!
Happy reading!
Hannah Brown
Vice President Communications and Drama Australia Liaison Officer
3
Create. Innovate. Connect. Three words which capture the essence of what Drama NSW is aiming to achieve in our 2016 State Conference. Explore creative learning in primary and secondary Drama classrooms. Be innovative and inspire innovation in our classrooms, and connect to our peers, our students and our industry.
Cost – 2 Days: Member $449, Non Member $549, Student/concession $349
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.dramansw.org.au for further information
Online registration – Try Booking
2016
4
5 Top Ice -Breakers to start the yearIt is day one of class and your year nine Drama students enter for the first time. The confident kids burst in the door, “So excited for Drama! I actually studied at NIDA in my earlier years, and my agent says I have potential so, yeah, I have totally got this”. The misfits trail behind, “Mum, says drama can help with my social skills”; “They wouldn’t let me take two history subjects!”; “The career adviser said I wasn’t smart enough to do French”. Not everyone is present. You wait patiently as the cool kids swagger in, pencils and books completely absent, chewing slowly on their gum, “Yeah, took drama because I heard it’s a bludge.” They sit in separate corners in the room staring uncomfortably at each other. You smile, turn on the music as loud as you possibly can, and dance. One by one they begin raising their eyebrows, looking between each other in disbelief. You dance harder, wilder, more joyfully. They begin to smile, laugh and eventually move instinctively on the spot.
Breaking the ice in Drama is integral for the success of your classroom. Putting myself on the line and dancing without limitations is one way I have been known to start the year. The ice may not crumble all at once, but the defrosting process must begin in those opening moments. The Drama Classroom should be a warm, safe place, free from the social glaciers that divide the artic expanse beyond the walls of your room. Here are my top 5 ways to break the ice at the start of the year.
1. Name Balloon (Category: Names) – It is obvious, but to begin everyone needs to know each other names and this is one of my favourite ways to do it. It also requires focus, energy and quick thinking. For this game you will need a balloon (or two if you want to get tricky). Stand in a circle and one by one ask the students to say their names so that those that don’t know any can play. Throw the balloon up in the centre of the circle and call a students name. The student you call must run in and hit the balloon before it touches the ground, calling another students name and so on. Once they have the idea add extra challenges. See how many times they can hit it before it touches the ground, provide them with a record to break or add extra balloons. It is simple, but so much fun.
2. Perfect Pairs (Category: Getting to Know You): I recently played this game with 53 students on the basketball courts as a ‘getting to know’ you exercise for a new play I was rehearsing. It was wild to say the least! Students move around the space beginning by walking, but as the game progresses you can add new movement challenges such as running, jumping, sliding, rolling, flying etc. There is no talking at this point and students are reminded to focus on themselves and not on others. When you call pair, students must make a pair with the person closest to them. They introduce themselves and then they are given a challenge. The challenges begin simple, but become harder as the game progresses and could include but are not limited to – sharing their favourite movie, creating a secret handshake, having a thumb war, giving their partner a shoulder massage, pulling faces at each other, playing a game of tip with their partner, inventing a new style of dance, or having a wheelbarrow race. Set a time limit and stick to it. Before you begin moving through the space ask some of the pairs to share what they discovered or created. They will be laughing together in no time.
5
3. Table Drop (Category: Trust): Trust activities are an integral part of establishing a safe classroom environment. Trust activities I use include the Circle Lean, Body Lift, rising with arms linked together, knee sits, Blind Obstacle Course etc. Table drop is my favourite though as it really pushes them beyond their comfort zone. (Note: It is not for the weak of heart!) You need a sturdy table on a non-slip surface. Six students stand in two rows, close together, in front of the table facing each other. The shortest should be closest to the table. They cross their arms and form a monkey grip. Check all arms are secure. Another student stands on the table with their arms crossed in front of their chest and their hands on their shoulders. When the student is ready they drop face first into the waiting arms. The students then place their feet down gently on the ground. Ensure the pair furthest away will make contact with their upper chest rather than their neck. I am always the first to drop off the table… I have only been dropped once in 15 years! If you aren’t confident you could put crash mats in the fall zone. Not all students will take the drop, but all students should be involved in someway – either catching or counting to three.
4. Boal’s Columbian Hypnosis (Category: Freeing the Body): This is one of the earliest exercises I use in my classroom. Students enjoy this exercise because they are able to move in new ways, but are less self-conscious as a leader is guiding them. Students work in pairs, one is the hypnotiser, one the hypnotised. The hypnotiser holds their palm approximately a ruler length away from their partners face. The hypnotised must ensure that their face remains the same distance from the hypnotisers palm at all times. The hypnotiser slowly moves their palm guiding their partner around the space. Ask them to be as creative as possible using as much of the space as they can. Encourage them to hold their hand high, close to the ground, upside down, really pushing their partners body into new and interesting positions. You can find extensions of this activity in Augusto Boal’s Games for Actors and Non-Actors.
5. What Are You Doing? (Category: Creativity / Improvisation): Most drama teachers will be familiar with this exercise, but it is such a great starting point for kids that have never had to improvise before. Students begin in a circle. The centre of the circle is the performance space. One student begins miming an everyday activity in the centre of the circle (Eg. Baking a cake, mowing the lawn). Another student steps in and asks ‘What are you doing?’. The student in the centre answers the question with a completely different action such as ‘I’m doing the groceries’. The new student begins doing the action they were given and the original student returns to their place. This continues until all students have had a go. As the game progresses encourage students to step away from everyday activities and embrace their creativity (Eg. Painting an elephants toenails or wrestling crocodiles). This is simple enough that all students can participate without feeling too over-whelmed. It also introduces them to the concept of yielding. (Note: I am not sure of the original origin of this activity but it certainly one I have used for many years.)
Finally, I believe the key to breaking the ice in the drama classroom is the teacher. If you participate in these activities, whole-heartedly, joyfully and energetically the students will too and soon the temperature in the room will be soaring!
5 Top Ice-Breakers to start the year
6
Spotlight – regional teachersName: CJ (Catherine) Grootenboer
School: St Columba Anglican School, Port Macquarie NSW
Focus: Outline of Improvised Mask unit with Year 9 Drama – a 10 –11 week program
Aim: To allow students to realise their potential characterisation and physical performance skills through the use of a variety of masks. Give students a chance to understand the power of masks in performance and deal with a live audience in a site specific performance usually without using verbal dialogue– a baptism of fire! Also a way to encourage the school community to engage with the Drama Department and for the Drama students to demonstrate what they do to the rest of the school.
Outline:Week 1 & 2
• Spend a couple of lessons reviewing improvisation terms and playing improvisation games that encourage students to trust their instincts and react to offers given from fellow students. Focus particularly on those that are physical or help create character
• Complete a variety of whole class improvised activities where students are using the body to communicate character, environment and narrative. Eg. String walks, crossing the circle within a particular environment
• Focus on exercises that promote body control, stage awareness and explore Jacque Lecoq’s States of Tension and Archetypes
Week 3 –5
• Outline basics of using masks and complete a class where students ‘Plunge’ into a variety of masks without any preparation. Students reflect on their experience and the powerful effect of wearing and performing in a mask
• Explore Neutral masks through individual improvisation as a whole class and in pairs. Introduce the idea of working on impulse.
• Explore Beginner Character Masks through individual improvisation as a whole class, in pairs and in small groups
• Analyse professional masked performers performances for use of techniques like ‘clocking the audience’ and pacing action eg Familie FlÖz
7
Spotlight – regional teachers
Week 6–8
• Introduce and explore Basel Masks through individual, paired and small group exercises
• Have class introduced to Commedia Dell’arte masks through a ‘plunge’ exercise working only from the information student’s gain from looking at the mask and wearing it.
• Introduce students to Commedia Dell’arte stock characters and movements and complete paired and small group scenarios
Week 9–11
• Students move into small playbuilding groups and decide what masks they would like to use for use in their site specific performance
• Class walks through the school grounds and analyses the different areas that could be used for short masked performances
• As a class we decide how the audience will be moved from one site to the next and which performers will do this.
• Students work on their pieces and rehearse them in class and on site, rehearsing the scene changes and any mask or costume changes that need to be done
• Students perform their pieces during lunchtime to either primary or secondary students.
• Students complete an evaluation of what they learnt and how it was to perform as their masked characters
Although I always feel that I would love to spend more time on these different types of mask independently (making their own masks would be good too) this seems to be a great way to give beginning Drama students a taste of the magic of theatre and an overview of the main mask types without getting bored of any one type. It also gives them a chance to experience the thrill of interacting and performing to a live audience whilst being able to ‘hide’ behind a mask and not be in a formal space such as a theatre or classroom.
I find that my year 9 students come out of this unit feeling much more confident in themselves and bitten by the Drama bug ready for more performance!
I love teaching it.
8
How to tackle GP with your HSC Drama class: A contrast of two perspectives
Saturday 2 April, 9.00am – 5.00pm at the International Grammar School, 4–8 Kelly St. Ultimo
Workshop presenters: Eva Brown, Cape Byron Steiner School & Michael Griffiths, Knox Grammar School
Cost: Member $88, Non Member $207
Online registration: http://trybooking.com/KJNK
For further details go to – http://www.dramansw.org.au/
9
Teacher of the term –
Amy Gill, Mercy Catholic College, Chatswood
My name is Amy Gill and I am currently teaching at Mercy Catholic College, Chatswood. I have been an educator for the past 16 years in a variety of roles, but nothing compares to the joy I experience teaching drama. Rumi said, “When you do
things from your soul, you feel a river moving in you, a joy.” This is how I feel when I step into my drama classroom.
Joy is at the centre of my classroom practice and I want to share with other teachers how they can make it the centre of theirs. This is why I created my blog The Joy-Fueled Teacher. The resources and ideas presented on this site are varied, though many are drama specific. Each thought and idea presented stems from a deep desire to engage the whole student in the learning process and I find that often drama is the ultimate way to do this. I hope that each and every visitor to this site can take away one piece of joy for use in his or her classroom.
Posts about how awesome drama teachers are:
http://www.thejoyfueledteacher.com/the-joy-fueled-classroom/the-beautiful-qualities-of-drama-educators
http://www.thejoyfueledteacher.com/the-joy-fueled-classroom/the-beautiful-qualities-of-drama-educators
Process dramas for use in the primary school classroom:
http://www.thejoyfueledteacher.com/joy-fueled-resources/category/primary
Ideas for approaching HSC texts:
http://www.thejoyfueledteacher.com/joy-fueled-resources/becoming-fearless
http://www.thejoyfueledteacher.com/joy-fueled-resources/cracking-open-verbatim-theatre-texts
Amy Gill
www.thejoyfueledteacher.com
