Brewer Elementary
Walls – Jen Weisphal
Learning Objective/Exit Outcomes:
- Students will be able to summarize a story read by the teacher.
- Students will be able to identify the theme of a story.
- Students will be able to compare and contrast characters, settings, or events.
- Students will be able to use communication skills to listen carefully to their peers.
- Students will be able to work together to create a cohesive sentence about subject matter.
- Students will be able to demonstrate effective verbal communication by projecting their voice and using diction when speaking.
- Students will be able to practice appropriate behavior as an audience member.
Integration Area/Subject:
ELA & Theatre
State Standards:
ELAGSE5RL1 Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.
ELAGSE5RL2 Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text, including how characters in a story or drama respond to challenges or how the speaker in a poem reflects upon a topic; summarize the text.
ELAGSE5RL3 Compare and contrast two or more characters, settings, or events in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., how characters interact).
TA5.PR.1 Act by communicating and sustaining roles in formal and informal environments.
- Use vocal elements (e.g. inflection, pitch, volume, articulation) to communicate thoughts, ideas, and emotions of a character.
- Use body and movement to communicate thoughts, ideas, and emotions of a character.
- Collaborate and perform with an ensemble to present theatre to an audience.
TA5.RE.1 Engage actively and appropriately as an audience member.
- Participate as an audience.
- Demonstrate appropriate theatre etiquette.
Materials/Playing Space:
Open space at the front of the classroom
Description:
The teacher picked a couple of volunteers to come up to the front of the class. The teacher had students use Three-Headed Expert to summarize the story “Ida B,” a story they listened to the teacher tell.
For Three-Headed Expert, three students make up an “expert” and each student gives one word to a sentence that is being created by the group. For example, :
Student 1: “The”
Student 2: “story”
Student 3: “started”
Student 1: “with”
Student 2: “Ida”
Student 3: “going”
Student 1: “to”
Student 2: “the”, etc…
The teacher asked the Three-Headed Expert to summarize the story of “Ida B.” The teacher chose a new group of three students to explain the main theme of the story, then a group to compare and contrast Ida B’s relationship with her mother at home and Mrs. W at school.
If the “expert” gets off track and is flailing for the correct information, the audience can raise their hands for the teacher to call on, giving the Three-Headed Expert a little extra support.
Notes:
It’s helpful to talk to the class about what an audience needs to do with respect to the performers. Students generally know from previous experience, but having a reminder before the game starts helps the audience start on the right foot with them.
Making sure students know that projection and diction are part of theatre performance will aid in their success when speaking in a large group. Not only do they need the other two players to hear their word, but the audience needs to be able to hear as well to raise their hands to help should things begin to go off course.