Volume 1 Number 20
Hi Folks,
OK, Term 3 began this week in Western Australia. My senior students are only 10 weeks away from the practical component of their Tertiary Entrance exam for Drama. I'm looking forward to following the development of their original performances. As I am resuming post-grad study towards my M.Ed. there may be times where the content of this newsletter is limited to some basic suggestions and ideas. I hope you understand. I always appreciate anyone wishing to offer something for inclusion in this newsletter.
DIGITAL DRAMA SURVEY
The survey is now closed - over the next couple of months I will be examining the data and my analysis and conclusions will be made available via the Drama Education website.
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DIGITAL
DRAMA survey.
NOW CLOSED |
LESSON/ACTIVITY IDEA
One useful skill of any performer is the ability to concentrate and focus their attention to a task. Recently I have been working with many of my classes to establish a personal regime for focus and preparation. My older students now are expected to enter class and engage in a personal 5 minute warm-up routine before joining the class as a group. The exercise below is one of the activities I used in helping students understand how it feels to be focussed.
Energy. I run this session occasionally. It works not only with focus but also with energy:
Step One
Guide the students through a range of energised movements. I work with seven levels.
Step Two
Once you have explained the levels you should physically experience these levels ( and I do so with a "Simon Says" type activity that gets students actually moving at various levels levels - walking at Level 1, now skipping at Level 3 , now staring at Level 7, etc)
Step Three
Have students stand still in a relaxed neutral position. With feet roughly shoulder width apart and arms by their side. Ask students to close their eyes and imagine that just in front of their nose is a light. Ask them to adjust their energy level to Level Four and to notice the brightness of the light. Ask them then to diminish he intensity of the light as they reduce their state of alertness. Level One should be an almost imperceptible glow. Now step up through the levels making the light brighter at each level.
This is a process of calibration and draws on a body of knowledge from NLP referred to as "sub-modalities". Effectively students are mapping kinaesthetic and haptic responses to internal visual stimuli. They are also taking control of the ability to activate these responses at will. The exercise can also be done using an auditory calibration but most people find it difficult to attend to self-talk and external audio, whilst they seem to learn quite quickly to overlay visual aspects.
It should be possible to ask students to stand still and to vary the intensity of their light while you watch the physical shifts that occur.
Anyone who meditates will see that this activity is only a step or two away from a meditative process. It asks the actor to focus and concentrate. It is also useful when it comes to directing students as you can refer to the levels so they can make physical adjustments.
RECOMMENDED WEBSITES
- The mind–body connection - An introduction to the Alexander Technique.
- Warming up the face: A sequence that's good for your head - Warming up the facial muscles.
Has a readily accessible explanation of submodalities.
PROFESSIONAL NEWS
13th - 17th April 2004
University of Canterbury
This innovative, international Conference sets out to provide an important forum for drama educators, researchers and practitioners to come together and consider drama practice in relation to recent brain research and thinking for learning. This Conference will be of interest to not only drama educators but to all educators with an interest in actively developing a pedagogical and aesthetic understanding of drama.
KEYNOTES
Guy Claxton - Visiting Professor of Learning Science at the University of Bristol Graduate School of Education. UK's leading expert on "Learning to
Learn".
Mathilda Marie Joubert - Research Officer to the National Advisory Committee on Creative and Cultural Education (NACCCE).
Jonothan Neelands - Senior lecturer in Drama and Theatre Education in the Institute of Education at the University of Warwick.
John Norman - freelance consultant and specialist in new approaches to learning. Director of TLC Consultancy.
WORKSHOP LEADERS
Jude Ackroyd - Lecturer in the Performance Studies division of the School of Cultural Studies at University College of Northampton.
Patrice Baldwin - Adviser for the Promotion of the Arts In Schools (Norfolk LEA) and Visiting Fellow of the University of East Anglia.
Steve Bowkett - Writer of the"Story Maker Project" , educational consultant and qualified hypnotherapist.
Moyra Boland - Lecturer at University of Glasgow's Faculty of Education. Adviser for BBC Scotland's Board for Children's' Broadcasting.
David Booth - Professor at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto.
Pam Bowell - Principal Lecturer in Drama Education in the School of Education, Kingston University.
Bryan Heap - Staff Tutor in Drama, Philip Sherlock Centre for the Creative Arts, University of the West Indies, Mona, Kingston, Jamaica.
John Hucker - Director of "Simple Solutions for Education" and Advanced Skills Teacher for Drama.
Rob John - Scriptwriter and theatre director. Vice Principal (FE College)
John Norman - see above.
