THE DAY THE CRAYONS QUIT READER’S THEATER 4-5

THE DAY THE CRAYONS QUIT READER’S THEATER

THE DAY THE CRAYONS QUIT READER’S THEATER

Learning Description

In this lesson students will work collaboratively to understand the characters of a story through a reader’s theatre performance. Students will embody one character using their voices and bodies to portray the character’s feelings throughout the story. Through the use of theatre techniques, students will gain a greater understanding of the setting, characters, conflict, resolution, and theme of the story.

 

Learning Targets

GRADE BAND: 4-5
CONTENT FOCUS: THEATRE & ELA
LESSON DOWNLOADS:

Download PDF of this Lesson

"I Can" Statements

“I Can…”

  • I can portray a character within the context of a story using my body and voice.

  • I can identify the setting, characters, conflict, resolution, and theme of a story.

  • I can create prps and costumes for my performance.

Essential Questions

  • How does using voice and body help us to understand a character?

  • What are the setting, characters, conflict, resolution, and theme of the story?

  • How do costumes and props enhance a performance?

 

Georgia Standards

Curriculum Standards

Grade 4: 

ELAGSE4RL2 Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details in the text; summarize the text.

 

ELAGSE4RL3 Describe in depth a character, setting, or event in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., a character's thoughts, words, or actions).

 

Grade 5: 

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).

Arts Standards

Grade 4: 

TA4.PR.1 Act by communicating and sustaining roles in formal and informal environments.

TA4.PR.1.a Use vocal elements (e.g. inflection, pitch, volume, articulation) to communicate a character’s thoughts, emotions, and actions.

TA4.PR.1.b Use body and movement to communicate a character’s thoughts and emotions.

TA4.PR.1.c Collaborate and perform with an ensemble to present theatre to an audience.

 

Grade 5: 

TA5.PR.1 Act by communicating and sustaining roles in formal and informal environments.

TA5.PR.1.a Use vocal elements (e.g. inflection, pitch, volume, articulation) to communicate thoughts, ideas, and emotions of a character.

TA5.PR.1.b Use body and movement to communicate thoughts, ideas, and emotions of a character.

TA5.PR.1.c Collaborate and perform with an ensemble to present theatre to an audience.

 

South Carolina Standards

Curriculum Standards

Grade 4: 

ELA.4.AOR.1.1 Explain how setting and conflict cause characters to change and how conflict(s) contributes to plot development. 

ELA.4.AOR.2.1 Identify and explain an explicit or implied theme and how it is developed by key details in a literary text. 

Grade 5: 

ELA.5.AOR.1.1 Analyze how setting, characters, and conflict impact plot development.

ELA.5.AOR.2.1 Explain the development of an explicit or implied theme over the course of a literary text.

Arts Standards

Anchor Standard 3: I can act in improvised scenes and written scripts.

T.P NL.3 I can use body and voice to communicate character traits and emotions in a guided drama experience.

 

Key Vocabulary

Content Vocabulary

  • Setting - Where and when a story takes place

  • Characters - A person, animal, or imaginary being that takes part in the events of the story
  • Conflict - A problem or struggle that the characters face. It drives the action and makes the story interesting.
  • Resolution - How the problem or conflict gets solved; where the story comes to an end, and the characters' challenges are resolved
  • Theme - The main message, idea, or lesson the author wants to share

Arts Vocabulary

  • Dialogue - A conversation between two or more persons

  • Character - An actor or actress in a specified role
  • Script - The written version of a play, movie, or other acted performance
  • Props - Items that actors use in a performance to depict real-life objects.  Props can also be used to help students brainstorm for their writing or character study.
  • Body - Actors use their body to become a character through body posture and movement. What your mind thinks, what your emotions feel, all of this is supposed to show up in your body.
  • Facial expression - Using your face to show emotion
  • Gesture - An expressive movement of the body or limbs
  • Voice - Actors use their voice to be heard by the audience clearly. Actors must also apply vocal choices such as pitch, tempo, and volume to the character they are dramatizing. 
  • Tone - The way your voice sounds when you speak. It shows how you feel, like being happy, sad, excited, or serious.

  • Tableau - A frozen picture representing a scene or moment in a story that occurs during a theatrical performance. When creating a tableau in theatre, the following principles should be applied:
    • Create body levels (low, mid, high); 
    • Use facial expressions to communicate thoughts and feelings;
    • Show relationships between the various characters in the setting; and
    • Make sure the audience can all see your face.
  • Statues - Frozen poses or shapes made by actors to represent a character, idea, or moment in a story

 

Materials

  • Class set of The Day the Crayons Quit Reader’s Theatre script
  • Cardboard, construction paper, tape, and any other materials needed to create costumes and props
  • Dice (at least two for the whole class)
  • List of six sample sentences printed or projected

 

Instructional Design

Opening/Activating Strategy

  • Engage students in a warm-up where they can practice speaking with expression and fluency.
    • Start by explaining that they'll practice saying sentences in different expressive ways. Share how emotions and tone make stories fun and engaging.
    • Assign one die to represent an emotion (e.g., 1 = happy, 2 = sad, 3 = surprised, etc.).
    • Assign another die to pick a sentence from the list.
    • A student rolls the dice to determine their sentence and emotion.
    • They say the sentence aloud, embodying the emotion as much as possible, using gestures, tone, and facial expressions.
    • The rest of the class guesses the emotion or gives positive feedback like, “You sounded so excited!”.
    • To make it collaborative, pair students to have mini conversations where they act out their sentences and emotions.

 

Work Session

  • Pass out the script to students. Read through the script once as a whole class. Teacher can decide how best to assign reading roles.
  • After the read through, have students discuss in small groups the characters and their emotions.
  • Assign each group one character to discuss in detail.
    • Students should identify and write down the character’s emotions and characteristics. 
    • Then, they should decide what type of voice the character would have and how the character would speak. 
    • Next, they should decide how their character would move.
    • Have students rehearse lines in unison in their groups using their voices and bodies to embody the characters.
    • Teacher should circulate the room to check student progress and understanding. 
  • Performance option 1:
    • Have students decide whether they would like to audition to perform their group’s character in a class performance. The teacher will select the cast list. 
  • Performance option 2:
    • Divide students into new groups so that one person from each character group is in the new group. 
    • Have students rehearse the script in their new group and then perform for the class. 
  • Performance option 3:
    • Have students perform the script as a whole class. When it is each character’s turn to speak, the group will speak and use their bodies to act out their character in unison from their desks.
  • Optional: Students can work together to create simple props and costumes for the performance.

 

Closing Reflection

  • Students can give the performers two glows and a grow. 
  • Discuss the conflict, resolution, and theme of the story as a class.
  • Students should respond to the following reflection prompts either verbally or in written format:
    • How did using your voice and body help you understand your character?
    • How would you describe your character? What were their feelings?

 

Assessments

Formative

  • The teacher will observe whether:
    • Students can identify characters’ emotions.
    • Students can use their voices and bodies to embody a character.
    • Students can read lines with fluency and expression throughout the rehearsal process.

 

Summative

CHECKLIST

  • Can students read their lines with fluency and expression in the final performance?
  • Can students use their bodies and voices to express their character’s emotions?
  • Can students identify the conflict, resolution, and theme of the story?

 

DIFFERENTIATION 

Accelerated: 

  • Have the class perform the script using Performance Option 2.
  • Have students create props and costumes for their performances.

Remedial: 

  • Have the class perform the script using Performance Option 3.
  • Use tableau and statues to support student comprehension of the script prior to engaging in character analysis.

 

*This integrated lesson provides differentiated ideas and activities for educators that are aligned to a sampling of standards. Standards referenced at the time of publishing may differ based on each state’s adoption of new standards.

Ideas contributed by: Michelle Rheaume and Katy Betts

Revised and copyright:  2025 @ ArtsNOW

 

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DOL DRAMA AND TEXT STRUCTURES 4-5

DRAMA AND TEXT STRUCTURES

DRAMA AND TEXT STRUCTURES

Learning Description

In this lesson students will use body movement, facial expression and voice to portray six different non-fiction text structures. In small groups, students will read a script that is based off of an informational text that demonstrates each of the different text structures. They will show the emotions and body movements of the characters in the scripts. After groups perform, the audience will choose which text structure they think was being demonstrated.

 

Learning Targets

GRADE BAND: 4-5
CONTENT FOCUS: ELA & DRAMA
LESSON DOWNLOADS:

Download PDF of this Lesson

"I Can" Statements

“I Can…”

  • I can demonstrate and explain how various non-fiction texts are organized.

  • I can use my body, face, and voice to portray a character.

Essential Questions

  • How can elements of drama be used to accurately display non-fiction text structures?

 

Georgia Standards

Curriculum Standards

Grade 4

ELAGSE4RI5 Describe the overall structure (e.g., chronology, comparison, cause/effect, problem/solution) of events, ideas, concepts, or information in a text or part of a text.

 

Grade 5

ELAGSE5RI5 Compare and contrast the overall structure (e.g., chronology, comparison, cause/effect, problem/solution) of events, ideas, concepts, or information in two or more texts.

Arts Standards

Grade 4

TA4.PR.1 Act by communicating and sustaining roles in formal and informal environments.

 

TA4.RE.1 Engage actively and appropriately as an audience member.

 

Grade 5

TA4.PR.1 Act by communicating and sustaining roles in formal and informal environments.

 

TA5.RE.1 Engage actively and appropriately as an audience member.

 

South Carolina Standards

Curriculum Standards

Grade 4

READING - INFORMATIONAL TEXT (RI)

Language, Craft, and Structure (LCS) 

Standard 8: Interpret and analyze the author’s use of words, phrases, text features, conventions, and structures, and how their relationships shape meaning and tone in print and multimedia texts. 

8.1 Determine how the author uses words and phrases to shape and clarify meaning.

8.2 Apply knowledge of text features to gain meaning; describe the relationship between these features and the text.

 

Grade 5

READING - INFORMATIONAL TEXT (RI)

Language, Craft, and Structure (LCS) 

Standard 8: Interpret and analyze the author’s use of words, phrases, text features, conventions, and structures, and how their relationships shape meaning and tone in print and multimedia texts. 

8.1 Analyze how the author uses words and phrases to shape and clarify meaning.

8.2 Apply knowledge of text features in multiple sources to gain meaning or solve a problem.

Arts Standards

Anchor Standard 3: I can act in improvised scenes and written scripts.

I can experiment with physical and vocal characterization choices in a simple theatrical work.

 

Anchor Standard 5: I can interpret and evaluate live or recorded dramatic performances as an active audience member.

Anchor Standard 8: I can relate theatre to other content areas, arts disciplines, and careers.

 

Key Vocabulary

Content Vocabulary

  • Non-fiction - A text that is factual

  • Text structure - The way information is organized and presented within a written text to achieve its purpose
  • Descriptive - A genre of writing that aims to provide detailed, vivid descriptions of real-life events, people, places, or things
  • Sequential - A type of nonfiction writing that presents information in a clear, logical order, often following a step-by-step sequence
  • Compare and contrast - A type of writing that aims to identify the similarities and differences between two things

 

  • Cause and effect - A type of nonfiction that explores the relationships between events or phenomena, focusing on how one or more causes lead to specific effects

  • Problem and solution - A type of nonfiction that identifies a specific problem and then explores one or more solutions to address it
  • Proposition and support - A type of nonfiction that presents a specific argument or claim (the proposition) and then provides evidence and reasoning to support it

Arts Vocabulary

  • Character - A person, animal, or other being portrayed by an actor in a play, musical, or other dramatic work

  • Face (expression) - Conveying emotions, intentions, and reactions, both to the audience and to other characters on stage
  • Pitch - The highness or lowness of a character's voice when speaking
  • Tempo - The speed or pace at which characters speak
  • Body - The physical presence and movements of actors on stage
  • Heavy body - A type of physical characterization and movement style where an actor adopts a sense of weight and solidity in their portrayal of a character
  • Light body - A type of physical characterization and movement style where an actor adopts a sense of lightness, buoyancy, and agility in their portrayal of a character
  • Movement - The physical actions and gestures performed by actors on stage
  • Dialogue - The spoken interactions between characters on stage

 

Materials

Text Structures Skit

 

Instructional Design

Opening/Activating Strategy

  • Say various emotion words. Ask students to show that emotion their movements, facial expressions and/or voice.
  • Introduce the concepts of body, face and voice in theatre. As a class, discuss why these elements of drama are important to creating a memorable character. 
  • Watch a clip of a movie or show that shows an example of acting that uses body, face and voice. Discuss how the actor(s) used these elements.

 

Work Session

  • Review the six different types of nonfiction text structures as a class. 
  • Match students with an acting partner.
    • Assign each pair characters and emotions (ex: two exhausted construction workers or two happy butterflies in a field).
    • Remind students use their body, face and/or voice to match their characters and their emotions.
    • Provide time for students to practice embodying these characters using the elements.
    • Allow time for a few pairs to perform for the class. If time permits, allow students to try to identify the characters and/or emotions being portrayed.
    • Facilitate a class discussion around how the partners used body, face and/or voice to portray their characters and emotions.
  • Tell students that they will be using body, face, and voice to demonstrate their understanding of text structures.
  • Arrange students into small groups of three to five. Give each group a short script that is based on a specific nonfiction text structure.
  • Students will act out their scenes using their body, face and voice to portray the specific characters from the script. Allow students time to practice their scenes.
    • Circulate the room and provide support as needed.
  • Allow groups to perform their scenes for the class.
    • Discuss proper audience participation prior to group performances. 
    • While groups are performing, students should complete the provided chart to mark which scenes demonstrate which text structures.

 

Closing Reflection

  • Facilitate a class discussion around how body, face and voice can be used as a tool of communication.
  • Discuss which body, face, and voice choices best match each text structure.

 

Assessments

Formative

Teachers will assess student understanding by observing how students are using the elements of drama, students’ responses to the review of the types of text structures, and students’ participation with their partners and their groups.

 

Summative

CHECKLIST: 

  • Students can demonstrate and explain how various non-fiction texts are organized.
  • Students can use body, face and voice to portray a character and demonstrate understanding of text structures.

 

DIFFERENTIATION 

Accelerated: 

  • Students can add stage directions to their performances.
  • Students can write their own script based on a nonfiction text structure.
  • Students have the option of memorizing their script.

Remedial: 

  • Students use peer support to help reading lines.
  • Reduce the content in the script.

 

*This integrated lesson provides differentiated ideas and activities for educators that are aligned to a sampling of standards. Standards referenced at the time of publishing may differ based on each state’s adoption of new standards.

Ideas contributed by: Tim Hoeckel

Revised and copyright:  Jan 2025 @ ArtsNOW

 

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PERFECTLY PRETTY PYSANKY EGGS K-1

PERFECTLY PRETTY PYSANKY EGGS

PERFECTLY PRETTY PYSANKY EGGS

Learning Description

Egg decorating in the Spring is a popular tradition in the United States and in many other parts of the world. In Ukraine, people use hot wax and colorful dyes to make beautiful and delicate decorations. In this lesson, students will learn how to mimic the Ukrainian Pysanka egg decorating process using wax and watercolors while demonstrating their understanding of the long letter/sound of U.

 

Learning Targets

GRADE BAND: K-1
CONTENT FOCUS: VISUAL ARTS & ELA
LESSON DOWNLOADS:

Download PDF of this Lesson

"I Can" Statements

“I Can…”

  • I can use wax sticks and watercolor paints to create a geometric and organic design that mimics the process of designing Ukrainian Pysanky Eggs.
  • I can identify lines, shapes, and colors in Pysanky designs.
  • I can mimic the Pysanka Egg decorating process by incorporating elements of art to create a unique design.
  • I can say and use the long letter U to incorporate into my Pysanka egg design.
  • I can identify words that use the long U sound.

Essential Questions

  • How can I use wax sticks and watercolor paints to create a geometric and organic design that mimics the process of designing Ukrainian Pysanky Eggs?
  • What is the difference between the long and short U sound?
  • How are line and shape used to create interesting designs?

 

Georgia Standards

Curriculum Standards

Kindergarten:

ELAGSEKRF3 Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills in decoding words.

  1. Demonstrate basic knowledge of long and short sounds for the given major vowels.

 

Grade 1:

ELAGSE1RF2 Demonstrate understanding of spoken words, syllables, and sounds (phonemes).

 

  1. Distinguish long from short vowel sounds in spoken single-syllable words.

Arts Standards

Kindergarten:

VAK.CR.2 Create works of art based on selected themes.

 

VAK.CR.3 Understand and apply media, techniques, and processes of two-dimensional art.

 

Grade 1: 

VA1.CR.2 Create works of art based on selected themes.

 

VA1.CR.3 Understand and apply media, techniques, and processes of two-dimensional art.

 

South Carolina Standards

Curriculum Standards

Kindergarten: 

READING - Literary Text

Principles of Reading

Standard 3: Know and apply grade-level phonics and word analysis skills when decoding words.

3.2 Associate long and short sounds of the five major vowels with their common spellings.

 

Grade 1:

READING - Literary Text

Principles of Reading

Standard 2: Demonstrate understanding of spoken words, syllables, and sounds.

2.1 Distinguish long from short vowel sounds in spoken single-syllable words

Arts Standards

Anchor Standard 1: I can use the elements and principles of art to create artwork.

Anchor Standard 2: I can use different materials, techniques, and processes to make art.

 

Key Vocabulary

Content Vocabulary

  • Tradition - The handing down of information, beliefs, and customs by word of mouth or by example from one generation to another without written instruction
  • Pysanka (Pysanky - plural) - A hand-decorated Ukrainian Easter egg with intricate designs

Arts Vocabulary

  • Color - A way that we describe an object based on the way that it reflects or absorbs light
  • Line - A straight, one-dimensional figure that connects two points
  • Shape - A two-dimensional object; can be geometric or organic
  • Space – Distances or areas around, between, and within components of an artwork

 

Materials

  • Long U handout (one for every two students)
  • Shapes and lines handout (one for every two students)
  • Egg template printed on white cardstock paper (one per student)
  • Watercolor paints/brushes
  • Wax sticks
  • Clear tape (if needed)
  • Black thin markers
  • Paper plates, cups of water, paper towels and a messy mat or butcher paper to cover work space

 

Instructional Design

Opening/Activating Strategy

  • Begin the lesson by reading the poem about the letter U (slide 2 of the PowerPoint).
    • Repeat and have students say the highlighted long U words in the poem.
  • Pass out the Long U handout–one copy for every two students.
    • Ask students to work with a partner to apply their knowledge of the long U by circling pictures that start with the long U sound.
  • Explain to students that they will use the long U letter knowledge and the elements of art, line, shape and color, to design and create a piece of art.

 

Work Session

SESSION 1 – Building Background 

  • Discuss the word “traditions” and ask students to share different traditions from their own cultures.
    • Discuss different traditions around the world and explain that they will be learning about a specific tradition in a country that starts with the long U letter.
  • Display images of locations around the world that start with the long U such as the Universe, United States, and Ukraine, (emphasize the long U sound when saying).
    • Tell students that one of the traditions in Ukraine is to create decorative eggs called Pysanky (“PIH-sahn-kih”); practice saying the word with students. Images of Pysanky can be found on slide 5 of the presentation
  • Using the presentation, display images of decorative Ukrainian eggs and ask the students to share what they notice about them.
    • Students may notice the colors, shapes and lines.
    • Ask students if it reminds them of any tradition that is practiced in the United States every Spring.
      • Allow students to share their egg-decorating traditions.
    • Explain to students that in Ukraine people use hot wax and different colored dyes to decorate eggs.
      • Discuss the tradition with students (slide 9).
  • Explain to students that they will be mimicking the process that the Ukrainian people use to create their own Pysanky Eggs using line, shape and color.
    • Introduce visual art vocabulary to students and draw several types of lines, shapes, and colors (primary, secondary). Use slides 10-11 for examples.

 

SESSION 2 – Application 

PREWORK – Print a large black outline of an egg onto a piece of 8 ½ x 11 pieces of white cardstock paper (see template in “materials” section).

 

  • Explain to students that they will create their own Pysanka Egg using wax sticks and watercolor paints. They will use line, shape and color in their designs.
  • Model the egg decorating process for students.
    • Using one wax stick at a time, place it inside the egg template so that each end of the wax stick is touching the edges. This will create the first organic shape. Discuss each shape so that students understand that the lines created by the wax sticks will create the shapes.
    • Tell students they will need to press down hard so the wax sticks will adhere to the paper. If needed, add a piece of clear tape to each end so that they will stay in place.
    • Repeat the process of pressing down wax sticks until all sticks are gone.
    • Discuss the created shapes as geometric and/or organic, and model how to create one or the other if not created.
    • Explain to students they will use the handouts to help them create different lines.
    • Once all wax sticks are secure, demonstrate how to use watercolor paints (either primary or secondary) to paint the different shapes. Tell students they can paint directly on the wax sticks, being sure to keep the wax sticks secured to the paper.
    • Show students how to start painting close to the wax lines first, and then fill in the space with the rest of the paint.
    • When the egg is complete, peel off the wax sticks to reveal a white line.
    • Allow the watercolor to dry.
    • Model the last step by selecting an object to draw from the prior application activity (circling long U images).
      • Using black marker, draw a picture of the object.
      • Repeat using another object until all shapes have different drawings of long U images. (If students struggle with drawing the images, they can create different “U” s in the shapes)

 

  • Distribute student materials:
    • Egg template
    • Watercolor paints/brush
    • Cup of water
    • Wax sticks (3-4)
    • Paper towels
    • Shapes and lines handout (one for every two students)

 

  • Explain to students that they will follow step-by-step directions so that they have time to carefully create their artwork.
  • Walk the students through the process one step at a time, pausing in between so that they have adequate time to complete each part of the process.

 

Closing Reflection

  • Allow volunteers to share their Pysanky Eggs with the class.
    • The students will explain what long U images they drew in each shape.
    • Students listening can repeat the long U word as the students share.

 

Assessments

Formative

Teachers will assess students’ understanding of the long U sound by assessing the application activity and reviewing anecdotal notes of different learning activities.

 

Summative

CHECKLIST

  • Students can identify lines, shapes, and colors in Pysanky designs.
  • Students can mimic the Pysanka Egg decorating process by incorporating elements of art to create a unique design.
  • Students can say and use the long letter U to incorporate into their Pysanky designs.
  • Students can identify words that use the long U sound.

 

DIFFERENTIATION 

Acceleration: 

  • Students can use more than three wax sticks to create more intricate designs on their Pysanky Eggs.
  • Students can write long U words for the images they drew on their Pysanka shapes.
  • Students can come up with their own words that have the long U sound.

Remediation:

  • Students can create a Pysanka using two wax sticks and one image of a long U sound/letter or just draw a long U in the egg shape.

*This integrated lesson provides differentiated ideas and activities for educators that are aligned to a sampling of standards. Standards referenced at the time of publishing may differ based on each state’s adoption of new standards.

Ideas contributed by: Kim Spivey

Revised and copyright:  June 2024 @ ArtsNOW

 

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Impersonating Picasso 2-3

IMPERSONATING PICASSO

IMPERSONATING PICASSO

Learning Description

In this lesson, students will explore the life and inspirations of the artist Pablo Picasso and the different periods of his art. They will use this knowledge to recreate their favorite Picasso piece or create an original artwork inspired by what they learned. Students will then apply opinion writing techniques to persuade their classmates to purchase their artwork.

 

Learning Targets

GRADE BAND: 2-3
CONTENT FOCUS: VISUAL ARTS & ELA
LESSON DOWNLOADS:

Download PDF of this Lesson

"I Can" Statements

“I Can…”

  • I can convey meaning through my art.
  • I can use color to reflect a personal “period” of art.
  • I can use art terms to tell someone why they should purchase my art.
  • I can explain my personal art “period” and why I chose particular colors and subjects in my art.

Essential Questions

  • What inspired the different periods of Picasso’s art?
  • How does color and style communicate meaning in art?

 

Georgia Standards

Curriculum Standards

Grade 2: 

ELAGSE2RI1 Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.

 

ELAGSE2RI2 Identify the main topic of a multi-paragraph text as well as the focus of specific paragraphs within the text.

 

ELAGSE2W1 Write opinion pieces in which they introduce the topic or book they are writing about, state an opinion, supply reasons that support the opinion, use linking words (e.g., because, and, also) to connect opinion and reasons, and provide a concluding statement or section.

 

Grade 3: 

ELAGSE3RI1 Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.

 

ELAGSE3RI2 Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea.

 

ELAGSE3W1 Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons. a. Introduce the topic or book they are writing about, state an opinion, and create an organizational structure that lists reasons. b. Provide reasons that support the opinion. c. Use linking words and phrases (e.g., because, therefore, since, for example) to connect opinion and reasons. d. Provide a concluding statement or section.

Arts Standards

Grade 2: 

VA2.CR.1 Engage in the creative process to generate and visualize ideas by using subject matter and symbols to communicate meaning.

VA2.CR.2 Create works of art based on selected themes.

VA2.CR.3 Understand and apply media, techniques, and processes of two-dimensional art.

VA2.CN.2 Integrate information from other disciplines to enhance the understanding and production of works of art.

 

Grade 3: 

VA3.CR.1 Engage in the creative process to generate and visualize ideas by using subject matter and symbols to communicate meaning.

VA3.CR.2 Create works of art based on selected themes.

VA3.CR.3 Understand and apply media, techniques, and processes of two-dimensional art.

VA3.CN.2 Integrate information from other disciplines to enhance the understanding and production of works of art.

 

South Carolina Standards

Curriculum Standards

Grade 2: 

ELA.2.AOR.2.2 Identify and explain a central idea and supporting details in an informational text.

 

ELA.2.C.1.1 Write opinion pieces about a topic. When writing: a. introduce an opinion and include reasons with details to support the opinion; b. use grade-appropriate transitions; and c. provide a concluding statement.

 

Grade 3: 

ELA.3.AOR.2.2 Determine and explain a stated central idea and supporting details in an informational text.

 

ELA.3.C.1.1 Write opinion pieces about a topic. When writing: a. introduce a topic; include an opinion statement; b. include reasons supported by details from a provided source; c. use grade-appropriate transitions to link ideas; d. organize information; and e. provide a concluding statement.

Arts Standards

Anchor Standard 1: I can use the elements and principles of art to create artwork.

Anchor Standard 2: I can use different materials, techniques, and processes to make art. 

Anchor Standard 5: I can interpret and evaluate the meaning of an artwork.

Anchor Standard 7: I can relate visual arts ideas to other arts disciplines, content areas, and careers.

 

Key Vocabulary

Content Vocabulary

  • Opinion writing - A form of writing in which the author expresses their personal beliefs, thoughts, or feelings about a particular topic or issue
  • Informational text - A type of nonfiction writing that conveys facts, details, and information about a particular subject
  • Biography - A detailed account of a person's life, written by someone else

Arts Vocabulary

  • Mood - A state or quality of feeling at a particular time
  • Cubism - The name given to the painting style invented by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque between 1906 and 1914. Cubists used multiple views of objects to create the effect of their three-dimensionality, while acknowledging the two-dimensional surface of the picture plane.
  • Abstract - Non-objective art, art that utilizes shape, color and texture, without representing real objects
  • Organic/free form shapes - Shapes without straight lines; irregular shapes
  • Geometric shapes - Precise and regular shapes that are defined by mathematical principles
  • Color - The element that is produced when light, striking an object, is reflected back to the eye. It is one of the fundamental elements of art and plays a crucial role in creating mood, expressing emotion, and conveying messages. Color in art can be understood and manipulated through various properties:
    • Hue: The name of a color (e.g., red, blue, yellow).
    • Value: The lightness or darkness of a color.
    • Saturation (or intensity): The purity or brightness of a color

 

Materials

 

Instructional Design

Opening/Activating Strategy

Teacher note: This lesson uses Pablo Picasso as the artist of study, but any established artist can be used as a substitute.

 

  • Project an image of one of Pablo Picasso’s artworks, such as “The Visit (The Two Sisters)” on the board.
  • Ask students to work collaboratively to engage in the See, Think, Wonder Artful Thinking Routine.
    • First, students will identify what they see in the image. Emphasize that they should make objective observations about the image (i.e. physical features, colors, textures, etc.).
    • Next, ask students to identify what they think about the image. Emphasize that students should be creating inferences using visual evidence from the image.
    • Finally, ask students what they wonder about the image.
  • Facilitate a class-wide discussion around students’ observations, inferences, and questions.

Work Session

Part 1 – Building Background

  • In guided reading groups (or as a whole group), read and discuss the life of Pablo Picasso.
  • Share the following biographical information with students.
    • Picasso was born Oct 25, 1881, in Malaga, Spain.
    • Picasso’s father was a painter and recognized that Picasso was much better than him by the time he was 13.
    • Picasso’s paintings often depicted and mirrored his life and what he observed.
    • Picasso settled in Paris in 1904. He was fascinated by the city’s Bohemian streets. He often expressed human suffering by portraying blind figures and beggars in his paintings.
    • It was at this time that he also experienced the death of a close friend. Because of this, he started using various shades of blue in his work for the next few years.
      • This period was called Picasso’s Blue Period (1901-1904).
      • Show students an image of one of the paintings from his Blue Period, such as “The Old Guitarist”. Ask students what they think the mood of the painting is and why. Ask them how color plays a role in the mood.
    • In 1905-06, Picasso met Fernande Olivier, the first of many companions to influence the theme, style, and the mood of his work.
    • This happy relationship changed his palette to pinks and reds, bringing in distinctive beige or "rose" tones. The subject matter also is less depressing. This period became known as his Rose Period.
    • Here are the first appearances by the circus performers and clowns, which he visited several times a week, and appear often in later stages of his career.
      • Show students an image of one of the paintings from his Rose Period, such as “Seated Harlequin”. Ask them how the warm colors in this painting create a different mood that the blues in “The Old Guitarist”.
    • In late 1906, Picasso started to paint in a unique manner that was inspired by Cezanne’s flattened depiction of space and his friend Georges Braque.
    • Picasso began to express space in strongly geometrical terms.
      • Show students an image of a painting from his Cubist Period, such as “Three Musicians”. Ask students how the figures look different in this image than in the previous two images that they looked at.
    • These initial efforts at developing this almost sculptural sense of space in painting are the beginnings of Cubism.
    • By the late '30s, Picasso was the most famous artist in the world. He was called upon to depict the brutality of fascist aggression in the Spanish Civil War with his monumental "Guernica" painting. Many other paintings from this period reflect the horror of war.
    • Pablo Picasso died on April 8, 1973.

 

Part 2 – Creating Artwork

  • View several different pieces of Picasso’s artwork from the different periods or go back to the three works that students looked at in the previous session, and discuss how they are different and why (students should recognize the Rose Period, Blue Period, and Cubist Period of his work).
  • Discuss how tone and color change the “mood” of a piece of artwork and discuss how it conveys a message.
  • Discuss geometry in Picasso’s cubist artwork and how he found beauty in the oddity of the shapes.
    • How does cubism relate to 3-D objects and paintings?
    • What effect do you think he was trying to achieve?
  • Tell students that they will be creating art inspired by Picasso.
  • There are three variations to the artwork students can create:
    • Option 1: Ask students to think of something in their own personal life that they would like to represent. Have students create their own “art period” and give it a color. Remind students how color reflects mood, so the colors they choose should reflect the mood of what they are representing.
    • Option 2: Have students recreate one of Picasso’s pieces. They will reinterpret it using their own “art period”, like Picasso’s Blue Period. Have students analyze how their interpretation is different and changes the mood of the artwork.
    • Option 3: Have students draw a person using geometric shapes. Then have them cut it up and glue it in collage style to represent the cubist style.

 

Part 3 – Persuasive Writing

  • Tell students that many famous artists whose work is worth millions of dollars now, originally were not popular and often struggled to make a living.
  • Tell students that they will be writing to persuade an important art collector to purchase the piece of artwork they just created.
    • Students’ writing should:
      • Explain the reasons why someone should buy their artwork using the art concepts that they used, such as the personal “art period”, Cubism, geometric shapes, etc.
      • Explain their personal “art period” and why they chose particular colors and subjects in their piece.
      • Use linking words and phrases (e.g., because, therefore, since, for example) and transitions to connect opinion and reasons.
      • Include a conclusion.

 

Closing Reflection

  • Students should share their artwork with a partner. Their partner will imagine themselves to be a wealthy art collector. They will try to persuade their partner to purchase their artwork using the information in their writing. Students should not read their artwork but should focus on communication skills through conversation.
  • Debrief the process with students and ask if anyone was persuaded to purchase the artwork. Ask them to explain why.
  • Finish the lesson with two “glows” and a “grow”. Ask students to identify two things they did well/were proud of themselves for and one thing they would like to do differently next time they do a lesson like this.

 

Assessments

Formative

Teachers will assess students’ understanding of the content throughout the lesson by observing students’ participation in the activator, discussion of the life and background of Pablo Picasso to determine students’ comprehension, discussion of Picasso’s artworks from different periods, individual artmaking process, and conferencing with students during the writing process.

 

Summative

CHECKLIST

  • Students can convey their meaning through their art.
  • Students can explain the reasons why someone should buy their artwork using the art concepts that they used, such as the personal “art period”, Cubism, geometric shapes, etc.
  • Students can explain how they conveyed meaning in their artwork.

 

 

DIFFERENTIATION 

Acceleration: Encourage students to research famous artists to see who was known for creating both 2-D (such as drawing and painting) and 3-D (such as sculpture) art pieces (including but not limited to artists such as DaVinci, Van Gogh, and Jackson Pollock. They can create a digital presentation, such as a PowerPoint, that shows pictures of the artist’s 2-D and 3-D art. Students can then reinterpret their 2-D artwork in a 3-D style that reflects one of the chosen artists.

Remediation: When presenting information about Picasso, provide the students with video as well as books for the more visual/auditory learners. Have the vocabulary terms posted visually for the students, with examples of each. When creating the artwork, use developmentally-appropriate terms to describe the mood of the artwork.

ESOL Modifications and Adaptations: ESOL students will need to look at the additional artwork on the different artists and discuss the mood (feeling in the art work) and period (time from when the artwork was created) to make sure they understand the context. For the opinion writing piece, the students will orally persuade someone to purchase the piece of artwork created by the student.

 

 ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

 

*This integrated lesson provides differentiated ideas and activities for educators that are aligned to a sampling of standards. Standards referenced at the time of publishing may differ based on each state’s adoption of new standards.

Ideas contributed by: Whitney Jones. Modifications, Extensions, and Adaptations Contributed by: Candy Bennett, Patty Bickell, Vilma Thomas, and Lori Young. Reviewed by Debbie Frost. Updated by: Katy Betts.

Revised and copyright: August 2024 @ ArtsNOW

 

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Theatrical Teamwork 2-3

THEATRICAL TEAMWORK

THEATRICAL TEAMWORK

Learning Description

Challenge your students in a brand new way as they work collaboratively to explore critical thinking, creative problem solving, and team work with basic theatrical techniques!

 

Learning Targets

GRADE BAND: 2-3
CONTENT FOCUS: THEATRE & ELA
LESSON DOWNLOADS:

Download PDF of this Lesson

"I Can" Statements

“I Can…”

  • I can collaborate with others to accomplish a goal.
  • I can interact with others to explore ideas and concepts, communicate meaning, and develop ideas through collaborative conversations.
  • I can build upon the ideas of others to clearly express my own views while respecting the ideas of others.

Essential Questions

  • How can theatre techniques help us collaborate with each other?
  • How can working together help us accomplish our goals?

 

Georgia Standards

Curriculum Standards

Grade 2: 

ELAGSE2SL1 Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about grade 2 topics and texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups.

  1. Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., gaining the floor in respectful ways, listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about the topics and texts under discussion). b. Build on others’ talk in conversations by linking their comments to the remarks of others.

 

ELAGSE2SL3 Ask and answer questions about what a speaker says in order to clarify comprehension, gather additional information, or deepen understanding of a topic or issue.

 

Grade 3:

ELAGSE3SL1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 3 topics and texts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.

  1. Follow agreed-upon rules for discussions (e.g., gaining the floor in respectful ways, listening to others with care, speaking one at a time about the topics and texts under discussion). c. Ask questions to check understanding of information presented, stay on topic, and link their comments to the remarks of others. d. Explain their own ideas and understanding in light of the discussion.

 

ELAGSE3SL3 Ask and answer questions about information from a speaker, offering appropriate elaboration and detail.

 

Arts Standards

Grade 2:

TA2.PR.1 Act by communicating and sustaining roles in formal and informal environments.

 

Grade 3:

TA3.PR.1 Act by communicating and sustaining roles in formal and informal environments.

 

 

 

South Carolina Standards

Curriculum Standards

Grade 2: 

COMMUNICATION - Meaning and Context

Standard 1: Interact with others to explore ideas and concepts, communicate meaning, and develop logical interpretations through collaborative conversations; build upon the ideas of others to clearly express one’s own views while respecting diverse perspectives.

1.2 Apply the skills of taking turns, listening to others, and speaking clearly.

1.3 Apply verbal and nonverbal techniques including volume and tone, eye contact, facial expressions, and posture.

1.4 Participate in shared conversations with varied partners about focused grade level topics and texts in small and large groups.

1.5 Explain personal ideas and build on the ideas of others by responding and relating to comments made in multiple exchanges.

 

Grade 3: 

COMMUNICATION - Meaning and Context

Standard 1: Interact with others to explore ideas and concepts, communicate meaning, and develop logical interpretations through collaborative conversations; build upon the ideas of others to clearly express one’s own views while respecting diverse perspectives.

1.1 Explore and create meaning through conversation and interaction with peers and adults.

1.2 Participate in discussions; ask questions to acquire information concerning a topic, text, or issue.

1.3 Apply techniques of articulation, adequate volume, eye contact, facial expressions, posture, gestures, and space; take one’s own turn in a respectful way.

1.4 Engage in focused conversations about grade appropriate topics and texts; build on ideas of others to clarify thinking and express new thoughts.

1.5 Explain personal ideas and build on the ideas of others by responding and relating to comments made in multiple exchanges.

 

 

Arts Standards

Anchor Standard 3: I can act in improvised scenes and written scripts.

Anchor Standard 8: I can relate theatre to other content areas, arts disciplines, and careers.

 

 

 

Key Vocabulary

Content Vocabulary

  • Collaboration - The process of two or more people working together to achieve a common goal by sharing knowledge, learning, and building consensus
  • Diverse perspectives - The variety of viewpoints, experiences, and ideas that individuals from different backgrounds, cultures, and life experiences bring to a discussion or decision-making process

Arts Vocabulary

  • Theater - Dramatic literature or its performance; drama
  • Voice – An actor’s tool, which we shape and change to portray the way a character speaks or sounds
  • Body – An actor’s tool, which we shape and change to portray the way a character looks, walks, or moves
  • Improvisation - A creation that is spoken or written without prior preparation
  • Ensemble - All the parts of a thing taken together, so that each part is considered
  • Conductor - The director of an orchestra or symphony
  • Signal - Non-verbal cue

 

Materials

  • Whiteboard
  • Markers
  • Blank index cards
  • Clipboards, paper and pencils
  • Balloon or beach ball

 

Instructional Design

Opening/Activating Strategy

Classroom Tips: This activity works best in an open space with chairs around the perimeter of the room. 

 

  • Start with a general physical warm-up to get the students' bodies ready. Use exercises such as:
    • Stretching: Stretch all major muscle groups.
    • Shaking Out Limbs: Shake out arms, legs, and the whole body to release tension.
    • Energy Passes: Stand in a circle and pass a clap or a simple motion around to build group focus and energy.
  • UP IN THE AIR: This ensemble building warm-up is a good exercise to keep coming back to throughout the year. You will see how your students start to work as a team as the school year passes. You can use a plastic cup, balloon, beach ball, etc. for this activity.
    • Arrange students in a circle.
    • Explain that the goal of the activity is to keep the balloon or ball in the air. The balloon/ball cannot hit the floor. A player cannot hit the balloon/ball twice in a row.
    • Ask students to help you come up with some guidelines for the game. All players must agree on the guidelines. Post these where the class can see them (such as written or typed on a smart board).
    • Tap a balloon or beach ball into the air!
    • Allow students to continue tapping the balloon or ball without the cup hitting the floor. (No one can hit the cup two times in a row, but he or she can hit the cup more than once in the sequence.)
    • All students must audibly count to ten; the goal is to keep the cup from hitting the floor before the number ten is reached. If the cup hits the floor, the process must be repeated.
    • At the end of the activity, ask students to reflect on how they had to work together to achieve their goal.

 

Work Session

ORCHESTRAL THEATER: This exercise invites students to discover the actor or actress within!

  • Ask students to define the word conductor. Ask students for some examples of conductors (e.g., Bach, Debussy, Liszt, Beethoven).
  • Discuss this role and identify what signals he/she uses to tell the musicians to slow down, speed up, get louder and softer, and eventually stop. If time permits, show students a segment of an orchestral performance and discuss the body language, postures, signals, etc. that students notice.
  • Arrange students in groups of five. One student will be the conductor and the other four will be the orchestra.
  • Tell the students who are the conductors to think of a name for themselves.
  • One at a time, each conductor will come forward and choose four cards.
  • Each card will have a topic with suggestions for unusual instruments (drumbeat on a cup, etc.).
  • The conductor will give each member of his or her orchestra one of the peculiar instruments to play or be. The conductor may use the suggestions on the card or make up his/her own instrument. 
  • The orchestra members will use a sound and a movement to create/play this instrument. Give students a designated amount of time to create a musical composition.
  • Tell students that the conductor will need to use signals to indicate whether the orchestra members should play faster or slower, louder or quieter, simultaneously or individually (eye contact and focus are important for both the conductor and the instruments). They cannot use words.
  • Finally, the conductor and orchestra will generate a name for the piece of music.
  • Each group will perform their musical composition for the class. Teacher note: Discuss appropriate audience participation and etiquette prior to performances.
  • The conductor should introduce him or herself with their chosen name and the name of the composition.
  • After the performance, all students should take a bow and the audience should applaud.
  • Debrief the process with students asking questions such as what was easy about the exercise and what was challenging. Was it easy or hard to lead (the conductor)? To follow (the orchestra)? Why?

GROUP POEM: This exercise allows students to vocalize their thoughts as a group. It enhances and strengthens the ensemble. The poem can be based on any theme that you wish to explore with your students. You can tie your theme to a particular issue that your class is dealing with, a unit of study, or an attribute that you are exploring.

 

Theme based:

  • Have students sit in a circle.
  • Discuss what it means to collaborate and respect diverse opinions. Ask students for examples of what this might look like. Establish agreed-upon guidelines for the activity and post them somewhere that everyone can see so that the class can refer back to them if needed.
  • Tell students to call out the first thing that comes to their minds when you say a particular word such as ”heart”.  Listen for answers and then call out another word such as “love”.
  • Once the students feel free to talk and explore, head toward the theme. (Option: Start with low-stakes words such as “candy” to help the group get comfortable sharing. Then, transition to deeper words like “heart” or “love”.)
  • Tell students that now you are going to start a phrase and they should finish it for you (based on your chosen theme).
    • Examples: “It's hard to be honest when……” or “Forgiveness is…..”
  • Write down answers as they are called out. Make sure to scribe word for word.
  • Read the title (“Forgiveness is”) and then read all of the student’s comments aloud in poem form.
  • Type the poem up and distribute it to students on the following day.

 

Person to Person:

  • Discuss what it means to collaborate and respect diverse opinions. Ask students for examples of what this might look like. Establish agreed-upon guidelines for the activity and post them somewhere that everyone can see so that the class can refer back to them if needed.
  • Say to students, “We all have things we want to tell people in our lives but don’t always feel comfortable saying to them in person. if you could say anything to a particular person (ie, your mother, father, teacher, friend, president, etc.) Who would you speak to?”
  • Allow time for students to reflect.
  • Say to students, “Let's all talk to the same person today–to tell that person something that you don’t feel comfortable telling them face to face or you just haven’t ever told them for some reason.”
  • Ask students, “Who are some people you might want to talk to?”. Allow time for answers and write them down.
  • Tell students that now you will take a vote to see who we will all talk to today.
  • Call out a list and have everyone vote one time.
  • Teacher: “Today we are going to talk to…..(the principal). Let’s title our poem, “Students to Principal”.” (Insert the appropriate people based on your students and the person they voted to talk to.)
  • Ask students to now close their eyes and think about standing in front of this person, face to face. Ask students to volunteer to share with the group what they would say to them.
  • Write down answers as they are called out. Make sure to scribe word for word.
  • Read the title (“Students to Principal”) and then read all of the student’s comments aloud in poem form.
  • Type the poem up and distribute it to students on the following day.

 

Closing Reflection

  • Allow students to reflect on the process with a 3-2-1 ticket out the door. Students should write three things that interested them about the process, two things they noticed about themselves or that were challenging for them in the process, and one question or comment they have about the process.
  • Provide time for students to either share with the whole class or with a partner.

 

Assessments

Formative

Teachers will assess students’ understanding of the content throughout the lesson by observing students’ participation in the activator, contributions to group activities, and collaboration with classmates.

 

Summative

CHECKLIST

  • Students can collaborate with others to accomplish a goal (up in the air, orchestral theatre and collaborative poems).
  • Students can interact with others to explore ideas and concepts, communicate meaning, and develop ideas through collaborative conversations.
  • Students can build upon the ideas of others to clearly express their own views while respecting the perspectives of others.

 

 

DIFFERENTIATION 

Acceleration: 

  • Arrange students in collaborative groups for poems so that students can work at their own pace.
  • Have students complete a written reflection that builds upon the 3-2-1 ticket out the door.
  • Let this lesson launch into a narrative writing piece about a time that students had to use teamwork and collaboration to accomplish a goal.

Remediation: 

  • Spend time unpacking the activities with examples. Provide examples of responses for the group poem and the person to person poem.
  • Arrange students in collaborative groups so that students can work at their own pace.

 

*This integrated lesson provides differentiated ideas and activities for educators that are aligned to a sampling of standards. Standards referenced at the time of publishing may differ based on each state’s adoption of new standards.

Ideas contributed by: Susie Spear Purcell. Updated by Katy Betts.

Revised and copyright: July 2024 @ ArtsNOW

 

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