Hello, I just got a new job at a new school. I will teach 3 drama classes. Does anyone have experience with this elective? Thanks.
Fun stuff! I don't teach drama as an elective, but I sponsor the drama club at my school and I run the club like a class. Here are some links I've used for activities: http://www.childdrama.com/ http://www.highschooldrama.com/DramaOneNotesExercises/default.htm
I teach drama! We only have the one class though (I am the drama department). I am using a curriculum that was written for a half year course, even though we teach it for a full year. I am still tweaking the class, but it sort of goes like this: - The literature of theatre, spread over the year in historical order (Greek, Medieval, Shakespeare, Ibsen, Godot) with short units about characteristics of theatre at each time period - Acting - Improv and theater activities (get Viola Spolin's book, it's great), monologues (writing and performing), mock auditions, group pieces - Directing and other backstage stuff - group activities, stage pictures, lighting and costume choices, building a model set (they LOVE this) - Non-Western theatre - create a project that explores a non-Western form of theatre Let me know if you want more info on any of that. We do our production separately from the class, as I can't audition kids for the class, so I mostly focus on skills and informal performance opportunities, as well as history of theater.
That information helps a lot! Are there textbooks that your students use? I have been looking online at books all day! What book do YOU use?
I was lucky enough to get a new set of books this year. I had been teaching out of these horrible falling-apart books from 1964. I bought textbooks to use for the literature part of the course - I can't seem to put my hands on it at the moment, but it's an anthology that contained all of the plays I teach plus historical context etc. If they offer me money again next year I am going to get an acting book of some kind. Acting One is an excellent book - I would suggest you get one for yourself, if nothing else, lots of good ideas that you can use in your classes even if you don't follow the exact evolution of the book. Generally though, aside from the literature, the kids don't use texts. I guide them through exercises, projects and activities that I get from my curriculum or other sources. The important thing to think about is what do you want the end result to be? If you are putting on a show, then more focus should go to performance techniques and backstage stuff. If there's no "final show" then you can focus more on history, or whatever you want really.
