Goals

These lesson plans satisfy the following national and Illinois State Standards for students in pre-K through grade 2.

Illinois State Standards

• 25. Know the language of the arts.
• 26. Through creating and performing, understand how works of art are produced.
• 27. Understand the role of the arts in civilizations past and present.

National Standards

1. Script writing by planning and recording improvisations based on personal experience and heritage, imagination, literature, and history
2. Acting by assuming roles and interacting in improvisations
3. Designing by visualizing and arranging environments for classroom dramatizations
4. Directing by planning classroom dramatizations
5. Researching by finding information to support classroom dramatizations
6. Comparing and connecting art forms by describing theater, dramatic media (such as film, television, and electronic media), and other art forms
7. Analyzing and explaining personal preferences and constructing meanings from classroom dramatizations and from theater, film, television, and electronic media productions
8. Understanding context by recognizing the role of theater, film, television, and electronic media in daily life

http://chicagoguide.cpsarts.org/theater/pk-2/scope-sequence

These lesson plans satisfy the following national and Illinois State Standards for students in grades 3 – 5.

Illinois State Standards

• 25. Know the language of the arts.
• 26. Through creating and performing, understand how works of art are produced.
• 27. Understand the role of the arts in civilizations past and present.

National Standards

1. Script writing by planning and recording improvisations based on personal experience and heritage, imagination, literature, and history
2. Acting by assuming roles and interacting in improvisations
3. Designing by visualizing and arranging environments for classroom dramatizations
4. Directing by planning classroom dramatizations
5. Researching by finding information to support classroom dramatizations
6. Comparing and connecting art forms by describing theater, dramatic media (such as film, television, and electronic media), and other art forms
7. Analyzing and explaining personal preferences and constructing meanings from classroom dramatizations and from theater, film, television, and electronic media productions
8. Understanding context by recognizing the role of theater, film, television, and electronic media in daily life

http://chicagoguide.cpsarts.org/theater/3-5/scope-sequence

Statues

The sheep in Kindur embrace many challenges on their journey. As a result, the performers must express a wide array of feelings with their bodies. By creating different statues, students will be able to see the physical transformation that needs to happen in order to convey different emotional qualities.

Time Frame: 15 minutes

Procedure

• Have everyone find his or her own space on the stage. We are going to create a frozen statue image based on certain words. (e.g., Exhausted, Excited, Confused, Frustrated) Say the word out loud and then count to three while the students make a frozen statue embodying that word.
• While they are frozen tap a few kids on the shoulder who have statues that look great!
• The ones that were tapped will stay frozen while the other students will be asked to comment on what we see in those nice statues.
• Are they making a fantastic facial expression? Is their whole body engaged? What do you think could be happening to them in this moment?
• Repeat the exercise with different words.

Pass the Sound and Motion

Now that the students have had a chance to create a frozen image, we can take it a step further and bring those physicalities to life. TPO’s production uses a style of highly physical storytelling that requires the performers to utilize their whole body. This exercise will allow students to create their own motion and sound to communicate an idea or feeling.

Time Frame: 10 minutes

Procedure

• Everyone stands in a circle.
• One person will start by creating a vocal sound and motion with their body.
• The person next to them will repeat that same sound and motion, and then next person will repeat that same sound and motion, and on, and on until it goes completely around the circle, back to the person who started it.
• The person who started that first sound and motion will do it one more time to finish off.
• The next person in the circle will create a completely new sound and motion that will get passed around the circle.

Variations

• Create a sound and motion that starts very small and as it makes its way around the circle it gets bigger and louder!
• Now do the opposite where it starts very big and becomes extremely small and quiet.
• Create a sound and motion now using the theme (e.g., “sounds you’d hear on a farm,” “sounds associated with happiness”)

Writing Exercise or Classroom Discussion

In Kindur, the sheep didn’t know what to expect as they set off on a new adventure. Sometimes it can be scary when you try something new. Write about a time when you were scared to do something. Why were you scared? Once you experienced doing that thing, how did you feel?

Writing Exercise or Classroom Discussion

The performances created by TPO are often referred to as “a painting that comes to life.” Listed below are series of images that have been created by famous artists.

1. Pablo Picasso: The Three Musicians
2. Rembrandt: The Night Watch
3. Grant Wood: American Gothic
4. Georges Seurat: A Sunday on La Grande Jatte

• As a group discuss what you see in the picture. (e.g., there is a flower, the dress is red.)
• Then as a group discuss what you infer about the picture. (e.g., the man is happy because he’s smiling; it’s an image of a celebration because people are dancing, dressed up, eating food, and playing music.)
• Write a story about what you think happened after this picture. If the picture could come to life what would be the next thing to occur.