Volume 1 Number 34
Hi Folks,
Kim's Drama Blog
Phew, I can honestly say I'm exhausted this week. But never mind, I'm off to see Marcel Marceau tomorrow night! Last saw him at the Perth Concert Hall about 20 years ago. I was totally entranced and would like to support him on what looks like his final tour. I guess he must be over 80 these days? Then next week I'm booked into see "'The Man with Five Children"... must be a change in the air if I can manage to find time for entertainment!
I suppose I should explain that I've just finished two units of coursework towards my M.Ed. Managed to secure credit for 4 units this semester, that's half the course out of the way. Currently looking to transfer into a thesis program for the remainder but my university is unable to confirm immediately, I've started making enquiries via Deakin and Murdoch as well... if anyone else would like to talk about this please let me know,... I can virtually guarantee completion of the thesis during first semester 2004!
Today has been a challenge! Started off with a bun fight at school over allocation of resources... as the subject most struggling for resources it seems ironic that I need to go into bat against the largest and most expansive faculty on campus over a tin shed! I'll keep you posted on the outcome. Had an interesting experience in the last period of the day as I challenged students about their complacency and willingness to set mediocrity as a benchmark. Class started with me reminding students that they were due to hand in folios at the end of the day... as half the class started stacking their folios on my desk (the half who have already secured a pass in the course), the other half (you know the half) griped and complained that they didn't know it was due... even after the rest of the class stating I'd mentioned it several times during the week, and me pointing out that the course calendar that was given to each student in Week One of Term One clearly shows this week as the final submission date for all work... somehow it is still my fault that they don't have the work ready... that prompted a somewhat heated and divisive debate... the upshot being that I am apparently supposed to go around and personally invite each student to submit the work... and they can't be expected to do things like read course outlines, adhere to deadlines or take responsibility for their own success... I guess I should tender my resignation since I am so remiss!!! And since there are concerns about graduation rates I guess I'm unlikely to get much support should I decide to stand my ground on the issue.
Who wouldn't want to teach....
Found this great quote this week... Who dares to teach must never cease to learn. -John Cotton Dana. I guess the learning comes in many forms!
LESSONS/ACTIVITIES
OK, the answer to date has been a resounding silence... ne'er a tinkle to be heard... no resounding tinkle, no flood of offers to contribute... so I'll put that horse to sleep.... KAPOW! One dead horse no longer to be flogged..
Was struggling to find something to engage my Educational Support class... a great bunch of kids but an often overwhelmingly diverse array of disabilities! I think this idea will work with any group... or maybe any group can work with this idea.
Anyway, I really didn't know what was going to work the other day... they weren't focussed, they did not seem enthusiastic about any games or activities... I had to think on the spot... this is what I came up with...
I started off by sitting them all down and explaining they were going to be detectives and had to solve a mystery.
This seemed to get their attention.. I continued...
So I said... You have just been called by a man who says his daughter is missing... you go around to the house to investigate and you discover...
- The girl is missing from her room
- The window is open
- There are remains of a note in the fireplace
- The mother does not seem concerned.
I then asked what else did they need to know...
They thought and started asking questions... I responded that I didn't have all the answers... we'd have to talk to some of the people involved... who wants to be the detective, who wants to be the dad... pretty soon we had an amazing role circle emerging with students swapping in and out of the roles of detective and various members of the family involved, friends and neighbours...
We stayed at this for over half an hour. A story began to emerge, as did some interesting characters and engaging relationships... monitoring and clarifying the process was essential, somehow I juggled it and we discovered...
Sara had decided to go off to the movies with her friend, Emma. They were supposed to meet Sara's boyfriend there. Emma, on the way to the movies, saw the boyfriend with another girl. When she tried to tell Sara an argument started and Sara ran off.
Sara's mother was quite upset when she got home late... another argument... Sara went off to her room... Her dad saw her when he said goodnight about 8pm.
Sometime during the night Sara vanished. The note retrieved from the fireplace was addressed to "Mum and Dad" and was in Sara's handwriting, little else could be deciphered.
The detectives continued their investigations which lead the through a maze of neighbours, and friends... eventually uncovering all the details above. Emma has been sneaking food during the day... it seems Sara has hidden away in a caravan in Emma's yard... Sara is still not found...
It was pure collaborative story-telling - and the teaching aide who spends all day with these kids tells me that it was very high order for them and she was surprised they could actually do it.
Today we have started to turn their story into a stage play... they are building and refining the characters and situations and everyone seems totally engaged... curiouser and curiouser...
I wonder if there is a lesson in there for me...
Relying more on what you are than what you know.....Dorothy Heathcote
RECOMMENDED WEBSITES
A document from the New Zealand Ministry of Education.
This 150 page book consists of drama lesson plans and ideas sheets for teachers. The outlines can be used as one-off sessions but can also build into schemes of work. The lessons are intended for students with moderate learning difficulties but would also work well with other special needs students, including those with disabilities, who might participate in sessions with a worker. They are targeted at Key Stage 3.
The book has been written with basic skills in mind, in particular the development of literacy skills, as well as basic drama skills. However it can be equally be used towards other aims: for example, to build group trust or self confidence, to teach self awareness, body awareness and self-expression.
PROFESSIONAL NEWS
Buzz Dance Theatre invites
PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHERS to a
DANCE AND MOVEMENT WORKSHOP and the
LAUNCH OF THE 2004 SCHOOLS PROGRAM
BEAT CAKE - Mix It Up! (Term 3)
Dance and movement workshop with Paige Gordon,
Artistic Director of Buzz Dance Theatre
BRING A COLLEAGUE!
An opportunity to build skills, network and gather ideas
No experience is necessary for participation
THERE IS NO COST
THURSDAY, 20 NOVEMBER, 2003
Workshop 1:00pm – 3:15pm
Launch 3:15pm – 4:00pm
At 4pm join us for drinks, finger food and an opportunity
to meet and talk with the team
STUDIO 3 (TOP FLOOR), KING ST ARTS CENTRE
RSVP by November 13 to Gabriella on 9226 2322 or
gabriella@buzzdance.com.auBuzz Dance Theatre invite you to a
DANCE AND MOVEMENT WORKSHOP and the
LAUNCH OF THE 2004 SCHOOLS PROGRAM
BEAT ROUTES - Travel the Highway (Term 1)
Dance and movement workshop with Paige Gordon,
Artistic Director of Buzz Dance Theatre
BRING A COLLEAGUE!
An opportunity to build skills, network and gather ideas
No experience is necessary for participation
THERE IS NO COST
WEDNESDAY, 26 NOVEMBER, 2003
Workshop 1:00pm – 3:15pm
Launch 3:15pm – 4:00pm
At 4pm join us for drinks, finger food and an opportunity
to meet and talk with the team
STUDIO 3 (TOP FLOOR), KING ST ARTS CENTRE
RSVP by November 17 to Gabriella on 9226 2322 or
gabriella@buzzdance.com.au
To be held at the Cojímar Pedagogical Convention Centre Havana, Cuba, from 27-30 June 2004, the conference will address a range of critically important themes relating to education today. Main speakers will include some of the world’s leading thinkers and in the field of education, as well as numerous paper, colloquium and workshop presentations by researchers and practitioners.
RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
Friedman's
Fables (with Booklet)Teaching by parable has an old and honourable tradition. Ed Friedman, beloved rabbi and noted family therapist, is a great modern master of the art. Friedman's Fables is a delight, of course. These stories are funny, but they are also profound, provocative, even shocking, as they present crucial truths of systemic thinking, vital lessons of family therapy and family life, and a slyly modern, hard-nosed re-evaluation of the wisdom of the ages. Friedman is using these stories to punctuate his lessons, lessons to therapists and to anyone else who expects to deal with people, lessons about human relationships, human suffering, and human integrity.
Creative
Training: Sociodrama and Team-Building
Communication
Magic
by L. Michael Hall
L. Michael Hall has revised and substantially
expanded his classic, The Secrets of Magic. On the face of it this book
is about how to communicate more effectively but it is much more than
that. In its explanation and development of the Meta-model, which lies
at the heart of communication excellence in NLP, Dr Hall demonstrates
how your life can be dramatically enriched by having complete control in
how you relate and interpret what you are communicating to others.In a
clear and logical manner the author examines: how language affects the
mind-body system; how language can perform magic-like feats in the
nervous and immune systems, and how the magic can bless, empower and
enable us to take charge of running our own brains.
Beginning
Drama 4-11
by Joe Winston, Miles Tandy
Updated and revised in the light of the National Literacy Strategy and
the new 2000 curriculum, this text provides an introduction for early
years and primary school teachers who are new to drama and for student
teachers who wish to specialize in the teaching of drama.
It offers step-by-step guidance to help teachers and children grow in
confidence in their use of drama and shows clearly how drama can
contribute to work in English, to learning across the curriculum and to
the broader cultural life of the school.
Teaching
Through Drama: Creative Approaches
eBOOKS - Can be downloaded immediately - A full listing of available eBooks.
Kim Flintoff
Copyright © September, 2004